1929 Major League Baseball season

February 2024 1929 1929 MLB season American League (AL)National League (NL) Baseball Regular season: April 16 – October 6, 1929World Series: October 8–14, 1929 154 16 (8 per league) Regular Season NL: Rogers Hornsby (CHC) Major League Baseball Most Valuable Player Award#League Awards AL Philadelphia Athletics New York Yankees NL Chicago Cubs Pittsburgh Pirates World Series 1929 World Series Philadelphia Athletics Chicago Cubs List of MLB seasons MLB 1928 Major League Baseball season 1928 1930 Major League Baseball season 1930 thumb | right | alt=A black and white photograph of baseball player Zack Taylor wearing a baseball cap and chest padding. | American Baseball Player Zack Taylor - 1929 The 1929 major league baseball season began on April 16, 1929. The regular season ended on October 6, with the Chicago Cubs and Philadelphia Athletics as the regular season champions of the National League and American League, respectively. The postseason began with Game 1 of the 26th World Series on October 8 and ended with Game 5 on October 14. In the second iteration of this World Series matchup, the Athletics defeated the Cubs, four games to one, capturing their fourth championship in franchise history, since their previous in 1913. Going into the season, the defending World Series champions were the New York Yankees from the 1928 season. This was the last of eight seasons that "League Awards", a precursor to the Major League Baseball Most Valuable Player Award (introduced in 1931), were issued. Only a National League award was given in 1929. Schedule Major League Baseball schedule The 1929 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 16 and saw eight teams across both leagues play. The final day of the regular season was on October 6. The World Series took place between October 8 and October 14. Rule changes The 1929 season saw the following rule changes: For all ballparks, foul poles must be constructed to be at least 25 feet above the outer barrier, to aid umpires in calling balls fair or foul. The poles were to be constructed either on top of the grandstand roof, or the outer fence of the ballpark. This was coupled with the home run rule, the interpretation of which follows the early-1920 rule, which states that balls are to be called based on where the ball crosses the outfield fence. This rule now accounts for all balls which leave the ballpark, including those which completely leave the ballpark. The American League would implement this home run rule in 1931.Vincent David How Rules Changes in 1920 Affected Home Runs Society for American Baseball Research https://sabr.org/journal/article/how-rules-changes-in-1920-affected-home-runs/ 2024-04-22 en-US The American League implements the ground rule double rule, which states that balls that bounce over the fence entitle the batter to two bases. The rule would be implemented by the National League in 1931.O'Gara Connor Future Hall of Famer Al López Hits the Last 'Bounce' Home Run in Big League History https://baseballhall.org/discover/inside-pitch/al-lopez-hits-last-bounce-home-run 2020-04-16 Baseball Hall of Fame October 16, 2021 https://web.archive.org/web/20211016175844/https://baseballhall.org/discover/inside-pitch/al-lopez-hits-last-bounce-home-run dead 1930-12-17 Changes are Made in the Baseball Playing Rules by Joint Rules Committee https://www.newspapers.com/clip/48818555/changes-are-made-in-the-baseball/ 2020-04-16 Santa Cruz Evening News Santa Cruz, California 8 newspapers.com The Cleveland Indians and the New York Yankees are the first teams to make uniform numbers on the back of the jersey permanent. In the past teams, such as the St Louis Cardinals and the Cleveland Indians, had experimented with numbers before, but only on the sleeves and only for a few weeks. A rule change ended the practice of minor-league teams selling a star prospect to a friendly major-league club for a high price, having the player returned at a later date and then, when it put him back on the open market, forcing another big-league club to pay the already established price.Sansano Silvio Adesman Marshall 1928 Winter Meetings: The Draft Mess and Glimpses into the Future Society for American Baseball Research https://sabr.org/journal/article/winter-meetings-1928-the-draft-mess-and-glimpses-into-the-future/ 2025-04-01 en-US The signing of any player under the age of 17 was banned. A price tag of $7,500 (US 7500 1929 eq) on any first-year player was implemented. Teams An asterisk (*) denotes the ballpark a team played the minority of their home games at LeagueTeamCityBallparkCapacityManager1929 Major League Managers https://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/majors/1929-managers.shtml 2025-02-05 Baseball Reference enAmerican League American LeagueBoston Red SoxBoston, MassachusettsFenway Park27,000Bill CarriganBraves Field*46,500*Chicago White SoxChicago, IllinoisComiskey Park52,000Lena BlackburneCleveland IndiansCleveland, OhioDunn Field21,414Roger PeckinpaughDetroit TigersDetroit, MichiganNavin Field30,000Bucky HarrisNew York YankeesNew York, New YorkYankee Stadium62,000Miller HugginsArt FletcherPhiladelphia AthleticsPhiladelphia, PennsylvaniaShibe Park30,000Connie MackSt. Louis BrownsSt. Louis, MissouriSportsman's Park34,023Dan HowleyWashington SenatorsWashington, D.C.Griffith Stadium27,000Walter JohnsonNational League National League (baseball) National LeagueBoston BravesBoston, MassachusettsBraves Field46,500Emil Fuchs baseballBrooklyn RobinsNew York, New YorkEbbets Field28,000Wilbert RobinsonChicago CubsChicago, IllinoisWrigley Field40,000Joe McCarthy baseball managerCincinnati RedsCincinnati, OhioRedland Field26,060Jack HendricksNew York GiantsNew York, New YorkPolo Grounds55,000John McGrawPhiladelphia PhilliesPhiladelphia, PennsylvaniaBaker Bowl20,000Burt ShottonPittsburgh PiratesPittsburgh, PennsylvaniaForbes Field41,000Donie BushJewel EnsSt. Louis CardinalsSt. Louis, MissouriSportsman's Park34,023Billy SouthworthGabby StreetBill McKechnie Standings start American League Philadelphia Athletics break National League Chicago Cubs end Tie games 8 tie games (3 in AL, 5 in NL), which are not factored into winning percentage or games behind (and were often replayed again) occurred throughout the season. start American League Boston Red Sox, 1 Detroit Tigers, 1 Philadelphia Athletics, 1 St. Louis Browns, 2 Washington Senators, 1 break National League Chicago Cubs, 4 Cincinnati Reds, 1 New York Giants, 1 Philadelphia Phillies, 1 Pittsburgh Pirates, 1 St. Louis Cardinals, 2 end Postseason The postseason began on October 8 and ended on October 14 with the Philadelphia Athletics defeating the Chicago Cubs in the 1929 World Series in five games. Bracket World Series AL Philadelphia Athletics 4 NL Chicago Cubs 1 Managerial changes Off-season Team Former Manager New ManagerBoston BravesRogers HornsbyEmil FuchsDetroit TigersGeorge MoriartyBucky HarrisSt. Louis CardinalsBill McKechnieBilly SouthworthWashington SenatorsBucky HarrisWalter Johnson In-season Team Former Manager New ManagerNew York YankeesMiller HugginsArt FletcherPittsburgh PiratesDonie BushJewel EnsSt. Louis CardinalsBilly SouthworthGabby StreetGabby StreetBill McKechnie League leaders American League start + Hitting leaders1929 American League Batting Leaders https://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/AL/1929-batting-leaders.shtml 2025-02-05 Baseball Reference en Stat Player Total AVG Lew Fonseca (CLE) .369 OPS Babe Ruth (NYY) 1.128 HR Babe Ruth (NYY) 46 RBI Al Simmons (PHA) 157 R Charlie Gehringer (DET) 131 H Dale Alexander (DET)Charlie Gehringer (DET) 215 SB Charlie Gehringer (DET) 27 break + Pitching leaders1929 American League Pitching Leaders https://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/AL/1929-pitching-leaders.shtml 2025-02-05 Baseball Reference en Stat Player Total W George Earnshaw (PHA) 24 L Red Ruffing (BOS) 22 ERA Lefty Grove (PHA) 2.81 K Lefty Grove (PHA) 170 IP Sam Gray (SLB) 305.0 SV Firpo Marberry (WSH)Wilcy Moore (NYY) 9 WHIP Firpo Marberry (WSH) 1.206 end National League start + Hitting leaders1929 National League Batting Leaders https://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/NL/1929-batting-leaders.shtml 2025-02-05 Baseball Reference en Stat Player Total AVG Lefty O'Doul (PHI) .398 OPS Rogers Hornsby (CHC) 1.139 HR Chuck Klein (PHI) 43 RBI Hack Wilson (CHC) 159 R Rogers Hornsby (CHC) 156 H Lefty O'Doul (PHI) 254 SB Kiki Cuyler (CHC) 43 break + Pitching leaders1929 National League Pitching Leaders https://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/NL/1929-pitching-leaders.shtml 2025-02-05 Baseball Reference en Stat Player Total W Pat Malone (CHC) 22 L Watson Clark (BRO) 19 ERA Bill Walker (NYG) 3.09 K Pat Malone (CHC) 166 IP Watson Clark (BRO) 279.0 SV Guy Bush (CHC)Johnny Morrison (BRO) 8 WHIP Red Lucas (CIN) 1.204 end Milestones Batters Cycles List of Major League Baseball players to hit for the cycle Mel Ott (NYG): Ott hit for his first cycle and ninth in franchise history, in game two of a doubleheader on May 16 against the Boston Braves.http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1929/B05162BSN1929.htm Boston Braves 5, New York Giants 4 (2) 1929-05-16 Retrosheet 2011-09-08 2015-09-24 https://web.archive.org/web/20150924121224/http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1929/B05162BSN1929.htm live Ski Melillo (SLB): Melillo hit for his first cycle and fourth in franchise history, in game two of a doubleheader on May 23 against the Cleveland Indians.http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1929/B05232CLE1929.htm St. Louis Browns 7, Cleveland Indians 5 (2) 1929-05-23 Retrosheet 2011-09-08 2015-09-24 https://web.archive.org/web/20150924121225/http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1929/B05232CLE1929.htm live Joe Cronin (WSH): Cronin hit for his first cycle and third in franchise history, in game one of a doubleheader on September 2 against the Boston Red Sox.http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1929/B09021BOS1929.htm Washington Senators 10, Boston Red Sox 7 (1) 1929-09-02 Retrosheet 2011-09-08 2015-09-24 https://web.archive.org/web/20150924121227/http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1929/B09021BOS1929.htm live Other batting accomplishments Babe Ruth (NYY): Became the first player in Major League history to hit 500 home runs in the second inning against the Cleveland Indians on August 11.https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/r/ruthba01.shtml Babe Ruth Statistics and History Baseball Reference 2010-07-15 2022-07-12 https://web.archive.org/web/20220712014016/https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/r/ruthba01.shtml liveBabe Ruth Career Home Runs https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/event_hr.fcgi?id=ruthba01&t=b 2026-03-24 Baseball Reference en Pitchers No-hitters List of Major League Baseball no-hitters Carl Hubbell (NYG): Hubbell threw his first career no-hitter and the eighth no-hitter in franchise history, by defeating the Pittsburgh Pirates 11–0 on May 8. Hubbell walked one and struck out four.Pittsburgh Pirates vs New York Giants Box Score: May 8, 1929 https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/NY1/NY1192905080.shtml 2026-03-17 Baseball Reference en Miscellaneous New York Giants: Set a major league record for most runs scored in the 14th inning, by scoring eight runs against the Pittsburgh Pirates on June 15.DeRosa Theo The most runs scored in each inning, from the 1st to the 26th(!) https://www.mlb.com/news/mlb-most-runs-scored-in-each-inning 2026-04-20 MLB.com en Chicago Cubs / Philadelphia Athletics: For the first time since 1912, that both pennant winners won by more than 10 games.Koppet Leonard Koppet's Concise History of Major League Baseball Temple University Press 1998 1-56639-638-7 Philadelphia 178 Philadelphia Athletics: On October 12, Game 4 of the World Series featured a historic 10-run rally by the Athletics in the seventh inning to comeback from a 8–0 deficit, nicknamed "The Mack Attack," after the team's manager, Connie Mack.Kennan Jimmy https://sabr.org/journal/article/the-1929-mack-attack/ The 1929 Mack Attack Society for American Baseball Research 2020-03-04 He commented that it was "The greatest thrill [he] had in 29 years of managing."Baumgartner Stan Connie Calls Game "Greatest Thrill, Hugs Fans of Field 1929-10-13 The Philadelphia Inquirer At the time, this was a record. Awards and honors League Award: Rogers Hornsby (CHC) The Sporting News Most Valuable Player Award: Al Simmons (PHA)Most Valuable Player Award by The Sporting News https://www.baseball-almanac.com/awards/aw_snmv.shtml 2025-01-14 Baseball Almanac Home field attendance Team nameWins%± Percent changeHome attendance%± Percent changePer game Average home attendance per gameChicago Cubshttps://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/CHC/attend.shtml Chicago Cubs Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors 2020-09-08 Baseball Reference987.7%1,485,16629.9%19,041New York Yankeeshttps://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/NYY/attend.shtml New York Yankees Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors 2020-09-08 Baseball Reference88 −12.9%960,148 −10.4%12,469Detroit Tigershttps://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/DET/attend.shtml Detroit Tigers Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors 2020-09-08 Baseball Reference702.9%869,31883.3%11,290New York Giantshttps://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/SFG/attend.shtml San Francisco Giants Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors 2020-09-08 Baseball Reference84 −9.7%868,806 −5.2%11,283Philadelphia Athleticshttps://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/OAK/attend.shtml Oakland Athletics Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors 2020-09-08 Baseball Reference1046.1%839,17621.7%11,340Brooklyn Robinshttps://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/LAD/attend.shtml Los Angeles Dodgers Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors 2020-09-08 Baseball Reference70 −9.1%731,88610.1%9,505Cleveland Indianshttps://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/CLE/attend.shtml Cleveland Indians Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors 2020-09-08 Baseball Reference8130.6%536,21042.6%7,055Pittsburgh Pirateshttps://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/PIT/attend.shtml Pittsburgh Pirates Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors 2020-09-08 Baseball Reference883.5%491,377 −0.7%6,465Chicago White Soxhttps://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/CHW/attend.shtml Chicago White Sox Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors 2020-09-08 Baseball Reference59 −18.1%426,795 −13.6%5,616St. Louis Cardinalshttps://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/STL/attend.shtml St. Louis Cardinals Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors 2020-09-08 Baseball Reference78 −17.9%399,887 −47.5%5,193Boston Red Soxhttps://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/BOS/attend.shtml Boston Red Sox Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors 2020-09-08 Baseball Reference581.8%394,620 −0.6%5,059Boston Braveshttps://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/ATL/attend.shtml Atlanta Braves Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors 2020-09-08 Baseball Reference5612.0%372,35164.0%4,836Washington Senatorshttps://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/MIN/attend.shtml Minnesota Twins Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors 2020-09-08 Baseball Reference71 −5.3%355,506 −6.1%4,558Cincinnati Redshttps://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/CIN/attend.shtml Cincinnati Reds Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors 2020-09-08 Baseball Reference66 −15.4%295,040 −39.8%3,783Philadelphia Phillieshttps://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/PHI/attend.shtml Philadelphia Phillies Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors 2020-09-08 Baseball Reference7165.1%281,20054.4%3,700St. Louis Brownshttps://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/BAL/attend.shtml Baltimore Orioles Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors 2020-09-08 Baseball Reference79 −3.7%280,697 −17.3%3,645 Venues Across 78 homes games, the Boston Red Sox played their Monday, September 2 doubleheader against the Washington Senators, as well as all 15 of their Sunday games at the Boston Braves home field of Braves Field (the remaining 61 home games were played at Fenway Park).Seamheads.com Ballparks Database — 1929 Season https://www.seamheads.com/ballparks/year.php?Year=1929 2025-11-20 www.seamheads.comSeamheads.com Ballparks Database https://seamheads.com/ballparks/year.php?Year=1929&tab=pf1&LgID=All 2025-11-20 seamheads.com This was the 1st of three consecutive seasons playing all Sunday games at Braves Field and 1st of four consecutive season playing some games at Braves Field. See also 1929 in baseball (Events, Births, Deaths) References External links 1929 Major League Schedule at Baseball Reference Category:Major League Baseball seasons Category:1929 in baseball