When the Aiken Foxhounds suit up for their second season of independent baseball this spring, they'll compete with only three opponents for a South Coast League title.

On Saturday, the South Coast League announced it will field four teams for the 2008 season. The league, which included six teams in its debut season, lost the Bradenton Juice earlier this offseason after they spent their first year as a traveling team.

The Juice were to be replaced with an expansion team in Jackson, Miss., this season, but the league elected to hold off on expansion for a year after another team, the Charlotte County Redfish, announced it had to shut down for the 2008 season because of renovations to its stadium.

The league plans to field as many as eight teams in 2009 after the Redfish return and two more possible expansion teams join the Jackson team.

"We're making sure we're setting ourselves up for the future," said J.D. Hardin, chief development officer of the South Coast League. "The four teams are in four strong markets, and in doing this it'll give us a better chance to go to eight teams next year."

While the news came as a setback to the South Coast League, Aiken Foxhounds general manager Bradley Bell said Foxhounds fans shouldn't be alarmed.

"Nothing to worry about," he said. "That's the interesting part with independent baseball in general. You never know what's going to happen from year to year.

"We're still ready for our second year. We're still going to participate."

Reach Billy Byler at (706) 823-3216 or billy.byler@augustachronicle.com.