1939 Major League Baseball season

The 1939 Major League Baseball season. The New York Yankees became the first team to win the World Series four years in a row.

This article is about the 1939 Major League Baseball season only. For information on all of baseball, see 1939 in baseball.

1939 MLB season
League	Major League Baseball
Sport	Baseball
Duration	April 17 – October 8, 1939
Regular season
Season champions	AL: New York Yankees NL: Cincinnati Reds
Season MVP	AL: Joe DiMaggio (NYY) NL: Bucky Walters (CIN)
World Series
Champions	New York Yankees
Runners-up	Cincinnati Reds

Awards and honors

• Baseball Hall of Fame
  • George Sisler
  • Lou Gehrig
  • Eddie Collins
  • Willie Keeler
• Most Valuable Player
  • Joe DiMaggio, New York Yankees, OF (AL)
  • Bucky Walters, Cincinnati Reds, P (NL)
• The Sporting News Player of the Year Award
  • Joe DiMaggio, New York Yankees, OF
• The Sporting News Most Valuable Player Award
  • Joe DiMaggio, New York Yankees, OF
  • Bucky Walters, Cincinnati Reds, P
• The Sporting News Manager of the Year Award
  • Leo Durocher, Brooklyn Dodgers

Statistical leaders

American League National League Type Name Stat Name Stat AVG Joe DiMaggio NYY .381 Johnny Mize SLC .349 HR Jimmie Foxx BSR 35 Johnny Mize SLC 28 RBI Ted Williams BSR 145 Frank McCormick CIN 128 Wins Bob Feller CLE 24 Bucky Walters CIN 27 ERA Lefty Grove BSR 2.54 Bucky Walters CIN 2.29 SO Bob Feller CLE 246 Claude Passeau PHP/CHC Bucky Walters CIN 137 SV Johnny Murphy NYY 19 Bob Bowman SLC Clyde Shoun SLC 9 SB George Case WSH 51 Stan Hack CHC Lee Handley PIT 17

Major league baseball final standings

American League final standings

American League	W	L	Pct.	GB	Home	Road
New York Yankees	106	45	0.702	—	52–25	54–20
Boston Red Sox	89	62	0.589	17	42–32	47–30
Cleveland Indians	87	67	0.565	20½	44–33	43–34
Chicago White Sox	86	69	0.555	22	50–27	36–42
Detroit Tigers	81	73	0.526	26½	42–35	39–38
Washington Senators	65	88	0.425	42	37–40	28–48
Philadelphia Athletics	55	97	0.362	51½	28–48	27–49
St. Louis Browns	43	111	0.279	64½	18–59	25–52

National League final standings

National League	W	L	Pct.	GB	Home	Road
Cincinnati Reds	97	57	0.630	—	55–25	42–32
St. Louis Cardinals	92	61	0.601	4½	51–27	41–34
Brooklyn Dodgers	84	69	0.549	12½	51–27	33–42
Chicago Cubs	84	70	0.545	13	44–34	40–36
New York Giants	77	74	0.510	18½	41–33	36–41
Pittsburgh Pirates	68	85	0.444	28½	35–42	33–43
Boston Bees	63	88	0.417	32½	37–35	26–53
Philadelphia Phillies	45	106	0.298	50½	29–44	16–62

Managers

American League

Team	Manager	Comments
Boston Red Sox	Joe Cronin
Chicago White Sox	Jimmy Dykes
Cleveland Indians	Ossie Vitt
Detroit Tigers	Del Baker
New York Yankees	Joe McCarthy
Philadelphia Athletics	Connie Mack
St. Louis Browns	Fred Haney
Washington Senators	Bucky Harris

National League

Team	Manager	Comments
Boston Braves	Casey Stengel
Brooklyn Dodgers	Leo Durocher
Chicago Cubs	Gabby Hartnett
Cincinnati Reds	Bill McKechnie
New York Giants	Bill Terry
Philadelphia Phillies	Doc Prothro
Pittsburgh Pirates	Pie Traynor
St. Louis Cardinals	Ray Blades

Events

• January 24 – George Sisler, Eddie Collins and Willie Keeler are elected to the Hall of Fame by the Baseball Writers' Association of America.
• April 20 – The Boston Red Sox show off their prize rookie Ted Williams before 30,278 in Opening Day at Yankee Stadium, delayed two days because of rain. After striking out twice, Williams collects a double off pitcher Red Ruffing, who wins 2–0. Yankees first baseman Lou Gehrig makes an error, goes hitless, and lines into two double plays in the only game featuring the two great sluggers. Other notables in what will become a historic box score include Joe DiMaggio, Bill Dickey, Jimmie Foxx, Joe Cronin, Bobby Doerr, Red Rolfe, and losing pitcher Lefty Grove. The Yankees score their first run on a home run by Dickey and their second tally on an error by Foxx. Boston has baserunners in each inning, but Ruffing tosses just the second opening day shutout in Yankees history. Four umpires work the game including third base umpire George Pipgras, the starting pitcher for the Yankees in the 1929 opener; his opponent for the Red Sox that day was Ruffing.
• April 21 – Ted Williams plays his first game at Fenway Park, scoring the first run for the Boston Red Sox on a Frankie Hayes passed ball, in a Boston 9–2 victory over the Philadelphia Athletics.
• April 23 – In a Philadelphia Athletics 12–8 win over the Boston Red Sox, Ted Williams connects his first major league home run against pitcher Bud Thomas while going 4-for-5.
• April 29 – In the seventh game of the season, New York Yankees center fielder Joe DiMaggio makes a sharp turn while fielding a liner facing the Washington Senators and tears muscles in his right foot. The Yankees lose the game and DiMaggio will miss the next 35 games.
• April 30 – Lou Gehrig goes hitless in four at-bats against the Washington Senators and is now hitting just .143 this season. He had just played his 2,130th consecutive major league game. No one knew it would be the very last of his career.
• May 4 – The mother of Cleveland Indians pitcher Bob Feller watches her son pitch for the first time, against the Chicago White Sox. Chicago player Marv Owen fouled a pitch into the stands which knocked her out. She recovered, but would need stitches to close the wound.[1]
• July 4 – Lou Gehrig day was held at Yankee Stadium. Numerous people, including many from other major league teams, came forward to give Gehrig gifts and to shower praise on the dying slugger. The Yankees retired his uniform number 4; the first player in major league history to be afforded that honor. Babe Ruth even showed up and ended their long-standing feud by giving his old teammate a hug. After the presentations, Gehrig approached the microphone, and addressed the crowd: "Fans, for the past two weeks you have been reading about a bad break I got. Yet today, I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth. I have been to ballparks for seventeen years and I have never received anything but kindness and encouragement from you fans."
• July 11 – In the first of three times that the All-Star Game has been held at Yankee Stadium, the American League defeats the National League, 3–1, behind pitchers Red Ruffing, Tommy Bridges, and Bob Feller, and a home run by Joe DiMaggio.
• July 25 – Yankees pitcher Atley Donald sets a league record for consecutive wins by a rookie, bringing his record to 12–0 with a 5–1 victory over the St. Louis Browns.
• July 26 – The New York Yankees tied a major league record by scoring in every inning against the St. Louis Browns. Bill Dickey hit three home runs in the 14–1 win.
• August 9 – Red Rolfe of the New York Yankees started a streak of 18 consecutive games in which he scored at least one run. During those games, he scored a total of 30 runs.
• August 26 – The first Major League game to be televised occurs, when WXBS-TV broadcasts the game between the Cincinnati Reds and the Brooklyn Dodgers at Ebbets Field.[2]
• October 8 – The New York Yankees win Game Four of the World Series to clinch the four-game sweep against the Cincinnati Reds.
• December 6 – In a trade of veteran shortstops, or "worn-out shortstops", as one newspaper described it, the Chicago Cubs acquire Billy Rogell from the Detroit Tigers for Dick Bartell. Rogell, who injured his arm playing handball the previous year, hits just .136 before hanging up his spikes. The Tigers will release "Rowdy Richard" five games into the 1941 season, but he will stick with the New York Giants until 1946.

Deaths

Barney Pelty

• January 13 – Jacob Ruppert, 71, Yankees owner since 1914
• January 19 – Cliff Heathcote, 40, NL outfielder who batted .275 over 15 seasons
• January 25 – Abner Dalrymple, 81, star outfielder of the 1880s, leadoff hitter for five Chicago pennant winners
• March 8 – Scott Stratton, 69, pitcher, primarily with Louisville, who posted a 34-win season in 1890 which included 15 straight victories
• March 28 – Fred Goldsmith, 82, pitcher who steadfastly maintained that he had first thrown the curveball in 1870, six years earlier than Candy Cummings, who gained credit for the development
• May 24 – Barney Pelty, 58, pitcher for the St. Louis Browns and one of the first Jewish players in the AL
• June 17 – Allen Sothoron, 46, spitball pitcher who spent most of his career with the St. Louis Browns and Cardinals
• July 7 – Deacon White, 91, star bare-handed catcher and third baseman for six championship teams in the 1870s and 1880s, and the fourth player to collect 1000 hits
• September 25 – Frank LaPorte, 59, infielder who batted .300 three times and led the Federal League in RBIs in 1914
• December 3 – Frank Killen, 69, winner of 164 games from 1891–1900, including two 30-win seasons
• December 18 – Heywood Broun, 51, sportswriter and editor in New York City since the early 1910s
• December 26 – Clyde Engle, 55, utility player who scored the tying run for Boston in the 10th inning of Game 8 of the 1912 World Series, after his earlier pop fly had been dropped

References

1. "Brief Record". goldenrankings.com. Retrieved November 29, 2014.
2. Pellowski, Michael J (2007). The Little Giant Book of Baseball Facts. United States: Sterling Publishing Co. pp. 352. ISBN 9781402742736.

External links

• 1939 Major League Baseball season schedule at Baseball Reference