1948 Major League Baseball season

1948 MLB season
LeagueAmerican League (AL)
National League (NL)
SportBaseball
DurationRegular season:
  • April 19 – October 4, 1948 (AL)
  • April 19 – October 3, 1948 (NL)
World Series:
  • October 6–11, 1948
Games154
Teams16 (8 per league)
Regular season
Season MVPAL: Lou Boudreau (CLE)
NL: Stan Musial (STL)
AL championsCleveland Indians
  AL runners-upBoston Red Sox
NL championsBoston Braves
  NL runners-upSt. Louis Cardinals
World Series
Venue
ChampionsCleveland Indians
  Runners-upBoston Braves
Locations of teams for the 1942–1953 American League seasons
American League

The 1948 major league baseball season began on April 19, 1948. The regular season ended on October 4, with the Boston Braves and Cleveland Indians as the regular season champions of the National League and American League, respectively. The Indians won the American League title via a tie-breaker game victory over the Boston Red Sox, after both teams finished their 154-game schedules with identical 96–58 records. This was the second regular season tie-breaker, and saw a change from the previous three-game format to that of a single-game, Game 163. The postseason began with Game 1 of the 45th World Series on October 6 and ended with Game 6 on October 11. The Indians defeated the Braves, four games to two, capturing their second championship in franchise history, since their previous in 1920. Going into the season, the defending World Series champions were the New York Yankees from the 1947 season.

The 15th All-Star Game was held on July 13 at Sportsman's Park in St. Louis, Missouri, hosted by the St. Louis Browns. The American League won, 5–2, for their third straight win.

The 1948 season is notable as being the final season of any Negro league holding major-league status, as per MLB's 2020 designation of Negro leagues. It would be the final season of the Negro National League, while the Negro American League would continue as a minor-league until it ceased play after the 1962 season.

Schedule

The 1948 schedule consisted of 154 games for all teams in the American League and National League, each of which had eight teams. Each team was scheduled to play 22 games against the other seven teams of their respective league. This continued the format put in place since the 1904 season (except for 1919) and would be used until 1961 in the American League and 1962 in the National League.

Opening Day took place on April 19, featuring six teams. The final day of the scheduled regular season was on October 3, which saw all sixteen teams play, continuing the trend from 1946. Due to the Boston Red Sox and Cleveland Indians finishing with the same record of 96–58, a tie-breaker game was scheduled, to be considered an extension of the regular season. The Indians won the Game 163 tie-breaker on October 4. The World Series took place between October 6 and October 11.

Teams

League Team City Ballpark Capacity Manager[1]
American League Boston Red Sox Boston, Massachusetts Fenway Park 35,500 Joe McCarthy
Chicago White Sox Chicago, Illinois Comiskey Park 47,400 Ted Lyons
Cleveland Indians Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland Stadium 78,811 Lou Boudreau
Detroit Tigers Detroit, Michigan Briggs Stadium 58,000 Steve O'Neill
New York Yankees New York, New York Yankee Stadium 67,000 Bucky Harris
Philadelphia Athletics Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Shibe Park 33,166 Connie Mack
St. Louis Browns St. Louis, Missouri Sportsman's Park 34,000 Zack Taylor
Washington Senators Washington, D.C. Griffith Stadium 28,085 Joe Kuhel
National League Boston Braves Boston, Massachusetts Braves Field 37,106 Billy Southworth
Brooklyn Dodgers New York, New York Ebbets Field 34,219 Leo Durocher
Ray Blades
Burt Shotton
Chicago Cubs Chicago, Illinois Wrigley Field 38,396 Charlie Grimm
Cincinnati Reds Cincinnati, Ohio Crosley Field 30,101 Johnny Neun
Bucky Walters
New York Giants New York, New York Polo Grounds 54,500 Mel Ott
Leo Durocher
Philadelphia Phillies Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Shibe Park 33,166 Ben Chapman
Dusty Cooke
Eddie Sawyer
Pittsburgh Pirates Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Forbes Field 33,730 Billy Meyer
St. Louis Cardinals St. Louis, Missouri Sportsman's Park 34,000 Eddie Dyer

Standings

American League

American League
Team W L Pct. GB Home Road
Cleveland Indians 9758 .626 — 48‍–‍30 49‍–‍28
Boston Red Sox 9659 .619 1 55‍–‍23 41‍–‍36
New York Yankees 9460 .610 2½ 50‍–‍27 44‍–‍33
Philadelphia Athletics 8470 .545 12½ 36‍–‍41 48‍–‍29
Detroit Tigers 7876 .506 18½ 39‍–‍38 39‍–‍38
St. Louis Browns 5994 .386 37 34‍–‍42 25‍–‍52
Washington Senators 5697 .366 40 29‍–‍48 27‍–‍49
Chicago White Sox 51101 .336 44½ 27‍–‍48 24‍–‍53

National League

National League
Team W L Pct. GB Home Road
Boston Braves 9162 .595 — 45‍–‍31 46‍–‍31
St. Louis Cardinals 8569 .552 6½ 44‍–‍33 41‍–‍36
Brooklyn Dodgers 8470 .545 7½ 36‍–‍41 48‍–‍29
Pittsburgh Pirates 8371 .539 8½ 47‍–‍31 36‍–‍40
New York Giants 7876 .506 13½ 37‍–‍40 41‍–‍36
Philadelphia Phillies 6688 .429 25½ 32‍–‍44 34‍–‍44
Cincinnati Reds 6489 .418 27 32‍–‍45 32‍–‍44
Chicago Cubs 6490 .416 27½ 35‍–‍42 29‍–‍48

Tie games

7 tie games (3 in AL, 4 in NL), which are not factored into winning percentage or games behind (and were often replayed again) occurred throughout the season.

American League

  • Chicago White Sox, 2
  • Cleveland Indians, 1
  • St. Louis Browns, 2
  • Washington Senators, 1

National League

  • Boston Braves, 1
  • Brooklyn Dodgers, 1
  • Chicago Cubs, 1
  • New York Giants, 1
  • Philadelphia Phillies, 1
  • Pittsburgh Pirates, 2
  • St. Louis Cardinals, 1

Postseason

The postseason began on October 4 and ended on October 11 with the Cleveland Indians defeating the Boston Braves in the 1948 World Series in six games.

Bracket

American League playoff World Series
AL Cleveland 4
AL Cleveland 1 NL Boston Braves 2
AL Boston Red Sox 0

Managerial changes

Off-season

Team Former Manager New Manager
Brooklyn Dodgers Burt Shotton Leo Durocher
Pittsburgh Pirates Bill Burwell Billy Meyer
St. Louis Browns Muddy Ruel Zack Taylor
Washington Senators Ossie Bluege Joe Kuhel

In-season

Team Former Manager New Manager
Brooklyn Dodgers Leo Durocher Ray Blades
Ray Blades Burt Shotton
Cincinnati Reds Johnny Neun Bucky Walters
New York Giants Mel Ott Leo Durocher
Philadelphia Phillies Ben Chapman Dusty Cooke
Dusty Cooke Eddie Sawyer

League leaders

American League

Hitting leaders[2]
Stat Player Total
AVG Ted Williams (BOS) .369
OPS Ted Williams (BOS) 1.112
HR Joe DiMaggio (NYY) 39
RBI Joe DiMaggio (NYY) 155
R Tommy Henrich (NYY) 138
H Bob Dillinger (SLB) 207
SB Bob Dillinger (SLB) 28
Pitching leaders[3]
Stat Player Total
W Hal Newhouser (DET) 21
L Fred Sanford (SLB) 21
ERA Gene Bearden (CLE) 2.43
K Bob Feller (CLE) 164
IP Bob Lemon (CLE) 293.2
SV Russ Christopher (CLE) 17
WHIP Bob Lemon (CLE) 1.226

National League

Hitting leaders[4]
Stat Player Total
AVG Stan Musial (STL) .376
OPS Stan Musial (STL) 1.152
HR Ralph Kiner (PIT)
Johnny Mize (NYG)		 40
RBI Stan Musial (STL) 131
R Stan Musial (STL) 135
H Stan Musial (STL) 230
SB Richie Ashburn (PHI) 32
Pitching leaders[5]
Stat Player Total
W Johnny Sain (BSN) 24
L Dutch Leonard (PHI) 17
ERA Harry Brecheen (STL) 2.24
K Harry Brecheen (STL) 149
IP Johnny Sain (BSN) 314.2
SV Harry Gumbert (CIN) 17
WHIP Harry Brecheen (STL) 1.037

Milestones

Batters

Four home runs in one game

Cycles

Other batting accomplishments

  • George Vico (DET):
    • Becomes the fifth major league player to hit a home run off the first pitch he sees as a major league player against the Chicago White Sox.

Pitchers

No-hitters

  • Bob Lemon (CLE):
    • Lemon threw his first career no-hitter and ninth no-hitter in franchise history, by defeating the Detroit Tigers 2–0 on June 30. Lemon walked three and struck out four.[10]
  • Rex Barney (BRO):
    • Barney threw his first career no-hitter and 10th no-hitter in franchise history, by defeating the New York Giants 2–0 on September 9. Barney walked two and struck out four, throwing 75 strikes on 116 pitches.[11]

Awards and honors

Regular season

Baseball Writers' Association of America Awards
BBWAA Award National League American League
Rookie of the Year Alvin Dark (BSN) —
Most Valuable Player Stan Musial (STL) Lou Boudreau (CLE)

Other awards

The Sporting News Awards
Award National League American League
Player of the Year[12] — Lou Boudreau (CLE)
Pitcher of the Year[13] Johnny Sain (BSN) Bob Lemon (CLE)
Rookie of the Year[14] Richie Ashburn (PHI) —
Manager of the Year[15] Billy Meyer (PIT) —
Executive of the Year[16] — Bill Veeck (CLE)

Baseball Hall of Fame

Home field attendance

Team name Wins %± Home attendance %± Per game
Cleveland Indians[17] 97 21.3% 2,620,627 72.2% 33,172
New York Yankees[18] 94 −3.1% 2,373,901 8.9% 30,830
Detroit Tigers[19] 78 −8.2% 1,743,035 24.7% 22,637
Boston Red Sox[20] 96 15.7% 1,558,798 9.2% 19,985
Pittsburgh Pirates[21] 83 33.9% 1,517,021 18.2% 18,963
New York Giants[22] 78 −3.7% 1,459,269 −8.8% 18,952
Boston Braves[23] 91 5.8% 1,455,439 13.9% 19,151
Brooklyn Dodgers[24] 84 −10.6% 1,398,967 −22.6% 17,935
Chicago Cubs[25] 64 −7.2% 1,237,792 −9.3% 15,869
St. Louis Cardinals[26] 85 −4.5% 1,111,440 −10.9% 14,434
Philadelphia Athletics[27] 84 7.7% 945,076 3.7% 12,274
Cincinnati Reds[28] 64 −12.3% 823,386 −8.5% 10,693
Washington Senators[29] 56 −12.5% 795,254 −6.5% 10,196
Chicago White Sox[30] 51 −27.1% 777,844 −11.3% 10,235
Philadelphia Phillies[31] 66 6.5% 767,429 −15.4% 10,098
St. Louis Browns[32] 59 0.0% 335,564 4.7% 4,415

Retired numbers

See also

References

  1. ↑ "1948 Major League Managers". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved February 5, 2025.
  2. ↑ "1948 American League Batting Leaders". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved February 5, 2025.
  3. ↑ "1948 American League Pitching Leaders". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved February 5, 2025.
  4. ↑ "1948 National League Batting Leaders". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved February 5, 2025.
  5. ↑ "1948 National League Pitching Leaders". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved February 5, 2025.
  6. ↑ "Chicago White Sox vs Philadelphia Athletics Box Score: July 18, 1948". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on January 2, 2026. Retrieved March 13, 2026.
  7. ↑ "New York Yankees 13, Chicago White Sox 2". Retrosheet.org. May 20, 1948. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved September 10, 2011.
  8. ↑ "Pittsburgh Pirates 10, Brooklyn Dodgers 5". Retrosheet.org. July 30, 2011. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved September 10, 2011.
  9. ↑ "Brooklyn Dodgers 12, St. Louis Cardinals 7 (1)". Retrosheet.org. August 29, 1948. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved September 10, 2011.
  10. ↑ "Cleveland Indians vs Detroit Tigers Box Score: June 30, 1948". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved April 9, 2026.
  11. ↑ "Brooklyn Dodgers vs New York Giants Box Score: September 9, 1948". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved April 9, 2026.
  12. ↑ "Major League Player of the Year Award by The Sporting News | Baseball Almanac". www.baseball-almanac.com. Retrieved January 14, 2025.
  13. ↑ "Pitcher of the Year Award by The Sporting News | Baseball Almanac". www.baseball-almanac.com. Retrieved January 14, 2025.
  14. ↑ "Rookie of the Year Award by The Sporting News | Baseball Almanac". www.baseball-almanac.com. Retrieved January 14, 2025.
  15. ↑ "Manager of the Year Award by The Sporting News | Baseball Almanac". www.baseball-almanac.com. Retrieved January 14, 2025.
  16. ↑ "MLB Executive of the Year Award | Baseball Almanac". www.baseball-almanac.com. Retrieved January 14, 2025.
  17. ↑ "Cleveland Indians Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  18. ↑ "New York Yankees Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  19. ↑ "Detroit Tigers Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  20. ↑ "Boston Red Sox Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  21. ↑ "Pittsburgh Pirates Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  22. ↑ "San Francisco Giants Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  23. ↑ "Atlanta Braves Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  24. ↑ "Los Angeles Dodgers Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  25. ↑ "Chicago Cubs Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  26. ↑ "St. Louis Cardinals Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  27. ↑ "Oakland Athletics Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  28. ↑ "Cincinnati Reds Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  29. ↑ "Minnesota Twins Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  30. ↑ "Chicago White Sox Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  31. ↑ "Philadelphia Phillies Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  32. ↑ "Baltimore Orioles Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.

Further reading

  • Kaiser, David E. (1998). Epic Season: The 1948 American League Pennant Race. University of Massachusetts Press. ISBN 978-1558491465.
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