1939 Major League Baseball season

This article is about the 1939 Major League Baseball season only. For information on all of baseball, see 1939 in baseball.
1939 MLB season
LeagueAmerican League (AL)
National League (NL)
SportBaseball
DurationRegular season:
  • April 18 – October 1, 1939 (AL)
  • April 17 – October 1, 1939 (NL)
World Series:
  • October 4–8, 1939
Games154
Teams16 (8 per league)
Regular season
Season MVPAL: Joe DiMaggio (NYY)
NL: Bucky Walters (CIN)
AL championsNew York Yankees
  AL runners-upBoston Red Sox
NL championsCincinnati Reds
  NL runners-upSt. Louis Cardinals
World Series
ChampionsNew York Yankees
  Runners-upCincinnati Reds
Locations of teams for the 1934–1939 American League seasons
American League
Locations of teams for the 1938–1940 National League seasons
National League

The 1939 major league baseball season began on April 17, 1939. The regular season ended on October 1, with the Cincinnati Reds 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 36th World Series on October 4 and ended with Game 4 on October 8. The Yankees swept the Reds in four games, capturing their eighth championship in franchise history, and their last in a four-World Series run, becoming the first team to win four consecutive World Series.

The seventh Major League Baseball All-Star Game was held on July 11 at Yankee Stadium in New York, New York, home of the New York Yankees. The American League won, 3–1.

Schedule

See also: Major League Baseball schedule

The 1939 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.

National League Opening Day took place on April 17 with a game between the Pittsburgh Pirates and Cincinnati Reds, while American League Opening Day took place on the following day, with a game between the Chicago White Sox and Detroit Tigers. This continued the trend from the previous season which saw both leagues opened on different days. It was the first season since 1901 that saw both leagues open with just one game each. The final day of the regular season was on October 1 and featured twelve teams. The World Series took place between October 4 and October 8.

Rule change

The 1939 season saw the following rule change:

  • The scoring sacrifice fly, exempting a batter from a time at bat when a runner scored after the putout on a fly ball, was restored for the first time since its elimination in 1931. This would last only one season.[1]
  • Similar to the infield fly rule, now an umpire could make a judgement about an outfield fly ball. If it is judged that an outfielder intentionally drops a fly ball or line drive, the umpire shall immediately rule the ball has been caught. Like the infield fly rule, this only applies when there are less than two outs, and runners occupying at least first and second base.[2]
  • Pitchers can now start with only his pivot foot on or making contact in front of the pitching rubber.[2]
  • In the American League:
    • Night games were now approved, with up to seven night games allowed per team, though teams could not play at night on Saturdays, Sundays, holidays, nor could they start an inning after 11:50 p.m..[2]
    • Baseballs would now match the National League's stitching.[2]

Teams

An asterisk (*) denotes the ballpark a team played the minority of their home games at

League Team City Ballpark Capacity Manager[3]
American League Boston Red Sox Boston, Massachusetts Fenway Park 33,817 Joe Cronin
Chicago White Sox Chicago, Illinois Comiskey Park 51,000 Jimmy Dykes
Cleveland Indians Cleveland, Ohio League Park 22,500 Ossie Vitt
Cleveland Stadium* 78,811*
Detroit Tigers Detroit, Michigan Briggs Stadium 58,000 Del Baker
New York Yankees New York, New York Yankee Stadium 71,699 Joe McCarthy
Philadelphia Athletics Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Shibe Park 33,000 Connie Mack
Earle Mack
St. Louis Browns St. Louis, Missouri Sportsman's Park 34,023 Fred Haney
Washington Senators Washington, D.C. Griffith Stadium 32,000 Bucky Harris
National League Boston Bees Boston, Massachusetts National League Park 45,000 Casey Stengel
Brooklyn Dodgers New York, New York Ebbets Field 35,000 Leo Durocher
Chicago Cubs Chicago, Illinois Wrigley Field 38,000 Gabby Hartnett
Cincinnati Reds Cincinnati, Ohio Crosley Field 29,401 Bill McKechnie
New York Giants New York, New York Polo Grounds 51,856 Bill Terry
Philadelphia Phillies Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Shibe Park 33,000 Doc Prothro
Pittsburgh Pirates Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Forbes Field 33,537 Pie Traynor
St. Louis Cardinals St. Louis, Missouri Sportsman's Park 34,023 Ray Blades

Standings

American League

American League
Team W L Pct. GB Home Road
New York Yankees 106 45 .702 — 52‍–‍25 54‍–‍20
Boston Red Sox 89 62 .589 17 42‍–‍32 47‍–‍30
Cleveland Indians 87 67 .565 20½ 44‍–‍33 43‍–‍34
Chicago White Sox 85 69 .552 22½ 50‍–‍27 35‍–‍42
Detroit Tigers 81 73 .526 26½ 42‍–‍35 39‍–‍38
Washington Senators 65 87 .428 41½ 37‍–‍39 28‍–‍48
Philadelphia Athletics 55 97 .362 51½ 28‍–‍48 27‍–‍49
St. Louis Browns 43 111 .279 64½ 18‍–‍59 25‍–‍52

National League

National League
Team W L Pct. GB Home Road
Cincinnati Reds 97 57 .630 — 55‍–‍25 42‍–‍32
St. Louis Cardinals 92 61 .601 4½ 51‍–‍27 41‍–‍34
Brooklyn Dodgers 84 69 .549 12½ 51‍–‍27 33‍–‍42
Chicago Cubs 84 70 .545 13 44‍–‍34 40‍–‍36
New York Giants 77 74 .510 18½ 41‍–‍33 36‍–‍41
Pittsburgh Pirates 68 85 .444 28½ 35‍–‍42 33‍–‍43
Boston Bees 63 88 .417 32½ 37‍–‍35 26‍–‍53
Philadelphia Phillies 45 106 .298 50½ 29‍–‍44 16‍–‍62

Tie games

10 tie games (4 in AL, 6 in NL), which are not factored into winning percentage or games behind (and were often replayed again) occurred throughout the season.

American League

  • Boston Red Sox, 1
  • Chicago White Sox, 1
  • Detroit Tigers, 1
  • New York Yankees, 1
  • Philadelphia Athletics, 1
  • St. Louis Browns, 2
  • Washington Senators, 1

National League

  • Boston Bees, 1
  • Brooklyn Dodgers, 4
  • Chicago Cubs, 2
  • Cincinnati Reds, 2
  • Philadelphia Phillies, 1
  • St. Louis Cardinals, 2

Postseason

The postseason began on October 4 and ended on October 8 with the New York Yankees sweeping the Cincinnati Reds in the 1939 World Series in four games.

Bracket

World Series
   
AL New York Yankees 4
NL Cincinnati Reds 0

Managerial changes

Off-season

Team Former Manager New Manager
St. Louis Browns Oscar Melillo Fred Haney
Brooklyn Dodgers Burleigh Grimes Leo Durocher
Philadelphia Phillies Hans Lobert Doc Prothro
St. Louis Cardinals Mike González Ray Blades

In-season

Team Former Manager New Manager
Philadelphia Athletics Connie Mack Earle Mack

League leaders

American League

Hitting leaders[4]
Stat Player Total
AVG Joe DiMaggio (NYY) .381
OPS Jimmie Foxx (BOS) 1.158
HR Jimmie Foxx (BOS) 35
RBI Ted Williams (BOS) 145
R Red Rolfe (NYY) 139
H Red Rolfe (NYY) 213
SB George Case (WSH) 51
Pitching leaders[5]
Stat Player Total
W Bob Feller (CLE) 24
L Vern Kennedy (SLB/DET) 20
ERA Lefty Grove (BOS) 2.54
K Bob Feller (CLE) 246
IP Bob Feller (CLE) 296.2
SV Johnny Murphy (NYY) 19
WHIP Ted Lyons (CWS) 1.089

National League

Hitting leaders[6]
Stat Player Total
AVG Johnny Mize (STL) .349
OPS Johnny Mize (STL) 1.070
HR Johnny Mize (STL) 28
RBI Frank McCormick (CIN) 128
R Billy Werber (CIN) 115
H Frank McCormick (CIN) 209
SB Stan Hack (CHC)
Lee Handley (PIT) 		17
Pitching leaders[7]
Stat Player Total
W Bucky Walters1 (CIN) 27
L Max Butcher (PIT/PHI)
Bob Klinger (PIT) 		17
ERA Bucky Walters1 (CIN) 2.29
K Claude Passeau (CHC/PHI)
Bucky Walters1 (CIN) 		137
IP Bucky Walters (CIN) 319.0
SV Clyde Shoun (STL) 9
WHIP Bucky Walters (CIN) 1.125

1 National League Triple Crown pitching winner

Milestones

Batters

Two grand slams

See also: List of Major League Baseball single-game grand slam leaders

Cycles

See also: List of Major League Baseball players to hit for the cycle

Miscellaneous

Awards and honors

Regular season

Baseball Writers' Association of America Awards
BBWAA Award National League American League
Most Valuable Player Bucky Walters (CIN) Joe DiMaggio (NYY)

Other awards

The Sporting News Awards
Award National League American League
Most Valuable Player[12] Bucky Walters (CIN) Joe DiMaggio (NYY)
Player of the Year[13] — Joe DiMaggio (NYY)
Manager of the Year[14] Leo Durocher (BRO) —
Executive of the Year[15] Larry MacPhail (BRO) —

Baseball Hall of Fame

Main article: National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum
Further information: 1939 Baseball Hall of Fame balloting

Home field attendance

Team name Wins %± Home attendance %± Per game
Cincinnati Reds[16] 97 18.3% 981,443 38.9% 12,117
Brooklyn Dodgers[17] 84 21.7% 955,668 44.1% 12,252
New York Yankees[18] 106 7.1% 859,785 −11.4% 11,166
Detroit Tigers[19] 81 −3.6% 836,279 4.6% 10,722
Chicago Cubs[20] 84 −5.6% 726,663 −23.6% 9,083
New York Giants[21] 77 −7.2% 702,457 −12.2% 9,493
Chicago White Sox[22] 85 30.8% 594,104 75.6% 7,716
Boston Red Sox[23] 89 1.1% 573,070 −11.4% 7,641
Cleveland Indians[24] 87 1.2% 563,926 −13.5% 7,324
St. Louis Cardinals[25] 92 29.6% 400,245 37.3% 5,066
Philadelphia Athletics[26] 55 3.8% 395,022 2.5% 5,198
Pittsburgh Pirates[27] 68 −20.9% 376,734 −41.2% 4,893
Washington Senators[28] 65 −13.3% 339,257 −35.1% 4,406
Boston Bees[29] 63 −18.2% 285,994 −16.2% 3,918
Philadelphia Phillies[30] 45 0.0% 277,973 67.3% 3,756
St. Louis Browns[31] 43 −21.8% 109,159 −16.3% 1,399

Venues

Over 77 home games, the Cleveland Indians played 47 games at League Park and 30 games at Cleveland Stadium.[32] This would be the 5th of 12 seasons since 1932 that saw the Indians play at both venues.

Media

Television

The first Major League game is televised on August 26, when WXBS-TV broadcasts the game between the Cincinnati Reds and the Brooklyn Dodgers at Ebbets Field.[33] The two teams played a doubleheader that day, and the second game was also televised.

Retired numbers

  • Lou Gehrig had his No. 4 retired by the New York Yankees on July 4. This was the first number retired by the team and first retired number in MLB history.

See also

References

  1. ^ Schwartz, John. "The Sacrifice Fly – Society for American Baseball Research". Retrieved May 28, 2024.
  2. ^ a b c d Long, Jason C. "1938 Winter Meetings: Out of the Hat – Society for American Baseball Research". Retrieved May 19, 2025.
  3. ^ "1939 Major League Managers". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved February 5, 2025.
  4. ^ "1939 American League Batting Leaders". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved February 5, 2025.
  5. ^ "1939 American League Pitching Leaders". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved February 5, 2025.
  6. ^ "1939 National League Batting Leaders". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved February 5, 2025.
  7. ^ "1939 National League Pitching Leaders". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved February 5, 2025.
  8. ^ "July 4, 1939 Boston Red Sox at Philadelphia Athletics Play by Play and Box Score". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. July 4, 1939. Archived from the original on January 24, 2021. Retrieved July 10, 2012.
  9. ^ "Philadelphia Athletics 10, St. Louis Browns 5". Retrosheet.org. May 5, 1939. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved September 10, 2011.
  10. ^ "Detroit Tigers 12, St. Louis Browns 5". Retrosheet.org. May 27, 1939. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved September 10, 2011.
  11. ^ "Pittsburgh Pirates 10, New York Giants 3". Retrosheet.org. July 19, 1939. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved September 10, 2011.
  12. ^ "Most Valuable Player Award by The Sporting News | Baseball Almanac". www.baseball-almanac.com. Retrieved January 14, 2025.
  13. ^ "Major League Player of the Year Award by The Sporting News | Baseball Almanac". www.baseball-almanac.com. Retrieved January 14, 2025.
  14. ^ "Manager of the Year Award by The Sporting News | Baseball Almanac". www.baseball-almanac.com. Retrieved January 14, 2025.
  15. ^ "MLB Executive of the Year Award | Baseball Almanac". www.baseball-almanac.com. Retrieved January 14, 2025.
  16. ^ "Cincinnati Reds Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  17. ^ "Los Angeles Dodgers 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. ^ "Chicago Cubs Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  21. ^ "San Francisco Giants Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  22. ^ "Chicago White Sox Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  23. ^ "Boston Red Sox Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  24. ^ "Cleveland Indians Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  25. ^ "St. Louis Cardinals Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  26. ^ "Oakland Athletics Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  27. ^ "Pittsburgh Pirates Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  28. ^ "Minnesota Twins Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  29. ^ "Atlanta Braves Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  30. ^ "Philadelphia Phillies Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  31. ^ "Baltimore Orioles Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  32. ^ "Seamheads.com Ballparks Database — 1939 Season". www.seamheads.com. Retrieved November 12, 2025.
  33. ^ Pellowski, Michael J (2007). The Little Giant Book of Baseball Facts. United States: Sterling Publishing Co. pp. 352. ISBN 9781402742736.
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