1946 Major League Baseball season
The 1946 Major League Baseball season. Due to the end of World War II many drafted ballplayers returned to the majors and the quality of play greatly improved.
| 1946 MLB season | |
|---|---|
| League | Major League Baseball |
| Sport | Baseball |
| Duration | April 16 – October 15, 1946 |
| Regular season | |
| Season champions | AL: Boston Red Sox NL: St. Louis Cardinals |
| Season MVP | AL: Ted Williams (BSR) NL: Stan Musial (SLC) |
| World Series | |
| Champions | St. Louis Cardinals |
| Runners-up | Boston Red Sox |
Events
- May 18 – The Chicago Cubs become the first team in Major League history to score six runs in the first and ninth innings of a game, when defeating the New York Giants 19–3.[1]
- June 9 – Mel Ott of the New York Giants is the first manager to be ejected from both games of a doubleheader, when the Giants lose both games to the Pittsburgh Pirates.[2]
Awards and honors
- Baseball Hall of Fame
- MLB Most Valuable Player Award
- The Sporting News Player of the Year Award
- The Sporting News Manager of the Year Award
Final standings
American League final standings
| American League | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boston Red Sox | 104 | 50 | 0.675 | — | 61–16 | 43–34 |
| Detroit Tigers | 92 | 62 | 0.597 | 12 | 48–30 | 44–32 |
| New York Yankees | 87 | 67 | 0.565 | 17 | 47–30 | 40–37 |
| Washington Senators | 76 | 78 | 0.494 | 28 | 38–38 | 38–40 |
| Chicago White Sox | 74 | 80 | 0.481 | 30 | 40–38 | 34–42 |
| Cleveland Indians | 68 | 86 | 0.442 | 36 | 36–41 | 32–45 |
| St. Louis Browns | 66 | 88 | 0.429 | 38 | 35–41 | 31–47 |
| Philadelphia Athletics | 49 | 105 | 0.318 | 55 | 31–46 | 18–59 |
National League final standings
| National League | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Louis Cardinals | 98 | 58 | 0.628 | — | 49–29 | 49–29 |
| Brooklyn Dodgers | 96 | 60 | 0.615 | 2 | 56–22 | 40–38 |
| Chicago Cubs | 82 | 71 | 0.536 | 14½ | 44–33 | 38–38 |
| Boston Braves | 81 | 72 | 0.529 | 15½ | 45–31 | 36–41 |
| Philadelphia Phillies | 69 | 85 | 0.448 | 28 | 41–36 | 28–49 |
| Cincinnati Reds | 67 | 87 | 0.435 | 30 | 35–42 | 32–45 |
| Pittsburgh Pirates | 63 | 91 | 0.409 | 34 | 37–40 | 26–51 |
| New York Giants | 61 | 93 | 0.396 | 36 | 38–39 | 23–54 |
Managers
American League
| Team | Manager | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| Boston Red Sox | Joe Cronin | |
| Chicago White Sox | Jimmy Dykes and Ted Lyons | |
| Cleveland Indians | Lou Boudreau | |
| Detroit Tigers | Del Baker | |
| New York Yankees | Joe McCarthy, Bill Dickey and Johnny Neun | |
| Philadelphia Athletics | Connie Mack | |
| St. Louis Browns | Luke Sewell and Zack Taylor | |
| Washington Senators | Ossie Bluege |
National League
| Team | Manager | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| Boston Braves | Billy Southworth | |
| Brooklyn Dodgers | Leo Durocher | |
| Chicago Cubs | Charlie Grimm | |
| Cincinnati Reds | Bill McKechnie and Hank Gowdy | |
| New York Giants | Mel Ott | |
| Philadelphia Phillies | Ben Chapman | |
| Pittsburgh Pirates | Frankie Frisch and Spud Davis | |
| St. Louis Cardinals | Eddie Dyer |
National League playoff series
The National League pennant race ended in a tie between the St. Louis Cardinals and Brooklyn Dodgers and was decided by an unprecedented best-of-three playoff. St. Louis won the series, 2–0.
World Series
The World Series began on October 6 and pitted the Boston Red Sox against the St. Louis Cardinals. The Cardinals won in 7 games.
See also
References
- "Elias Says..." ESPN.com. Retrieved October 9, 2012.
- Pellowski, Michael J (2007). The Little Giant Book of Baseball Facts. United States: Sterling Publishing Co. pp. 352. ISBN 9781402742736.
Further reading
- Weintraub, Robert (2013) The Victory Season: The End of World War II and the Birth of Baseball's Golden Age. New York: Little, Brown & Company. ISBN 978-0-316-20591-7.
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