1950 Major League Baseball season
1950 MLB season | |
---|---|
League | American League (AL) National League (NL) |
Sport | Baseball |
Duration | Regular season:
|
Number of games | 154 |
Number of teams | 16 (8 per league) |
Regular season | |
Season MVP | AL: Phil Rizzuto (NYY) NL: Jim Konstanty (PHP) |
AL champions | New York Yankees |
AL runners-up | Detroit Tigers |
NL champions | Philadelphia Phillies |
NL runners-up | Brooklyn Dodgers |
World Series | |
Champions | New York Yankees |
Runners-up | Philadelphia Phillies |
Finals MVP | Jerry Coleman (NYY) |
The 1950 major league baseball season began on April 18, 1950. The regular season ended on October 1, with the Philadelphia Phillies 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 47th World Series on October 4 and ended with Game 4 on October 7. The Yankees swept the Phillies in four games, capturing the 13th championship in franchise history.
The 17th Major League Baseball All-Star Game was played on July 11, hosted by the Chicago White Sox at Comiskey Park in Chicago, Illinois, with the National League winning, 4–3.
On April 18, the Boston Braves become the fifth team in MLB to break the color line when they fielded Sam Jethroe.[1]
The only no-hitter of the season was pitched by Vern Bickford on August 9, in the Boston Braves 7–0 victory over the Brooklyn Dodgers.[2][3] This season saw the first use of a bullpen car, by the Cleveland Indians.[4]
Schedule
[edit]The 1950 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 18, featuring all sixteen teams, the first time since 1947. The final day of the regular season was on October 1, which also saw all sixteen teams play, continuing the trend from the 1946. This was the first time since 1947 that all sixteen teams played their first and last games on the same days. The World Series took place between October 4 to October 7.
Rule changes
[edit]The 1950 season saw the following rule changes:[5]
- Home team must bat second, in the bottom of the inning. This replaced the previous rule which would give the manager or captain of the home team preference to whether the home team would bat first or second. A major league game did not feature a home team in the top of the inning since 1914.[6]
- Mount must be 15 inches high. The previous rule stated that the maximum height was 15 inches, but gave no minimum.[7]
- Rules for determining winning and losing pitcher established.[8]
- The size of all glove, aside from first baseman and catcher's gloves, are regulated to be no more than 8 inches wide and 12 inches long. The size and shape of the webbing between the thumb and index finger was also regulated.[9]
- Strike zone redefined and shrunk to be from the armpits to top of the knees.[10]
Teams
[edit]Standings
[edit]American League
[edit]Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
New York Yankees | 98 | 56 | .636 | — | 53–24 | 45–32 |
Detroit Tigers | 95 | 59 | .617 | 3 | 50–30 | 45–29 |
Boston Red Sox | 94 | 60 | .610 | 4 | 55–22 | 39–38 |
Cleveland Indians | 92 | 62 | .597 | 6 | 49–28 | 43–34 |
Washington Senators | 67 | 87 | .435 | 31 | 35–42 | 32–45 |
Chicago White Sox | 60 | 94 | .390 | 38 | 35–42 | 25–52 |
St. Louis Browns | 58 | 96 | .377 | 40 | 27–47 | 31–49 |
Philadelphia Athletics | 52 | 102 | .338 | 46 | 29–48 | 23–54 |
National League
[edit]Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Philadelphia Phillies | 91 | 63 | .591 | — | 48–29 | 43–34 |
Brooklyn Dodgers | 89 | 65 | .578 | 2 | 48–30 | 41–35 |
New York Giants | 86 | 68 | .558 | 5 | 44–32 | 42–36 |
Boston Braves | 83 | 71 | .539 | 8 | 46–31 | 37–40 |
St. Louis Cardinals | 78 | 75 | .510 | 12½ | 48–28 | 30–47 |
Cincinnati Reds | 66 | 87 | .431 | 24½ | 38–38 | 28–49 |
Chicago Cubs | 64 | 89 | .418 | 26½ | 35–42 | 29–47 |
Pittsburgh Pirates | 57 | 96 | .373 | 33½ | 33–44 | 24–52 |
Postseason
[edit]Bracket
[edit]World Series | ||||
AL | New York Yankees | 4 | ||
NL | Philadelphia Phillies | 0 |
Managerial changes
[edit]Off-season
[edit]Team | Former Manager | New Manager |
---|---|---|
Boston Braves | Johnny Cooney | Billy Southworth |
Washington Senators | Joe Kuhel | Bucky Harris |
In-season
[edit]Team | Former Manager | New Manager |
---|---|---|
Boston Red Sox | Joe McCarthy | Steve O'Neill |
Chicago White Sox | Jack Onslow | Red Corriden |
League leaders
[edit]American League
[edit]Stat | Player | Total |
---|---|---|
AVG | Billy Goodman (BRS) | .354 |
HR | Al Rosen (CLE) | 37 |
RBI | Walt Dropo (BRS) Vern Stephens (BRS) |
144 |
R | Dom DiMaggio (BRS) | 131 |
H | George Kell (DET) | 218 |
SB | Dom DiMaggio (BRS) | 15 |
National League
[edit]Stat | Player | Total |
---|---|---|
AVG | Stan Musial (SLC) | .346 |
HR | Ralph Kiner (PIT) | 47 |
RBI | Del Ennis (PHP) | 126 |
R | Earl Torgeson (BSB) | 120 |
H | Duke Snider (BKN) | 199 |
SB | Sam Jethroe (BSB) | 35 |
Stat | Player | Total |
---|---|---|
W | Warren Spahn (BSB) | 21 |
L | Bob Rush (CHC) | 20 |
ERA | Sal Maglie (NYG) | 2.71 |
K | Warren Spahn (BSB) | 191 |
IP | Vern Bickford (BSB) | 311.2 |
SV | Jim Konstanty (PHP) | 22 |
Awards and honors
[edit]Regular season
[edit]Baseball Writers' Association of America Awards | ||
---|---|---|
BBWAA Award | National League | American League |
Rookie of the Year | Sam Jethroe (BSB) | Walt Dropo (BRS) |
Most Valuable Player | Jim Konstanty (PHP) | Phil Rizzuto (NYY) |
Other awards
[edit]- The Sporting News Player of the Year Award:
- The Sporting News Pitcher of the Year Award:
- The Sporting News Manager of the Year Award:
- Babe Ruth Award:
Home field attendance
[edit]Team name | Wins | %± | Home attendance | %± | Per game |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
New York Yankees[18] | 98 | 1.0% | 2,081,380 | −8.9% | 27,031 |
Detroit Tigers[19] | 95 | 9.2% | 1,951,474 | 7.2% | 24,092 |
Cleveland Indians[20] | 92 | 3.4% | 1,727,464 | −22.7% | 22,435 |
Boston Red Sox[21] | 94 | −2.1% | 1,344,080 | −15.8% | 17,456 |
Philadelphia Phillies[22] | 91 | 12.3% | 1,217,035 | 48.5% | 15,603 |
Brooklyn Dodgers[23] | 89 | −8.2% | 1,185,896 | −27.4% | 15,204 |
Pittsburgh Pirates[24] | 57 | −19.7% | 1,166,267 | −19.5% | 15,146 |
Chicago Cubs[25] | 64 | 4.9% | 1,165,944 | 2.0% | 14,948 |
St. Louis Cardinals[26] | 78 | −18.8% | 1,093,411 | −23.6% | 14,387 |
New York Giants[27] | 86 | 17.8% | 1,008,878 | −17.2% | 13,275 |
Boston Braves[28] | 83 | 10.7% | 944,391 | −12.7% | 11,954 |
Chicago White Sox[29] | 60 | −4.8% | 781,330 | −16.6% | 9,890 |
Washington Senators[30] | 67 | 34.0% | 699,697 | −9.2% | 8,970 |
Cincinnati Reds[31] | 66 | 6.5% | 538,794 | −23.9% | 7,089 |
Philadelphia Athletics[32] | 52 | −35.8% | 309,805 | −62.1% | 4,023 |
St. Louis Browns[33] | 58 | 9.4% | 247,131 | −8.8% | 3,340 |
See also
[edit]- 1950 All-American Girls Professional Baseball League season
- 1950 Nippon Professional Baseball season
References
[edit]- ^ "These players integrated each MLB team". MLB.com. Retrieved November 14, 2024.
- ^ "American League No Hitters". Baseball Almanac. Retrieved October 1, 2012.
- ^ "National League No Hitters". Baseball Almanac. Retrieved October 1, 2012.
- ^ Lukas, Paul (October 19, 2007). "Lukas: Long live the bullpen car - ESPN Page 2". Espn.com. Retrieved February 24, 2018.
- ^ "MLB Rule Changes | Baseball Almanac". www.baseball-almanac.com. Retrieved May 28, 2024.
- ^ Andrews, Davy. "The Death and Rebirth of the Home Team Batting First – Society for American Baseball Research". Retrieved May 28, 2024.
- ^ "Pitching Mound History–balance between pitchers and batters". BoSox Injection. December 13, 2013. Retrieved May 28, 2024.
- ^ admin. "Origin of the Modern Pitching Win – Society for American Baseball Research". Retrieved May 28, 2024.
- ^ Holmes, Dan (February 7, 2021). "1950 rule forced Joe DiMaggio to ditch his favorite glove". Baseball Egg. Retrieved May 28, 2024.
- ^ "A guide to rules changes in MLB (and sports) history". MLB.com. Retrieved May 28, 2024.
- ^ "Phil Rizzuto Baseball Almanac Awards". Baseball Almanac.
- ^ "Jim Konstanty Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com.
- ^ "Jim Konstanty Baseball Almanac Awards". Baseball Almanac.
- ^ "Bob Lemon Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com.
- ^ "Bob Lemon Baseball Almanac Awards". Baseball Almanac.
- ^ "The Hutch Award, Lou Gehrig Award, Babe Ruth Award & Roberto Clemente Award Winners". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on May 31, 2020. Retrieved October 4, 2011.
- ^ "1950 World Series". Baseball-Reference. Archived from the original on June 22, 2008. Retrieved September 20, 2009.
- ^ "New York Yankees Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
- ^ "Detroit Tigers Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
- ^ "Cleveland Indians Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
- ^ "Boston Red Sox Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
- ^ "Oakland Athletics Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
- ^ "Los Angeles Dodgers Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
- ^ "Pittsburgh Pirates Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
- ^ "Chicago Cubs Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
- ^ "St. Louis Cardinals Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
- ^ "San Francisco Giants Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
- ^ "Atlanta Braves Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
- ^ "Chicago White Sox Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
- ^ "Minnesota Twins Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
- ^ "Cincinnati Reds Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
- ^ "Oakland Athletics Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
- ^ "Baltimore Orioles Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved September 8, 2020.