| 1959 MLB season | |
|---|---|
| League | Major League Baseball |
| Sport | Baseball |
| Duration | April 9 – October 9, 1959 |
| Number of games | 154 |
| Number of teams | 16 |
| TV partner(s) | NBC, CBS |
| Regular season | |
| Season MVP | AL: Nellie Fox (CWS) NL: Ernie Banks (CHC) |
| AL champions | Chicago White Sox |
| AL runners-up | Cleveland Indians |
| NL champions | Los Angeles Dodgers |
| NL runners-up | Milwaukee Braves |
| World Series | |
| Champions | Los Angeles Dodgers |
| Runners-up | Chicago White Sox |
| World Series MVP | Larry Sherry (LA) |
The 1959 Major League Baseball season was played from April 9 to October 9, 1959. It saw the Los Angeles Dodgers, free of the strife produced by their move from Brooklyn the previous season, rebound to win the National League pennant after a two-game playoff against the Milwaukee Braves, who themselves had moved from Boston in 1953. The Dodgers won the World Series against a Chicago White Sox team that had not played in the "Fall Classic" since 1919 and was interrupting a Yankees' dynasty that dominated the American League between 1949 and 1964.
The season is notable as the only one between 1950 and 1981 where no pitcher pitched a no-hitter. [1] [a]
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
American League
| National League
|
| World Series | ||||
| AL | Chicago White Sox | 2 | ||
| NL | Los Angeles Dodgers | 4 | ||
| Team | Manager | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| Baltimore Orioles | Paul Richards | |
| Boston Red Sox | Pinky Higgins, Rudy York and Billy Jurges | |
| Chicago White Sox | Al Lopez | Won first pennant since 1919 |
| Cleveland Indians | Joe Gordon | Finished 2nd |
| Detroit Tigers | Bill Norman and Jimmy Dykes | |
| Kansas City Athletics | Harry Craft | |
| New York Yankees | Casey Stengel | Finished 3rd |
| Washington Senators | Cookie Lavagetto |
| Team | Manager | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| Chicago Cubs | Bob Scheffing | |
| Cincinnati Reds | Mayo Smith and Fred Hutchinson | |
| Los Angeles Dodgers | Walter Alston | Won World Series in second year in LA |
| Milwaukee Braves | Fred Haney | Finished second, lost playoff to Dodgers |
| Philadelphia Phillies | Eddie Sawyer | |
| Pittsburgh Pirates | Danny Murtaugh | |
| St. Louis Cardinals | Solly Hemus | |
| San Francisco Giants | Bill Rigney | Finished 3rd |
| Team name | Wins | %± | Home attendance | %± | Per game |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles Dodgers [2] | 88 | 23.9% | 2,071,045 | 12.2% | 26,552 |
| Milwaukee Braves [3] | 86 | -6.5% | 1,749,112 | -11.3% | 22,141 |
| New York Yankees [4] | 79 | -14.1% | 1,552,030 | 8.7% | 20,156 |
| Cleveland Indians [5] | 89 | 15.6% | 1,497,976 | 125.7% | 19,454 |
| Chicago White Sox [6] | 94 | 14.6% | 1,423,144 | 78.5% | 18,245 |
| San Francisco Giants [7] | 83 | 3.8% | 1,422,130 | 11.7% | 18,469 |
| Pittsburgh Pirates [8] | 78 | -7.1% | 1,359,917 | 3.7% | 17,661 |
| Detroit Tigers [9] | 76 | -1.3% | 1,221,221 | 11.1% | 15,860 |
| Boston Red Sox [10] | 75 | -5.1% | 984,102 | -8.6% | 12,781 |
| Kansas City Athletics [11] | 66 | -9.6% | 963,683 | 4.2% | 12,515 |
| St. Louis Cardinals [12] | 71 | -1.4% | 929,953 | -12.6% | 12,077 |
| Baltimore Orioles [13] | 74 | 0.0% | 891,926 | 7.5% | 11,435 |
| Chicago Cubs [14] | 74 | 2.8% | 858,255 | -12.4% | 11,146 |
| Philadelphia Phillies [15] | 64 | -7.2% | 802,815 | -13.8% | 10,293 |
| Cincinnati Reds [16] | 74 | -2.6% | 801,298 | 1.6% | 10,406 |
| Washington Senators [17] | 63 | 3.3% | 615,372 | 29.5% | 7,992 |
CBS and NBC aired weekend Game of the Week broadcasts. The All-Star Game and World Series also aired on NBC. The rights to air the 1959 National League tie-breaker series were awarded to ABC. [19] [20]
a Other Major League Baseball seasons since 1901 without a no-hitter pitched are 1909, 1913, 1921, 1927 – 1928, 1932 – 1933, 1936, 1939, 1942 – 1943, 1949, 1982, 1985, 1989, 2000 and 2005.
The 1985 Major League Baseball season ended with the Kansas City Royals defeating the St. Louis Cardinals in the seventh game of the I-70 World Series. Bret Saberhagen, the regular season Cy Young Award winner, was named MVP of the Series. The National League won the All-Star Game for the second straight year.
The 1995 Major League Baseball season was the first season to be played under the expanded postseason format, as the League Division Series (LDS) was played in both the American and National leagues for the first time, since the 1981 strike-split season. However, due to the 1994–95 Major League Baseball strike which carried into the 1995 season, a shortened 144-game schedule commenced on April 25, when the Florida Marlins played host to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The 1996 Major League Baseball season was the final season of league-only play before the beginning of interleague play the following season. The season ended with the New York Yankees defeating the defending champion Atlanta Braves in six games for the World Series title, the Yankees' first championship since 1978. The record for most home runs hit in an MLB regular season, set at 4,458 in 1987, was broken, as the AL and NL combined to hit 4,962 home runs. Only 196 shutouts were recorded in the 2,266 MLB regular-season games. This was the first season in the Divisional Series era to be played to the full 162 games, as the 1994–95 player's strike caused the first two seasons of the era to be abbreviated.
The 1980 Major League Baseball season concluded with the Philadelphia Phillies winning their first World Series championship.
The 1949 Major League Baseball season was contested from April 18 through October 15, 1949. Both the American League (AL) and National League (NL) had eight teams, with each team playing a 154-game schedule. The New York Yankees won the World Series over the Brooklyn Dodgers in five games. Ted Williams of the Boston Red Sox and Jackie Robinson of the Dodgers won the Most Valuable Player Award in the AL and NL, respectively.
The 1939 Major League Baseball season was contested from April 17 to October 8, 1939. The Cincinnati Reds and New York Yankees were the regular season champions of the National League and American League, respectively. The Yankees then defeated the Reds in the World Series, four games to none. The Yankees became the first team to win the World Series four years in a row.
In the 1978 Major League Baseball season, the New York Yankees defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers to win their second consecutive World Series, and 22nd overall, in a rematch of the prior season's Fall Classic. The Yankees overcame clubhouse turmoil, a mid-season managerial change, and a 14-game mid-July deficit in the American League East en route to the championship. All four teams that made the playoffs in 1977 returned for this postseason; none of the four returned to the postseason in 1979.
The 1977 Major League Baseball season saw the American League (AL) having its third expansion, as the Seattle Mariners and Toronto Blue Jays began play, with Seattle returning to the MLB fold after a seven-year absence when the Pilots relocated to Milwaukee to become the Brewers. However, the National League (NL) did not expand, remaining at 12 teams compared to the AL's 14, until the Colorado Rockies and Florida Marlins joined the NL in 1993.
The 1957 Major League Baseball season was played from April 15 to October 10, 1957. The National League's Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Giants played their final seasons as New York City-based franchises before their moves to California for the 1958 season, leaving New York City without a National League team until the birth of the Mets in 1962.
The 1947 Major League Baseball season, was contested from April 15 through October 6, 1947. The American League and National League both featured eight teams, with each team playing a 154-game schedule. The World Series was contested between the New York Yankees against the Brooklyn Dodgers, with the Yankees winning in seven games, capturing the 11th championship in franchise history.
The 1962 Major League Baseball season was contested from April 9 to October 16, 1962. The National League (NL) added two teams via expansion, the Houston Colt .45s and New York Mets. This marked the return of the NL to New York City after a four-year absence, although the Mets would lose 120 games and finish in last place. All major league teams now played 162-game schedules, which had been adopted by the American League (AL) the prior season, with each team facing the nine other clubs in the same league 18 times during the season.
The 1963 Major League Baseball season was contested from April 8 to October 6, 1963. The American League and National League both featured ten teams, with each team playing a 162-game schedule.
The 1964 Major League Baseball season was played from April 13 to October 15, 1964. This season is often remembered for the end of the New York Yankees' third dynasty, as they won their 29th American League Championship in 44 seasons. However, the Yankees lost the World Series to the St. Louis Cardinals in seven games. As of 2023, the Cardinals are the only National League team to have an edge over the Yankees in series played (3–2), amongst the non-expansion teams, despite holding a losing record in World Series games against them (13–15).
The 1965 Major League Baseball season was contested from April 12 to October 14, 1965. The Los Angeles Dodgers and Minnesota Twins were the regular season champions of the National League and American League, respectively. The Dodgers then defeated the Twins in the World Series, four games to three.
The 1966 Major League Baseball season was contested from April 11 to October 9, 1966. The Braves played their inaugural season in Atlanta, following their relocation from Milwaukee. Three teams played the 1966 season in new stadiums. On April 12, the Braves ushered in Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium with the Pittsburgh Pirates taking a 3–2 win in 13 innings. One week later, Anaheim Stadium opened with the California Angels losing to the Chicago White Sox, 3–1 in the Angels' debut following their move from Los Angeles to nearby Orange County. On May 8, the St. Louis Cardinals closed out old Sportsman's Park/Busch Stadium I with a 10–5 loss to the San Francisco Giants before opening the new Busch Memorial Stadium four days later with a 4–3 win in 12 innings over the Atlanta Braves.
The 1967 Major League Baseball season was contested from April 10 to October 12, 1967. The St. Louis Cardinals defeated the Boston Red Sox four games to three in the World Series, which was the first World Series appearance for the Red Sox in 21 years. Following the season, the Kansas City Athletics relocated to Oakland.
The 1951 Major League Baseball season opened on April 16 and finished on October 12, 1951. Teams from both leagues played a 154-game regular season schedule. At the end of the regular season, the National League pennant was still undecided, resulting in a three-game playoff between the New York Giants and the Brooklyn Dodgers. After splitting the first two games, the stage was set for a decisive third game, won in dramatic fashion on a walk-off home run from the bat of Giant Bobby Thomson, one of the most famous moments in the history of baseball, commemorated as the "Shot Heard 'Round the World" and "The Miracle at Coogan's Bluff". The Giants lost the World Series to defending champion New York Yankees, who were in the midst of a 5-year World Series winning streak.
The 1948 Major League Baseball season was contested from April 19 to October 11, 1948. The Boston Braves and Cleveland Indians were the regular season champions of the National League and American League, respectively. The Indians won the American League title via a tie-breaker game victory over the Boston Red Sox, after both teams finished their 154-game schedules with identical 96–58 records. The Indians then defeated the Braves in the World Series, four games to two.
The 1958 Major League Baseball season was played from April 14 to October 15, 1958. It was the first season of play in California for both the Los Angeles Dodgers and the San Francisco Giants ; in turn, this marked the first teams to ever play on the West Coast. Three teams had relocated earlier in the decade: the Milwaukee Braves, Baltimore Orioles, and Kansas City Athletics. New York went without a National League team for four seasons, until the expansion New York Mets began play in 1962.
The 1976 Major League Baseball season ended with the Cincinnati Reds winning their second consecutive World Series championship.