1941 Major League Baseball season

February 2024 1941 MLB season American League (AL)National League (NL) Baseball Regular season: April 14 – September 28, 1941 (AL) April 15 – September 28, 1941 (NL)World Series: October 1–6, 1941 154 16 (8 per league) Regular season AL: Joe DiMaggio (NYY)NL: Dolph Camilli (BRO) Major League Baseball Most Valuable Player Award AL New York Yankees Boston Red Sox NL Brooklyn Dodgers St. Louis Cardinals World Series 1941 World Series New York Yankees Brooklyn Dodgers List of MLB seasons MLB 1940 Major League Baseball season 1940 1942 Major League Baseball season 1942 1941 The 1941 major league baseball season began on April 14, 1941. The regular season ended on September 28, with the Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Yankees as the regular season champions of the National League and American League, respectively. The postseason began with Game 1 of the 38th World Series on October 1 and ended with Game 5 on October 6. The Yankees defeated the Dodgers, four games to one, capturing their ninth championship in franchise history, since their previous in 1939. This was the first Subway Series World Series to feature the Dodgers (the previous five featured the New York Giants). Going into the season, the defending World Series champions were the Cincinnati Reds from the 1940 season. The ninth All-Star Game was held on July 8 at Briggs Stadium in Detroit, Michigan, home of the Detroit Tigers. The American League won, 7–5. The Boston Bees reverted their nickname to the "Braves" on April 29, the name they had prior to the 1936 season. In addition to a five-game World Series between New York City teams, highlights of the season included Ted Williams batting .406, and Joe DiMaggio having a 56-game hitting streak; it has been called the "best baseball season ever".Baseball in '41: A Celebration of the "Best Baseball Season Ever" Robert Creamer Robert Creamer 1991 Viking Press 0670833746 https://archive.org/details/baseballin4100crea Schedule Major League Baseball schedule The 1941 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. American League Opening Day took place on April 14 with a game between the New York Yankees and Washington Senators, while National League Opening Day took place on the following day, featuring all eight teams. This was the first season since 1939 that both leagues opened on different days. The final day of the regular season was on September 28 and featured all sixteen teams, continuing the trend since the previous season. The World Series took place between October 1 and October 6. Rule changes The 1941 season saw the following rule changes: In what was termed the "Baltimore Amendment", major league teams can now sign players for the purpose of assigning them to a minor-league club, with two caveats: The assignment must be between affiliated clubs, and all assignment transactions were to be reported to the commissioner.Nowlin Bill Waddell Nick 1940 Winter Meetings: Judge Landis' Final Reign Society for American Baseball Research https://sabr.org/journal/article/1940-winter-meetings-landis-final-reign/ 2025-05-30 en-US Despite both the National and American Leagues previously ruling that a maximum of seven night games could be played (1935 and 1939, respectively,) the St. Louis Browns had played 14 night games the previous season. Despite disagreements between the two leagues during the 1940 Winter Meetings, (the NL wanted to maintain seven days, while the AL wanted to have fewer than seven), Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis reaffirmed the National League's seven night game position for both leagues. A national defensive service list was implemented. If players were called to active military duty, they would be placed on the list, their contracts would remain with their teams, but they would not be counted against a club's player limit. A two-person-maximum 60-day disabled list (called "injured list" since 2019) was created for each team. The disabled list was 60 calendar days, except after August 1. Rules regarding doubleheaders were clarified: doubleheaders could be scheduled beginning with the fourth Sunday of the season (both St. Louis teams were unofficially allowed to start them a week earlier). Teams An asterisk (*) denotes the ballpark a team played the minority of their home games at LeagueTeamCityBallparkCapacityManager1941 Major League Managers https://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/majors/1941-managers.shtml 2025-02-05 Baseball Reference enAmerican League American LeagueBoston Red SoxBoston, MassachusettsFenway Park33,817Joe CroninChicago White SoxChicago, IllinoisComiskey Park50,000Jimmy DykesCleveland IndiansCleveland, OhioLeague Park22,500Roger PeckinpaughCleveland Stadium*78,811*Detroit TigersDetroit, MichiganBriggs Stadium58,000Del BakerNew York YankeesNew York, New YorkYankee Stadium71,699Joe McCarthy managerPhiladelphia AthleticsPhiladelphia, PennsylvaniaShibe Park33,000Connie MackSt. Louis BrownsSt. Louis, MissouriSportsman's Park34,023Fred HaneyLuke SewellWashington SenatorsWashington, D.C.Griffith Stadium32,000Bucky HarrisNational League National League (baseball) National LeagueBoston BravesBoston, MassachusettsNational League Park37,746Casey StengelBrooklyn DodgersNew York, New YorkEbbets Field35,000Leo DurocherChicago CubsChicago, IllinoisWrigley Field38,396Jimmie Wilson baseballCincinnati RedsCincinnati, OhioCrosley Field29,401Bill McKechnieNew York GiantsNew York, New YorkPolo Grounds56,000Bill TerryPhiladelphia PhilliesPhiladelphia, PennsylvaniaShibe Park33,000Doc ProthroPittsburgh PiratesPittsburgh, PennsylvaniaForbes Field33,537Frankie FrischSt. Louis CardinalsSt. Louis, MissouriSportsman's Park34,023Billy Southworth Standings start American League New York Yankees break National League Brooklyn Dodgers end Tie games 13 tie games (6 in AL, 7 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 Chicago White Sox, 2 Cleveland Indians, 1 Detroit Tigers, 1 New York Yankees, 2 St. Louis Browns, 3 Washington Senators, 2 break National League Boston Braves, 2 Brooklyn Dodgers, 3 Chicago Cubs, 1 New York Giants, 3 Philadelphia Phillies, 1 Pittsburgh Pirates, 2 St. Louis Cardinals, 2 end Postseason The postseason began on October 1 and ended on October 6 with the New York Yankees defeating the Brooklyn Dodgers in the 1941 World Series in five games. Bracket World Series AL New York Yankees 4 NL Brooklyn Dodgers 1 Managerial changes Off-season Team Former Manager New ManagerChicago Cubs Gabby Hartnett Jimmie WilsonCleveland Indians Ossie Vitt Roger Peckinpaugh In-season Team Former Manager New ManagerSt. Louis Browns Fred Haney Luke Sewell League leaders American League start + Hitting leaders1941 American League Batting Leaders https://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/AL/1941-batting-leaders.shtml 2025-02-05 Baseball Reference enStat PlayerTotal AVG Ted Williams (BOS) .406 OPS Ted Williams (BOS) 1.287 HR Ted Williams (BOS) 37 RBI Joe DiMaggio (NYY) 125 R Ted Williams (BOS) 135 H Cecil Travis (WSH) 218 SB George Case (WSH) 33 break + Pitching leaders1941 American League Pitching Leaders https://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/AL/1941-pitching-leaders.shtml 2025-02-05 Baseball Reference enStat PlayerTotal W Bob Feller (CLE) 25 L Bobo Newsom (DET) 20 ERA Thornton Lee (CWS) 2.37 K Bob Feller (CLE) 260 IP Bob Feller (CLE) 343.0 SV Johnny Murphy (NYY) 15 WHIP Thornton Lee (CWS) 1.165 end National League start + Hitting leaders1941 National League Batting Leaders https://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/NL/1941-batting-leaders.shtml 2025-02-05 Baseball Reference enStat PlayerTotal AVG Pete Reiser (BRO) .343 OPS Pete Reiser (BRO) .964 HR Dolph Camilli (BRO) 34 RBI Dolph Camilli (BRO) 120 R Pete Reiser (BRO) 117 H Stan Hack (CHC) 186 SB Danny Murtaugh (PHI) 18 break + Pitching leaders1941 National League Pitching Leaders https://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/NL/1941-pitching-leaders.shtml 2025-02-05 Baseball Reference enStat PlayerTotal W Kirby Higbe (BRO)Whit Wyatt (BRO) 22 L Rip Sewell (PIT) 17 ERA Elmer Riddle (CIN) 2.24 K Johnny Vander Meer (CIN) 202 IP Bucky Walters (CIN) 305.0 SV Jumbo Brown (NYG) 8 WHIP Whit Wyatt (BRO) 1.058 end Milestones Batters Cycles List of Major League Baseball players to hit for the cycle George McQuinn (SLB): McQuinn hit for his first cycle and fifth in franchise history, in game one of a doubleheader on July 19 against the Boston Red Sox.http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1941/B07191SLA1941.htm St. Louis Browns 9, Boston Red Sox 3 (1) July 19, 1941 Retrosheet.org September 10, 2011 September 24, 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20150924125114/http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1941/B07191SLA1941.htm live Other batting accomplishments Wes Ferrell (BSN): Set a Major League record for most career home runs by a pitcher by hitting his 37th home run as a pitcher (he hit one additional home run as a pinch hitter) on April 17 against the Philadelphia Phillies.Wes Ferrell Career Home Runs https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/event_hr.fcgi?id=ferrewe01&t=b 2026-04-30 Baseball Reference en Mel Ott (NYG): Became the fourth player in Major League history to hit 400 home runs in the third inning against the Cincinnati Reds in game one of a doubleheader on June 1, reaching his 1,500th career RBI.Mel Ott Career Home Runs https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/event_hr.fcgi?id=ottme01&t=b 2026-05-04 Baseball Reference enThosar Deesha Every member of the 400-HR club https://www.mlb.com/news/400-home-run-club-c279297150 2026-05-04 MLB.com en Joe DiMaggio (NYY): Set a Major League record with a 56-game hitting streak, hitting in every game from May 15 to July 16. The record has been described as unbreakable.Joe DiMaggio Hitting Streak by Baseball Almanac https://www.baseball-almanac.com/feats/feats3.shtml 2026-03-24 Baseball AlmanacLongest hitting streaks in MLB history https://www.mlb.com/news/longest-hitting-streaks-in-mlb-history 2026-03-24 MLB.com en Ted Williams (BOS): Became the last qualified player in Major League history to finish a season with a batting average of at least .400, ending the season with a .406 average. Pitchers No-hitters List of Major League Baseball no-hitters Lon Warneke (STL): Warneke threw his first career no-hitter and fourth no-hitter in franchise history, by defeating the Cincinnati Reds 2–0 on August 30. Warneke walked one and struck out two. Other pitching accomplishments Lefty Grove (BOS): Became the 12th member of the 300-win club, defeating the Cleveland Indians on July 25, winning 10–6.Randhawa Manny 300-game winners in MLB history https://www.mlb.com/news/300-win-pitchers-c271491170 2020-05-10 2026-03-09 MLB.com en Awards and honors Regular season Baseball Writers' Association of America AwardsBBWAA AwardNational LeagueAmerican LeagueMost Valuable Player Dolph Camilli (BRO) Joe DiMaggio (NYY) Other awards The Sporting News Awards Award National League American League Most Valuable PlayerMost Valuable Player Award by The Sporting News https://www.baseball-almanac.com/awards/aw_snmv.shtml 2025-01-14 Baseball Almanac Dolph Camilli (BRO) Joe DiMaggio (NYY) Player of the YearMajor League Player of the Year Award by The Sporting News https://www.baseball-almanac.com/awards/aw_snml.shtml 2025-01-14 Baseball Almanac — Ted Williams (BOS) Manager of the YearManager of the Year Award by The Sporting News https://www.baseball-almanac.com/awards/aw_snmy.shtml 2025-01-14 Baseball Almanac Billy Southworth (STL) — Executive of the YearMLB Executive of the Year Award https://www.baseball-almanac.com/awards/aw_sney.shtml 2025-01-14 Baseball Almanac — Ed Barrow (NYY) Home field attendance Team nameWins%± Percent changeHome attendance%± Percent changePer game Average home attendance per gameBrooklyn Dodgershttps://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/LAD/attend.shtml Los Angeles Dodgers Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors 2020-09-08 Baseball Reference10013.6%1,214,91024.5%15,379New York Yankeeshttps://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/NYY/attend.shtml New York Yankees Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors 2020-09-08 Baseball Reference10114.8%964,722 −2.5%12,368New York Giantshttps://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/SFG/attend.shtml San Francisco Giants Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors 2020-09-08 Baseball Reference742.8%763,0982.0%9,783Cleveland Indianshttps://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/CLE/attend.shtml Cleveland Indians Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors 2020-09-08 Baseball Reference75 −15.7%745,948 −17.4%9,688Boston Red Soxhttps://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/BOS/attend.shtml Boston Red Sox Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors 2020-09-08 Baseball Reference842.4%718,4970.3%9,331Detroit Tigershttps://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/DET/attend.shtml Detroit Tigers Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors 2020-09-08 Baseball Reference75 −16.7%684,915 −38.4%8,895Chicago White Soxhttps://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/CHW/attend.shtml Chicago White Sox Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors 2020-09-08 Baseball Reference77 −6.1%677,0772.5%8,571Cincinnati Redshttps://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/CIN/attend.shtml Cincinnati Reds Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors 2020-09-08 Baseball Reference88 −12.0%643,513 −24.3%8,146St. Louis Cardinalshttps://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/STL/attend.shtml St. Louis Cardinals Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors 2020-09-08 Baseball Reference9715.5%633,64595.5%8,021Chicago Cubshttps://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/CHC/attend.shtml Chicago Cubs Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors 2020-09-08 Baseball Reference70 −6.7%545,1591.9%7,080Philadelphia Athleticshttps://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/OAK/attend.shtml Oakland Athletics Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors 2020-09-08 Baseball Reference6418.5%528,89422.4%6,869Pittsburgh Pirateshttps://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/PIT/attend.shtml Pittsburgh Pirates Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors 2020-09-08 Baseball Reference813.8%482,241 −5.1%6,183Washington Senatorshttps://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/MIN/attend.shtml Minnesota Twins Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors 2020-09-08 Baseball Reference709.4%415,6639.0%5,329Boston Braveshttps://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/ATL/attend.shtml Atlanta Braves Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors 2020-09-08 Baseball Reference62 −4.6%263,6809.1%3,469Philadelphia Phillieshttps://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/PHI/attend.shtml Philadelphia Phillies Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors 2020-09-08 Baseball Reference43 −14.0%231,40111.7%3,045St. Louis Brownshttps://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/BAL/attend.shtml Baltimore Orioles Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors 2020-09-08 Baseball Reference704.5%176,240 −26.4%2,231 Venues Over 77 home games, the Cleveland Indians played 45 games at League Park and 32 games at Cleveland Stadium.Seamheads.com Ballparks Database — 1941 Season https://www.seamheads.com/ballparks/year.php?Year=1941 2025-11-12 www.seamheads.com All Wednesday home games took place at League Park. This would be the 7th of 12 seasons since 1932 that saw the Indians play at both venues, and was the last season which saw the majority of home games at League Park. See also 1941 in baseball (Events, Births, Deaths) References Further reading Baseball and Other Matters in 1941 Robert Creamer Robert Creamer 2000 Bison Books 0803264062 https://www.mlb.com/news/featured/the-story-of-the-los-angeles-browns-changed-baseball-forever The L.A. Browns? How one day in '41 changed MLB Mike Petriello MLB.com 2020-12-25 2021-05-08 And so, the vote was scheduled. It was to take place in Chicago on the morning of Monday, Dec. 8, 1941. 1941--The Greatest Year In Sports: Two Baseball Legends, Two Boxing Champs, and the Unstoppable Thoroughbred Who Made History in the Shadow of War Mike Vaccaro Mike Vaccaro 2007 Doubleday 978-0385517959 https://archive.org/details/1941thegreatesty00vacc External links 1941 Major League Schedule at Baseball Reference Category:Major League Baseball seasons Category:1941 in baseball