1955 in baseball

Last updated September 02, 2025

The following are the baseball events of the year 1955 throughout the world.

Champions

Major League Baseball

World Series: Brooklyn Dodgers over New York Yankees (4–3); Johnny Podres, MVP
All-Star Game, July 12 at County Stadium: National League, 6–5 (12 innings)

Awards and honors

Baseball Hall of Fame
MLB Most Valuable Player
- Roy Campanella (BKN, National)
- Yogi Berra (NYY, American)
MLB Rookie of the Year
- Bill Virdon (STL, National)
- Herb Score (CLE, American)

Statistical leaders

	American League		National League
Stat	Player	Total	Player	Total
AVG	Al Kaline (DET)	.340	Richie Ashburn (PHI)	.338
HR	Mickey Mantle (NYY)	37	Willie Mays (NYG)	51
RBI	Ray Boone (DET) Jackie Jensen (BOS)	116	Duke Snider (BKN)	136
W	Whitey Ford (NYY) Bob Lemon (CLE) Frank Sullivan (BOS)	18	Robin Roberts (PHI)	23
ERA	Billy Pierce (CWS)	1.97	Bob Friend (PIT)	2.83
K	Herb Score (CLE)	245	Sam Jones (CHC)	198

Major league baseball final standings

American League final standings

v
t
e
American League
Team	W	L	Pct.	GB	Home	Road
New York Yankees	96	58	.623	—	52‍–‍25	44‍–‍33
Cleveland Indians	93	61	.604	3	49‍–‍28	44‍–‍33
Chicago White Sox	91	63	.591	5	49‍–‍28	42‍–‍35
Boston Red Sox	84	70	.545	12	47‍–‍31	37‍–‍39
Detroit Tigers	79	75	.513	17	46‍–‍31	33‍–‍44
Kansas City Athletics	63	91	.409	33	33‍–‍43	30‍–‍48
Baltimore Orioles	57	97	.370	39	30‍–‍47	27‍–‍50
Washington Senators	53	101	.344	43	28‍–‍49	25‍–‍52

Orioles

Red Sox

White Sox

Indians

Tigers

Athletics

Yankees

Senators

Locations of teams for the 1955–1960 American League seasons

American League

National League final standings

v
t
e
National League
Team	W	L	Pct.	GB	Home	Road
Brooklyn Dodgers	98	55	.641	—	56‍–‍21	42‍–‍34
Milwaukee Braves	85	69	.552	13½	46‍–‍31	39‍–‍38
New York Giants	80	74	.519	18½	44‍–‍35	36‍–‍39
Philadelphia Phillies	77	77	.500	21½	46‍–‍31	31‍–‍46
Cincinnati Redlegs	75	79	.487	23½	46‍–‍31	29‍–‍48
Chicago Cubs	72	81	.471	26	43‍–‍33	29‍–‍48
St. Louis Cardinals	68	86	.442	30½	41‍–‍36	27‍–‍50
Pittsburgh Pirates	60	94	.390	38½	36‍–‍39	24‍–‍55

Dodgers

Cubs

Redlegs

Braves

Giants

Phillies

Pirates

Cardinals

Locations of teams for the 1953–1957 National League seasons

National League

Nippon Professional Baseball final standings

Central League final standings

Central League	G	W	L	T	Pct.	GB
Yomiuri Giants	130	92	37	1	.713	—
Osaka Tigers	130	77	52	1	.597	15.0
Chunichi Dragons	130	71	57	2	.555	20.5
Hiroshima Carp	130	58	70	2	.453	33.5
Kokutetsu Swallows	130	57	71	2	.445	34.5
Taiyo Whales	130	31	99	0	.238	61.5

Pacific League final standings

Pacific League	G	W	L	T	Pct.	GB
Nankai Hawks	143	99	41	3	.707	—
Nishitetsu Lions	144	90	50	4	.643	9.0
Mainichi Orions	142	85	55	2	.607	14.0
Hankyu Braves	142	80	60	2	.571	19.0
Kintetsu Pearls	142	60	80	2	.429	39.0
Daiei Stars	141	53	87	1	.379	46.0
Toei Flyers	143	51	89	3	.364	48.0
Tombo Unions	141	42	98	1	.300	57.0

Events

Before the Athletics arrive in town, the Kansas City Monarchs move their base of operations to Grand Rapids, Michigan. They retain the name "Kansas City Monarchs" and continue in the Negro American League as a barnstorming team.

January

January 15 – Catcher Mickey Owen, whose MLB career includes four National League All-Star team selections, a momentum-changing error in the 1941 World Series, and almost four prime years lost due to his suspension for "jumping" to the Mexican League in 1946, is released by the Boston Red Sox. He remains in the majors for two more years as a coach on Pinky Higgins' Red Sox staff.
January 24
- In an effort to speed up the game, Major League Baseball announces a new rule which requires a pitcher to deliver the ball within 20 seconds after taking a pitching position.
- The Washington Senators release legendary Cuban pitcher Connie Marrero. The 5 ft 5 in (1.65 m), 43-year-old Marrero, known for his "windmill" windup, is a folk hero in Cuba as an amateur player from the 1930s to the mid-1940s, winning three Gold Medals in the Baseball World Cup. He turned pro at age 36 in 1947, then appeared in 118 MLB games over five seasons (1950–1954) for Washington, and was named to the 1951 AL All-Star team.

February

February 15 – Puerto Rico captures its third consecutive Caribbean Series title when its representative, the Cangrejeros de Santurce, defeats Venezuela's Navegantes del Magallanes, 7–2, to win its fifth game in six outings. Puerto Rico's outfield features future Hall of Famers Willie Mays, 23, and Roberto Clemente, 20.
February 28 – The National League fines the Milwaukee Braves $500 for opening their spring training camp before the official March 1 date.

March

March 7
- Jorge Pasquel, the businessman whose Mexican League briefly shook up the U.S. baseball establishment by "raiding" MLB rosters of playing talent and shunning the reserve clause in 1946, dies in a plane crash in San Luis Potosí. Although by 1948 his league failed its challenge to MLB, 20,000 people line the streets for Pasquel's funeral. (See Deaths for this date below.)
- Commissioner Ford Frick advocates for the return of the spitball, arguing that it is "a great pitch and one of the easiest to throw. There was nothing dangerous about it." The spitball was banned following the 1920 season.^[1] Despite the Commissioner's enthusiasm, the pitch remains illegal.
March 12 – The New York Giants sign future Baseball Hall of Fame first baseman Willie McCovey, 17, as an amateur free agent.
March 17 – The Baltimore Orioles obtain pitcher Erv Palica from the Brooklyn Dodgers in exchange for first baseman Frank Kellert and cash considerations. The trade is an add-on to a December 13, 1954 transaction that sent third baseman Billy Cox and pitcher Preacher Roe to Baltimore, which had to be reworked when Roe announced his retirement.
March 29 – The Boston Red Sox sign shortstop Eddie Joost, a 17-year veteran, as a free agent. Joost, 38, spent 1954 as the player-manager of the final edition of the Philadelphia Athletics.
March 30 – The New York Yankees sell the contracts of pitchers Ewell Blackwell and Tom Gorman and first baseman Dick Kryhoski to the Kansas City Athletics.

April

April 11
- In the American League's traditional Presidential Opener at Griffith Stadium, Dwight D. Eisenhower, the 34th President of the United States, throws out the first ball and watches as the Washington Senators trounce the Baltimore Orioles, 12–5, behind Bob Porterfield's complete game.
- In the National League's customary opener at Crosley Field, Cincinnati, the visiting Chicago Cubs defeat the hometown Redlegs, 7–5.
April 12 – After an estimated 150,000 people jam downtown streets for a welcoming parade—and the threat of rain dissipates—the Athletics open their first season in Kansas City with a win over the Detroit Tigers, 6–2, before a crowd of 32,844 at Municipal Stadium.^[2] Former U.S. President Harry Truman throws out the first ball and center fielder Bill Wilson scores three runs and goes three-for-three, including the first home run in Kansas City's major-league history. Alex Kellner gets the win, with erstwhile six-time All-Star Ewell Blackwell—who will be released April 30—his only save in an Athletics uniform.^[3]
April 13
- The eventual combatants in the 1955 World Series, the Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Yankees, get their seasons off on the right foot. At Ebbets Field, Carl Erskine tosses a complete game and Brooklyn scores five sixth-inning runs (helped by homers from Jim Gilliam and Carl Furillo) as the Dodgers breeze past the Pittsburgh Pirates, 6–1. At Yankee Stadium, the "Bronx Bombers" live up to their nickname, thrashing the Washington Senators, 19–1, with Whitey Ford throwing a two-hitter and going three-for-five at the plate, including a home run, and collecting four runs batted in.
- The Milwaukee Braves sell the contract of veteran right-hander Jim Wilson, 33, to the Baltimore Orioles. In 1954, Wilson, had thrown the first no-hitter in Milwaukee's MLB history and been selected to the NL All-Star team. This season and next, Wilson will be a member of the American League's All-Star squad.

April 14 – Elston Howard becomes the first African-American to wear a New York Yankees uniform. At Fenway Park, Howard singles in his first at-bat. But the Boston Red Sox win the game, 8–4, behind Willard Nixon.^[4]
April 21 – Don Zimmer is four-for-four, including a homer and three runs batted in, and Joe Black goes 62⁄3 innings in relief of Russ Meyer, as the Brooklyn Dodgers win their tenth straight game to start the 1955 season, 14–4, over the visiting Philadelphia Phillies. The Dodgers' streak will end the next day when they're defeated by their intense rivals, the defending world-champion New York Giants.
April 23 – The Chicago White Sox tally a franchise-record 29 runs and 29 hits (including seven home runs) against the host Kansas City Athletics, in a 29–6 ripping. Sherm Lollar goes 5-for-6 with a pair of home runs and five RBI, and becomes the only player in the decade to get two hits in one inning twice in the same game (second and sixth innings). Alfonso "Chico" Carrasquel is five-for-six, and Bob Nieman paces the attack with two homers and seven RBI. Walt Dropo adds a homer and seven RBI, while pitcher Jack Harshman and left fielder Minnie Miñoso also homer. Carrasquel and Miñoso each score five runs. The Sox' early-season explosion enables them to set MLB team highs for 1955 in hits, runs, runs batted in, and home runs.^[5] Kansas City gets homers from Vic Power and Bill Renna. Bobby Shantz is the losing pitcher.^[6]
April 29 – The Baltimore Orioles defeat the Cleveland Indians 5–2. It's the first win for the franchise in Cleveland since August 13, 1952, when the Baltimore franchise was known as the St. Louis Browns; it had since lost 27 straight games in the Ohio metropolis.
April 30
- The Brooklyn Dodgers hold off the Chicago Cubs 7–5 at Ebbets Field to finish the month of April with 14 wins in 16 games (.875). They lead the second-place Milwaukee Braves (9–6) by 4½ games in the National League.
- The first major trade of 1955, a six-player transaction, occurs when the struggling (4–12) Cincinnati Redlegs trade catcher Andy Seminick and outfielders Glen Gorbous and Jim Greengrass to the Philadelphia Phillies (8–7) for pitcher Steve Ridzik, catcher Smoky Burgess and outfielder Stan Palys. The trade enables Seminick, 34, to return to his original and longtime team, the Phillies.

May

May 1
- At Cleveland Stadium, the Indians sweep a doubleheader from the Boston Red Sox, 2–0 and 2–1, behind the brilliant pitching of future Hall-of-Famer Bob Feller, who strikes out only one hitter, and rookie phenom Herb Score, who fans 16 in his complete game victory. Score's 16 Ks top all MLB pitchers for strikeouts in a game in 1955.^[7] The sweep enables Cleveland, defending American League champions, to take over first place in the Junior Circuit by a half-game over the New York Yankees, Chicago White Sox and Detroit Tigers.
- The first marathon contest of the season sees the New York Giants outlast the Cincinnati Redlegs 2–1 in 16 innings at the Polo Grounds. New York's ace left-hander, Johnny Antonelli, goes all the way for the complete game.
May 9 – In what proves to be a handsome bargain, the Detroit Tigers purchase the contract of outfielder Charlie Maxwell from the Baltimore Orioles. Maxwell, 28, is in his fifth American League season and has batted only .199 with three homers in 138 games with the Orioles and Boston Red Sox. In Detroit, he'll make two AL All-Star teams after breaking into the regular lineup in 1956, and smash 133 homers in a Tiger uniform until he departs in June 1962.
May 10 – The Brooklyn Dodgers continue their red-hot start to the 1955 campaign. Don Newcombe fires a one-hitter to win his fourth straight decision and future Hall-of-Famer Duke Snider's solo homer gives Newcombe the only run he needs in an eventual 3–0 triumph over the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field. Brooklyn's record is now 22–2 (.917) with a +69 run differential, and they hold a 9½-game lead over the New York Giants.
May 12 – Sam Jones of the Chicago Cubs no-hits the Pittsburgh Pirates, 4–0, becoming the first African-American to pitch a no-hitter in the major leagues. In the ninth inning Jones walks the bases full and then strikes out Dick Groat, Roberto Clemente and Frank Thomas in a row to preserve his victory. It is also the first no-hitter at Wrigley Field in 38 years. Only 2,918 fans are on hand to witness the double milestone.
May 13 – At Yankee Stadium, Mickey Mantle homers from both sides of the plate for the first time in his major league career. The slugger finishes the game with three home runs – two left-handed and one right-handed, while driving in all of the New York Yankees' runs in a 5–2 victory over the Detroit Tigers. Whitey Ford is the winning pitcher and Steve Gromek takes the loss.
May 18 – A 19-hit attack, including home runs from Vic Wertz, Ralph Kiner and Hank Majeski, powers the Cleveland Indians and rookie southpaw Herb Score to a 19–0 blanking of the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park. The fireballing Score, now 4–2 (3.26 ERA), strikes out nine.
May 27
- The Red Sox' Norm Zauchin slugs three home runs—a two-run, three-run, and grand slam blast—and drives in ten runs in a 16–0 shellacking of the Washington Senators at Fenway Park. Zauchin's ten RBI are the most by any MLB player in a game in 1955.^[7]
- The 17–19 St. Louis Cardinals fire Eddie Stanky, their manager since the start of the 1952 season. Stanky, 39, has compiled a 260–238–3 record at the Redbirds' helm. His replacement is player-manager Harry Walker, 36, who has been running the Triple-A Rochester Red Wings.
May 28 – Ted Williams returns to the Red Sox lineup by going one-for-four against the Washington Senators in a 5–3 loss before 9,162 fans at Fenway Park. Williams had declined to sign his lucrative 1955 contract until a contentious divorce settlement was reached.^[8] The Bosox had gone 17–24 (11 games out of first) in "The Kid's" absence.

June

June 1 – Duke Snider hits three home runs at Ebbets Field, helping the Brooklyn Dodgers to an 11–8 victory over the Milwaukee Braves. Pee Wee Reese, Jackie Robinson and Roy Campanella also belt solo homers for the Dodgers, to set a franchise record with six home runs in a single game. Although they have cooled somewhat since their 22–2 start, the Dodgers (33–11) still hold a solid 6½-game lead in the National League.
June 2
- Sophomore first baseman and fabled local high-school and college athlete Harry Agganis of the Boston Red Sox bangs out a double and single in four at bats in a losing cause in a 4–2 Chicago White Sox victory at Comiskey Park. In the process, Agganis, recently hospitalized for pneumonia of the right lung, raises his 1955 batting average to .313 in 25 games.^[9] But, in a tragedy that will unfold over the next four weeks, the 26-year-old Agganis will never play again. Coughing and exhausted, he is readmitted to a Boston-area hospital the next day with pneumonia in his left lung and phlebitis, then placed on the voluntarily-retired list June 16. Eleven days later, Agganis dies suddenly from a massive pulmonary embolism. (See Deaths entry for June 27, 1955.) Ten thousand mourners file past his coffin prior to his June 30 funeral in his native Lynn, Massachusetts.^[10]^[11]
- Temporarily assuming Brooklyn's mantle as the "hottest team in baseball," the New York Yankees (33–13) win their 19th game in 22 attempts since May 11 by defeating the lowly Kansas City Athletics, 12–6, at Municipal Stadium. During that time, on May 21, the Yankees took over first place in the American League, and with today's victory they hold a three-game advantage over the runner-up Cleveland Indians.
June 7 – The Chicago White Sox reacquire center fielder Jim Busby from the Washington Senators for pitcher Bob Chakales, catcher Clint Courtney and center fielder Johnny Groth.
June 9 – The Cincinnati Redlegs acquire pitcher and 1952 National League Rookie of the Year Joe Black from the Brooklyn Dodgers for cash and a "player to be named later", outfielder Bob Borkowski.
June 15 – The Cleveland Indians obtain outfielder Gene Woodling and third baseman Billy Cox from the Baltimore Orioles for outfielders Dave Pope and Wally Westlake. Cox, 35, retires rather than report to Cleveland, and the deal is completed when Baltimore sends $15,000 to the Indians as compensation.
June 18 – The Chicago White Sox vault into a first-place tie with the New York Yankees by taking the first two games of a four-game weekend set at Yankee Stadium. The tie proves to be short-lived, however, as the Yankees sweep a June 19 doubleheader to kick off a 13–1 hot streak to seemingly retake command of the American League pennant race.
June 24 – "Bonus baby" Sandy Koufax, signed by the Brooklyn Dodgers in December 1954, makes his MLB debut by throwing two scoreless innings of relief against the Milwaukee Braves at County Stadium. Facing his first three big-league hitters, the 19-year-old southpaw loads the bases on a single, error (his own), and base on balls, then escapes unscathed by striking out Bobby Thomson and inducing Joe Adcock to ground into a 6–4–3 double play.

July

July 5 – With the score tied 4–4 and two out in the home half of the ninth at Crosley Field, managers Harry Walker of the St. Louis Cardinals and Birdie Tebbetts of the Cincinnati Redlegs scuffle at home plate when Tebbetts, 42, accuses Walker, 36, and Redbird catcher Bill Sarni of stalling tactics during Cincinnati's ninth inning rally. The benches clear and umpire Jocko Conlan ejects the two skippers and Sarni. Tebbetts leaves the field bleeding from the mouth, but—immediately after the brouhaha—Johnny Temple delivers a game-winning single and his Redlegs triumph 5–4.^[12]^[13]
July 8 – Light-hitting shortstop Joe DeMaestri of the Kansas City Athletics goes six-for-six (all singles) in an eleven-inning, 11–8 loss to the Detroit Tigers at Briggs Stadium.^[7]
July 10
- The Boston Red Sox, still weathering the June 27 death of young first baseman Harry Agganis, go into the All–Star break having won 26 of their last 33 games by downing the Baltimore Orioles 10–7 at Fenway Park. Ted Williams, who didn't sign his contract until May 12^[8] because of a pending divorce settlement, hits his 12th homer of the season. The hot streak propels the Bosox into the American League's first division with a 48–36 mark, in fourth place and seven games behind the New York Yankees. Cleveland (five games out) and Chicago (six behind) occupy second and third places.
- The Brooklyn Dodgers' first-place margin drops a half-game going into the break, after a 3–2 Polo Grounds loss to the New York Giants. The Dodgers still lead the NL by 11½ lengths over the Milwaukee Braves.
July 12 – In the All–Star Game in Milwaukee's County Stadium, the American League takes a five run lead on a three-run home run by Mickey Mantle off Robin Roberts, only to see the National League tie it. Milwaukee Braves pitcher Gene Conley strikes out the side in the 12th inning, and Stan Musial of the St. Louis Cardinals homers off Boston Red Sox pitcher Frank Sullivan to seal a 6–5 victory. Coincidentally, the 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) Conley and the 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) Sullivan will be traded for each other after the 1960 season.
July 21 – Gus Bell of the Cincinnati Redlegs hits three home runs—all solo shots—to provide his team's only offense as Cincinnati falls 5–3 to the Philadelphia Phillies at Connie Mack Stadium.^[14]
July 23
- The New York Yankees fall into a first-place tie with the Chicago White Sox by suffering their 13th loss in 18 games, 8–7 in 11 innings to the Kansas City Athletics. The White Sox, meanwhile, have gone 9–3 since the All-Star break, with the third-place Cleveland Indians only one game back of the leaders.
- The Phillies' Del Ennis belts three homers and knocks in all seven runs as the Phils top the visiting St. Louis Cardinals 7–2.^[15]

July 26 – In a key nighttime game at Yankee Stadium, the New York Yankees beat the Chicago White Sox 1–0. The game's only run occurs in the bottom of the sixth inning when Yogi Berra hits his 17th homer of the season off the White Sox' Dick Donovan. Tommy Byrne is the winning pitcher as he holds the White Sox to just four hits, all of them singles. The victory enables the Yankees (60–37) to increase their American League lead to two games over the ChiSox (57–38) and Cleveland Indians (58–39).
July 29 – Smoky Burgess belts three homers, including a grand slam, and knocks in nine runs, leading his Cincinnati Redlegs to a 16–5 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates. Teammates Bob Thurman (who also hits a grand slam) and Milt Smith also contribute long balls, and left-hander Joe Nuxhall wins his tenth game of the year.^[16]
July 30
- With a little more than 50 games left in the regular season, three teams are tied for the top spot in the American League: the Chicago White Sox (60–39, .606), Cleveland Indians and New York Yankees (each 61–40, .604). This three-way virtual deadlock, involving the same teams, will occur again August 5 and 6.
- The Yankees part with veteran left-hander Ed Lopat, trading him to the Baltimore Orioles for right-hander Jim McDonald. A five-time World Series champion, "Steady Eddie", 37, has won 117 games (including the postseason) for the Bombers since 1948.
July 31
- On the first anniversary of his four-home run game, Milwaukee Braves first baseman Joe Adcock is hit by a pitch from the New York Giants' Jim Hearn. The pitch breaks Adcock's arm and he will miss the rest of the 1955 season.
- The contract of the Giants' former ace starting pitcher, Sal Maglie, now 38, is sold to the Cleveland Indians. Since returning from his Mexican League suspension in 1950, "Sal the Barber" had compiled a 90–38 record (a winning percentage of .703), made two NL All-Star teams, and been a part of two pennant-winners and one World Series champion for Leo Durocher's squad.

August

August 4
- With his Chicago Cubs trailing the visiting Pittsburgh Pirates 10–9 in the eighth inning, Ernie Banks belts his third home run of the afternoon, a two-run shot, for a come-from-behind, 11–10 triumph. Banks scores four runs and knocks in seven.^[17]
- At County Stadium, each team slugs three home runs but the Brooklyn Dodgers prevail over the Milwaukee Braves, 11–10, when round-trippers from Carl Furillo and Roy Campanella help them rally for five runs in the top of the ninth. The front-running Dodgers' lead over the second-place Braves is now 15½ games.
August 9 – The fourth-place Boston Red Sox (64–46) inch their way into the torrid American League race when right-hander Willard Nixon defeats Whitey Ford and the New York Yankees (65–46) 4–1 in The Bronx. The Bosox are now 1½ games behind the first-place Chicago White Sox (64–43), a full length behind the Cleveland Indians (65–45) and a half length behind the Bombers.
August 12 – The AL race gains a new pace-setter when the Cleveland Indians (69–45) sweep the Kansas City Athletics at Municipal Stadium, 17–1 and 6–5. In the revamped pecking order, the former front-running White Sox (66–44) fall to second, with the Yankees (67–46) close on their heels.
August 18 – Reacting to a report that the Brooklyn Dodgers and Jersey City officials have reached an agreement for the Dodgers to play part of their 1956 National League schedule at Roosevelt Stadium, Robert F. Wagner Jr., mayor of New York City, says he will convene a meeting with John Cashmore, Brooklyn borough president, and Robert Moses, Wagner's powerful parks commissioner, in support of a new baseball park to be constructed in downtown Brooklyn to replace 42-year-old Ebbets Field. Dodger owner Walter O'Malley has warned that "Ebbets Field must be sold by 1958." Says Wagner: “I am very anxious to keep the Brooklyn Dodgers in New York City."^[18]
August 20 – The Chicago White Sox rally to edge the Detroit Tigers‚ 8–7. Nellie Fox and Jim Rivera pace the attack with four hits apiece‚ while Chico Carrasquel adds a home run. George Kell drives in five runs for the White Sox. The win leaves Chicago (71–46) tied in second place with Cleveland (73–48)‚ and a game in back of New York (74–47).

September

September 1 – As the month begins, the Brooklyn Dodgers continue to hold a commanding lead (13 games over the Milwaukee Braves) in the National League, while the three main American League combatants—the 79–41 Chicago White Sox and the 79–42 Cleveland Indians and New York Yankees—are separated by a half-game.
September 8 – The Brooklyn Dodgers — who are 92–46 (.667) and 17 games ahead of the second-place Milwaukee Braves — clinch the National League pennant by beating Milwaukee, 10–2, for their eighth NL title. The Dodgers also break their own MLB record for the earliest clinching, set in 1953.
September 10 – At Griffith Stadium, "The Walking Man," Eddie Yost, draws five bases on balls in six plate appearances, but can score only once in the Washington Senators' 8–6 loss to the Kansas City Athletics.^[7] Yost will lead American League batters in walks six times between 1950 and 1960.
September 13 – With veterans Mike Garcia and Bob Lemon on top of their game, the Cleveland Indians sweep the Washington Senators, 3–1 and 8–2, in a Griffith Stadium doubleheader. Attempting to defend their AL championship, the Tribe open up a two-game lead over the New York Yankees, while the third-place Chicago White Sox, only 4–8 in September, fall to 4½ back.
September 14 – Cleveland Indians pitcher Herb Score breaks a rookie record of 235 strikeouts in a season set by Grover Cleveland Alexander in 1911. Score would finish the season with a league-best 245 strikeouts, along with a 16–10 record and 2.86 earned run average, en route to the American League Rookie of the Year Award.
September 16 – The Kansas City Athletics score seven runs in the first inning and roll to a 13–7 win over the faltering Chicago White Sox. The third place Sox lose their 10th in 17 games. Héctor López hits a three-run home run in the first to start the scoring and later in the game Joe Astroth adds another three-run homer. George Kell and Chico Carrasquel hit solo homers for Chicago. In the eighth inning, 16-year-old shortstop Alex George debuts for Kansas City‚ handling two chances in the field flawlessly and making an out in his one at bat. George will go 1-for-10 in this, his only Major League season.
September 17 – Playing without superstar Mickey Mantle, who pulled a hamstring trying to beat out a bunt the night before, the New York Yankees retake sole possession of first place in the American League with a 4–1 triumph over the visiting Boston Red Sox. The Yankees are in the midst of a finishing kick that will see them win eight games in a row and clinch their 21st AL pennant on September 21, setting up another "Subway Series" with the 1955 NL champion Brooklyn Dodgers. Mantle, however, will be able to appear in only three games, with ten plate appearances, in the Fall Classic.
September 23 – Flamboyant Chicago White Sox general manager "Frantic" Frank Lane, publicly feuding with club vice president and heir-apparent to the throne Chuck Comiskey, announces his resignation with four years left on his contract.^[19] By one count, Lane, a compulsive wheeler-dealer, has made 241 trades since taking over the ChiSox front office in the autumn of 1948.^[20]
September 25 – Manager Leo Durocher, 50, and the New York Giants part company, with the combative future Baseball Hall of Famer saying he is "retiring" to enter private business. One of his new ventures will be as a "Game of the Week" color analyst for NBC Sports. Manager of the Giants since July 16, 1948, Durocher led them to a 637–523 (.549) record, two National League pennants and the 1954 World Series championship. It will be a full decade before Durocher manages again in the big leagues. The Giants immediately replace him by promoting Bill Rigney, 37, from Triple-A Minneapolis.^[21]^[22]

October

October 4 – There will be no more "wait 'til next year." The Brooklyn Dodgers, behind the pitching of Johnny Podres, bring their first, and only, World Series championship to Brooklyn after seven frustrating previous appearances, with a 2–0, seventh-game win over the New York Yankees. Podres is named the Most Valuable Player of the Series—the first time such an award is given. Dodger left fielder Sandy Amorós makes a clutch sixth-inning catch to rob Yogi Berra of a potential two-RBI double to preserve Podres' shutout.^[23]
October 6 – Frank Lane signs a three-year contract to become the new general manager of the St. Louis Cardinals, replacing Anheuser-Busch brewery executive Richard A. Meyer. Lane had quit a similar job with the Chicago White Sox just 13 days earlier.
October 25
- Future Hall-of-Fame executive Branch Rickey, 73, retires as executive VP/general manager of the Pittsburgh Pirates and is succeeded by front-office lieutenant Joe L. Brown, 37. Rickey's five years as GM of the Pirates have produced four last-place finishes—a sharp contrast with the dynasties he oversaw in St. Louis and Brooklyn—but he has done much to lay the foundation for the Bucs' 1960 World Series championship, which will be achieved during Brown's administration.^[24]
- The Chicago White Sox trade shortstop Alfonso "Chico" Carrasquel and center fielder Jim Busby to the Cleveland Indians in exchange for left fielder Larry Doby. The trade makes room for Carrasquel's fellow Venezuelan and future Hall of Famer Luis Aparicio.
October 27 – "The Old Fox," Clark Griffith, Hall of Fame pitcher and patriarch of the Washington Senators as manager (1912–1920) and president/chief stockholder (1920–1955), dies in Washington, D.C., at age 85.^[25] (See Deaths entry for this date below.) He leaves his 52 percent share of the Senators evenly split between his widow's nephew Calvin Griffith and niece Thelma Griffith Haynes. Calvin, supported by Thelma, assumes the team presidency and soon begins to field bids by other cities to lure the franchise from Washington.^[26]

November

November 2 – The Pittsburgh Pirates name Bobby Bragan as their new field manager, replacing Fred Haney.
November 4 – Cy Young, holder of the record for most games won (511) in his MLB career and perhaps the greatest pitcher of all time, dies in Newcomerstown, Ohio, at age 88. (See Deaths entry for this date below.)
November 8 – In a nine-player transaction, the Washington Senators send pitchers Bob Porterfield and Johnny Schmitz, first baseman Mickey Vernon and outfielder Tom Umphlett to the Boston Red Sox in exchange for pitchers Dick Brodowski, Tex Clevenger and minor-leader Al Curtis, and outfielders Neil Chrisley and Karl Olson. Veterans Porterfield and Vernon are former All-Stars.
November 12 – Former Detroit Tigers pitcher and manager Fred Hutchinson, 36, replaces Harry Walker at the helm of the St. Louis Cardinals. With the departure of Walker, 1956 will be the first year in the National League's 80-year history without a player-manager.
November 16 – Chicago White Sox owner Grace Reidy Comiskey announces that her son, Chuck Comiskey, who turns 30 in three days, and son-in-law Johnny Rigney, 41, an ex-ChiSox pitcher, both vice presidents, will share baseball-operations duties formerly performed by Frank Lane, who quit as general manager two months earlier.^[27]
November 21 – Carl Stotz, principal founding father of the Little League, sues the organization for breach of contract. The suit will be settled out of court.
November 28 – The Chicago Cubs trade pitcher Hal Jeffcoat to the Cincinnati Redlegs in exchange for catcher Hobie Landrith.
November 30 – Virgil Trucks, 38-year-old right-hander who won 108 games during his previous stint (1941–1943, 1945–1952) in Detroit, returns to the Tigers, who reacquire him from the Chicago White Sox for third baseman Bubba Phillips.

December

December 1 – Affirming that his Brooklyn Dodgers plan to leave Ebbets Field after 1957, owner Walter O'Malley and the mayor of Jersey City formally announce that O'Malley's world-championship club will play seven National League games at Roosevelt Stadium in 1956. He implies that the Dodgers would play their entire 1958 home season at Jersey City's 21-year-old stadium if a proposed stadium in downtown Brooklyn, still on the drawing board, is not completed by then.^[28]
December 2 – Veteran pitcher Ellis Kinder, 41, is claimed off waivers by the St. Louis Cardinals from the Boston Red Sox. Nicknamed "Old Folks," Kinder excelled as both a starter (23 wins in 1948) and reliever (American League leader in games pitched and saves in both 1951 and 1953) during his eight years with the Red Sox.
December 3 – New York Yankees catcher Yogi Berra (.272 batting average, 27 home runs, 108 runs batted in, .819 OPS) wins his third American League Most Valuable Player Award (and his second in a row). Berra received 218 points and seven first-place nods to take the award over Al Kaline, 20-year-old star of the Detroit Tigers, who finishes with 201. Because the AL MVP award is announced five days before its National League counterpart, Berra becomes the first player to win three such awards.
December 8
- Roy Campanella of the world-champion Brooklyn Dodgers edges teammate Duke Snider to win his third NL Most Valuable Player Award (having prevailed previously in 1951 and 1953). Campanella (.318 BA, 32 HR, 107 RBI, .978 OPS) and Snider (.309, 42, 136, 1.046) tie for first-place votes with eight, but the catcher's slightly stronger vote totals "down ballot" enable him to accumulate 226 points to Snider's 221. He thus joins Yogi Berra as 3x MVP winners.
- Lenny Yochim of the Leones del Caracas becomes the first pitcher to throw a no-hitter in the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League. The 27-year-old left-hander accomplishes the feat in a 3–0 victory over the Navegantes del Magallanes with the aid of catcher Earl Battey. Ramón Monzant is charged with the loss. Screwballer Yochim is a former member of the Pittsburgh Pirates, pitching for them during parts of 1951 and 1954.
December 9 – Responding to their ninth consecutive .500-or-below season, the Chicago Cubs begin a revamping of their roster, trading pitcher Don Elston and third baseman Randy Jackson to the Dodgers for pitcher Russ Meyer, third baseman Don Hoak and outfielder Walt Moryn. The Cubs also release veteran outfielder Frankie Baumholtz.
December 15 – Catcher Walker Cooper, 40, returns to his original team, the St. Louis Cardinals, signing as a free agent one day after drawing his release from the Cubs. During his 1940–1945 tenure in St. Louis, Cooper was a three-time NL All-Star and two-time (1942 and 1944) World Series champion.