Events
January
- January 19 – Eddie Mathews, a 12-time All-Star third baseman who slugged 512 career homers over his 17-year career, is elected to the Hall of Fame by the Baseball Writers' Association of America on 301 of 379 ballots.
- January 20 – George Bamberger, who has spent the past decade as the highly successful pitching coach of the Baltimore Orioles, fills the Milwaukee Brewers' managerial vacancy, open since Alex Grammas' firing in November 1977. Bamberger, 54, has never managed before, but between 1968 and 1977, his Oriole staff included 18 twenty-game winners and helped win five American League East championships, three AL pennants, and the 1970 World Series.
- January 21 – The Texas Rangers sign first baseman Mike Jorgensen, who was granted free agency from the Oakland Athletics on October 30, 1977.
- January 25 – The San Diego Padres send southpaw Dave Tomlin and $125,000 to the Texas Rangers in return for veteran Gaylord Perry, who will win this year's National League Cy Young Award.
- January 31 – Commissioner of Baseball Bowie Kuhn voids the Oakland Athletics' trade of Vida Blue to the Cincinnati Reds, citing the "best interests of baseball" clause. As compensation, the A's send Doug Bair to the Reds for minor-league prospect Dave Revering on February 25.
February
- February 2 – The San Diego Padres sign veteran southpaw Mickey Lolich, 37, who was granted free agency from the New York Mets on January 5.
- February 3 – Nick Mileti sells the Cleveland Indians to a group headed by trucking industry magnate Francis "Steve" O'Neill, 78, who most recently was a limited partner in George Steinbrenner's New York Yankees ownership syndicate. O'Neill's group includes longtime executive Gabe Paul, who begins a second stint as the Indians' club president.
- February 8 – The Milwaukee Brewers reacquire power hitter Gorman Thomas from the Texas Rangers for cash. In 1978, Thomas, 27, who had failed an earlier, 1973–1976 audition with Milwaukee, will develop into an everyday centerfielder for the Brewers and bash 175 homers over the next five seasons.
- February 15 – Bob Howsam, general manager of the Cincinnati Reds since January 1967 and club president since March 1974, turns over both roles to longtime assistant Dick Wagner, 50. Howsam, two weeks shy of his 60th birthday, was Cincinnati's hard-nosed front-office boss during the "Big Red Machine" era; his clubs won five NL West titles, four National League pennants and two World Series (1975, 1976). He's known to be a firm opponent of the free agency era and its rising player salaries.
- February 17 – The Boston Red Sox sign veteran left-handed reliever Tom Burgmeier, 34, granted free agency from the Minnesota Twins on November 2, 1977.
- February 28
- The San Diego Padres trade first baseman Mike Ivie to the San Francisco Giants for versatile infielder Derrel Thomas. Ivie, 25, was the first overall pick in the June 1970 amateur draft.
- The Texas Rangers trade left-hander and former Texas schoolboy sensation David Clyde, the first overall pick in the June 1973 draft, along with veteran outfielder Willie Horton, to the Cleveland Indians for pitcher Tom Buskey and outfielder John Lowenstein.
March
- March 6 – The Detroit Tigers acquire veteran right-hander Jack Billingham, 35, from the Cincinnati Reds for young lefty George Cappuzzello and minor-league outfielder John Valle.
- March 15
- The San Francisco Giants win the "Vida Blue Sweepstakes", obtaining the star southpaw from Charlie Finley's cross-bay Oakland Athletics in exchange for seven players and a cash payment of between $300,000 and $400,000. Commissioner Bowie Kuhn immediately says he will not block the transaction. The seven players traded by the Giants are pitchers Dave Heaverlo, Phil Huffman, John Henry Johnson and Alan Wirth, catcher Gary Alexander, infielder Mario Guerrero ("player to be named later") and outfielder Gary Thomasson. Blue will go 18–10 (2.79), make the National League All-Star team, and finish third in NL Cy Young Award balloting in 1978.
- The Toronto Blue Jays make two deals: they send pitcher Dennis DeBarr to the Cleveland Indians for designated hitter Rico Carty; then they trade hurler Tom Bruno and cash to the St. Louis Cardinals for outfielder Rick Bosetti.
- March 17 – At Al Lopez Field in Tampa, Florida, the Cincinnati Reds host the New York Yankees in a spring training match-up wearing green uniforms in honor of St. Patrick's Day. In 1990, the Boston Red Sox become the second team to adopt this tradition.
- March 21 – With 17 days to go in spring training, the San Diego Padres fire manager Alvin Dark and replace him with Roger Craig, the club's pitching coach. It's Craig's first MLB managing opportunity.
- March 24 – The New York Mets trade veteran shortstop Bud Harrelson to the Philadelphia Phillies for second baseman Fred Andrews and cash. Harrelson, 33, has appeared in 1,322 games over 13 seasons in a Met uniform, and is a member of their 1969 World Series champions and 1973 National League pennant-winners.
- March 28 – Among the players who draw career-ending unconditional releases, as teams cut rosters to prepare for Opening Day, are pitcher Larry Dierker (released by the St. Louis Cardinals), designated hitter and 2025 Baseball Hall of Fame inductee Dick Allen (dropped by the Oakland Athletics), and second baseman Denny Doyle (cut by the Boston Red Sox).
- March 30
- The Boston Red Sox pull off a blockbuster trade, acquiring top-of-the-rotation starter Dennis Eckersley, 23, from the Cleveland Indians, along with backup catcher Fred Kendall, for pitchers Mike Paxton and Rick Wise, catcher Bo Díaz and third baseman Ted Cox. Eckersley will go 20–8 (2.99) for 1978 Bosox.
- The Oakland Athletics trade pitcher Pablo Torrealba to the Chicago White Sox for fellow hurler Steve Renko and catcher Jim Essian.
April
- April 1 – Starting off with a bang, Japanese star Sadaharu Oh hits a grand slam home run on opening day. It is his 757th home run.
- April 4
- The Kansas City Royals sell the contract of two-time American League All-Star first baseman John Mayberry to the Toronto Blue Jays.
- The Pittsburgh Pirates reacquire veteran catcher Manny Sanguillén from the Oakland Athletics for pitcher Elias Sosa, outfielder Miguel Dilone and second baseman Mike Edwards ("PTBNL"). Sanguillén, 34, was a three-time National League All-Star during his previous term (1967, 1969–1976) with the Bucs.
- April 9 – Comeback hopeful Steve Busby, making his first major-league start since July 6, 1976, hurls 51⁄3 innings before being relieved and Darrell Porter drives in two runs as the Kansas City Royals top the Cleveland Indians, 5–4.
- April 13 – The New York Yankees defeat the Chicago White Sox 4–2 in their home opener on Reggie Candy Bar Day. Reggie Jackson slugs a 3-run home run in the first inning, and the field is showered with candy bars which were given out free to the fans at the game.
- April 16 – The St. Louis Cardinals' Bob Forsch hurls a no-hitter in beating the Philadelphia Phillies 5–0. Forsch walks two and strikes out three in pitching the first home no-hitter by a Cardinal since Jesse Haines in 1924. His brother, the Houston Astros' Ken Forsch, will toss a no-hitter the following season against the Atlanta Braves – making them the first big-league brothers to each author a no-hitter.
- April 20 – With two out in the top of the fourth inning, the Atlanta Braves' Jeff Burroughs hits a ground ball up the middle that San Diego Padres rookie shortstop Ozzie Smith dives for behind second base. As he was in the air, the ball hits the base and caroms behind Smith. As he is diving in the opposite direction, Smith reaches out with his bare hand and catches the ball. He bounces up, and throws Burroughs out at first. The Padres win the game 2–0.
- April 25 – The struggling, 6–11 St. Louis Cardinals fire second-year manager Vern Rapp. His permanent replacement, former Redbird star Ken Boyer, will take the helm of the club on April 29.
- April 27 – Willie McCovey drives in four runs and a double and his 496th home run in leading Vida Blue and the San Francisco Giants to a 5–3 win over the Atlanta Braves.
- April 29
- Pete Rose smashes three home runs in the Cincinnati Reds' 14–7 win over the New York Mets at Shea Stadium.
- In Ken Boyer's debut as manager, the St. Louis Cardinals defeat the Los Angeles Dodgers 1–0. The game tied a record for quickest game in Cardinals history, lasting just one hour and thirty-three minutes.
May
- May 5 – Pete Rose singles off Montreal's Steve Rogers for career hit 3,000 and gets a hug at first base from former teammate Tony Pérez. The Montreal Expos beat the Cincinnati Reds 4–3.
- May 12 – At Royals Stadium, a potential game-ending routine fly ball becomes an Amos Otis walk-off inside-the-park home run as Reggie Jackson and Mickey Rivers collide in the outfield. The Kansas City Royals defeat the New York Yankees, 4–3. The misplay turns a sure Goose Gossage save into a sour loss for the current World Series champion Yankees.
- May 14 – With the Chicago Cubs losing 7–5 to the Los Angeles Dodgers, Dave Kingman hits a two-run home run with two outs in the ninth inning to send the game into extra innings. Kingman, who had also homered in the sixth, hits his third home run of the day in the fifteenth inning to give the Cubs a 10–7 victory over the Dodgers at Dodger Stadium, and end his day with eight RBIs. Following the game, Paul Olden, a reporter for Los Angeles radio station KLAC, asks Dodger manager Tommy Lasorda, "What's your opinion of Kingman's performance?" during his post-game interview. Lasorda goes off in a now-famous obscenity-laced tirade.
- May 15 – The Minnesota Twins sign relief pitcher Mike Marshall, the 1974 National League Cy Young Award winner, who had been granted free agency from the Texas Rangers on November 9, 1977. In Minnesota, Marshall, 35, will reunite with manager Gene Mauch, for whom he starred with the Montreal Expos in 1972–1973, and become the Twins' bullpen ace.
- May 16
- The surprising Detroit Tigers improve to 20–9 on the season with a 16-inning, 4–2 home victory over the Seattle Mariners. Second-year catcher Lance Parrish's walk-off home run seals the win. Parrish, 21, is one of the Tigers' core of young players who have sparked a rejuvenation of the franchise after a difficult mid-1970s rebuilding program.
- With his team in last place and suffering through its worst start since 1968, Chicago White Sox owner Bill Veeck trades Bobby Bonds to the Texas Rangers for outfielders Claudell Washington and Rusty Torres and a minor league player to be named later. Acquired in a high-profile trade from the California Angels the previous December, Bonds, 32, plays just 26 games in a White Sox uniform.
- May 17 – Oakland Athletics outfielder Bill North, a veteran of the club's 1973–1974 pennant- and World Series-winning teams, is traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Glenn Burke. North will become a free agent at the end of 1978 season.
- May 20 – At Olympic Stadium, Willie Stargell of the Pittsburgh Pirates hits two home runs off Wayne Twitchell in a 6–0 victory over the Montreal Expos. His second is a 535-foot shot in the fourth inning that lands in the upper deck – the only fair ball ever to be hit there.
- May 23
- After almost eight full months, the Boston Red Sox are finally sold—to a group now headed by former sole owner Jean R. Yawkey, ex-Red Sox catcher and front-office lieutenant Haywood Sullivan, and the club's former athletic trainer, Buddy LeRoux. The American League accepts the restructured deal, valued at $20.5 million, after it initially nixed Yawkey's attempt to sell the team to Sullivan and LeRoux for $15 million in September 1977; under that arrangement, the duo would have invested only $200,000 of their own capital and borrowed the rest to obtain a 52 percent share. With the retention of the wealthy Mrs. Yawkey in a leading ownership role, the sale (reportedly the highest price yet paid for a sports franchise in the U.S.) goes through. [1]
- With the Oakland Athletics leading the American League West Division (24–15), manager Bobby Winkles walks off the job because of owner Charlie Finley's constant second-guessing. Jack McKeon, whom Winkles had replaced in the manager's chair on June 8, 1977, gets his old job back. It's Finley's 15th managerial change in his 18 years as owner.
- May 26 – The St. Louis Cardinals obtain outfielder George Hendrick from the San Diego Padres for pitcher Eric Rasmussen. Hendrick, 28, will become a two-time NL All-Star and Silver Slugger Award winner in his seven years in St. Louis.
- May 30 – In his National League debut, Silvio Martínez fires a complete game one-hitter as the Cardinals beat the New York Mets, 8–2. The only hit Martínez gives up is a two-run homer by Steve Henderson.
June
- June 1 – The Kansas City Royals trade pitcher Jim Colborn, an 18-game winner in 1977, to the Seattle Mariners for outfielder Steve Braun.
- June 2 – For the fourth time in five seasons, cowboy Gene Autry changes horses in midstream when his 25–21 California Angels fire manager Dave Garcia and replace him with former Angels' star shortstop Jim Fregosi. Between 1974 and 1978, only in 1975 did Autry keep the same manager (Dick Williams) in place all season; Fregosi, 36, is the team's seventh non-interim skipper in eight years. Released by the Pittsburgh Pirates the day before, he goes right from the active ranks to the manager's job. During his playing days with the Angels, 1961 to 1971, Fregosi made six American League All-Star teams. As their skipper, he pulls the Halos out of a losing skid and compiles a 62–54 mark through season's end; the club finishes 87–75, tied for second in the AL West, five games behind the Kansas City Royals.
- June 3 – Davey Johnson becomes the first major leaguer to hit two pinch-hit grand slams in a season, as the Philadelphia Phillies beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, 5–1. [2]
- June 6 – In the 1978 Major League Baseball draft, slugging third baseman Bob Horner of the Arizona State Sun Devils is chosen first overall by the Atlanta Braves. In the second round of the same draft (48th overall), the Baltimore Orioles select Cal Ripken Jr., a shortstop out of Maryland's Aberdeen High School. Future Baseball Hall of Famer Ripken is then best known as the son and namesake of the Orioles' third-base coach.
- June 10 – The New York Yankees trade veteran left-hander Ken Holtzman to his original MLB team, the Chicago Cubs, for 22-year-old righty Ron Davis, a prospect then pitching in Double-A. Davis will go 14–2 (2.85) with nine saves for the 1979 Yankees.
- June 14
- Pete Rose starts his 44-game hitting streak by collecting two hits in the Cincinnati Reds' 3–1 win over the Chicago Cubs.
- The second-place New York Yankees add to their bench strength by acquiring veteran outfielder and pinch hitter Jay Johnstone from the Philadelphia Phillies for pitcher Rawly Eastwick. The Bombers also receive outfield prospect Bobby Brown in the transaction.
- June 15
- The high-flying Boston Red Sox, currently 42–19 and six games ahead of the New York Yankees in the AL East, subtract from their bench strength by selling the contract of reserve outfielder and ace left-handed pinch hitter Bernie Carbo to the Cleveland Indians. Bosox left-hander Bill Lee protests the deal by staging a one-day walkout; he and Carbo are among of group of Red Sox players who've fallen out of favor with general manager Haywood Sullivan and manager Don Zimmer. [3]
- The Philadelphia Phillies reacquire right-handed pitcher and former top draft pick Dick Ruthven from the Atlanta Braves, straight up, for relief pitcher Gene Garber. Struggling so far with the downtrodden Braves, Ruthven, 27, will post a 13–5 record in 20 starts to help the Phils win their third straight NL East championship in 1978.
- The Houston Astros sell the contract of Roger Metzger, their longtime starting shortstop and a former Gold Glove Award winner, to the San Francisco Giants.
- The New York Yankees continue to strengthen their roster, obtaining backup outfielder Gary Thomasson from the Oakland Athletics for infielder Mickey Klutts, outfielder Dell Alston and $50,000.
- The Chicago Cubs trade outfielder Héctor Cruz to the San Francisco Giants for pitcher Lynn McGlothen. The Cubs also trade Joe Wallis to the Cleveland Indians for fellow outfielder Mike Vail.
- Cleveland then sends Wallis to the Oakland Athletics for catcher/designated hitter Gary Alexander.
- June 16
- In a 12-season MLB career marked by near-misses — five one-hit games and eight two-hit games until today [4] — Cincinnati's Tom Seaver finally hurls a no-hitter. The St. Louis Cardinals are the 4–0 victims as Seaver strikes out three batters, and walks three.
- Fresh off the Arizona State University campus with no minor league experience, the Atlanta Braves' Bob Horner homers in his first major league game off Bert Blyleven of the Pittsburgh Pirates.
- June 17 – The New York Yankees' Ron Guidry strikes out 18 batters — 15 in six innings — in a 4–0 shutout of the California Angels, setting an American League record for left-handers. The victory raises the southpaw's record to 11–0.
- June 26 – In only their second season, the 22–47 Toronto Blue Jays are world beaters—for one day—as they score 24 runs on 24 hits against a 40–30 Baltimore Orioles squad. The result is a football-like final score of 24–10 before 16,184 at Toronto's Exhibition Stadium.
- June 27 – Joe Rudi hits a pinch-hit grand slam homer in the seventh to help his California Angels knock the Kansas City Royals out of a tie for first place with a 5–4 Angels win.
- June 29 – Don Sutton sets a Los Angeles Dodgers career strikeout record, fanning Gary Matthews in the first inning for his 2,284th career K. He passes a Dodger record previously held by Don Drysdale in a 7–3 win over the Atlanta Braves.
- June 30
- Bill Veeck's 34–40 Chicago White Sox, in fifth place in the AL West but only 5½ games out of first, change managers, replacing current Baseball-Hall-of-Famer Bob Lemon with future Hall-of-Famer Larry Doby. Lemon is sacked despite having led the 1977 ChiSox to a stellar 90–72 record. Doby becomes MLB's second black manager, after Frank Robinson, former skipper of the Cleveland Indians.
- In the first game of a 10–9, 10–5 doubleheader loss to the Atlanta Braves at Fulton County Stadium, the San Francisco Giants' Willie McCovey hits his 500th career home run. With the blow, hit off Braves pitcher Jamie Easterly, McCovey becomes the 12th member of the 500th home run club. Giant Mike Ivie adds his second pinch grand slam of the year in the opener. San Francisco's Jack Clark socks three homers in the twin bill.
July
- July 1 – The Los Angeles Dodgers reacquire catcher/outfielder Joe Ferguson, whom they traded away in June 1976, obtaining him along with cash considerations from the Houston Astros in exchange for two "players to be named later": infielder Rafael Landestoy and outfield prospect Jeffrey Leonard.
- July 4 – At the unofficial halfway milestone of the regular season, there are tight races in three of MLB's four divisions. The San Francisco Giants lead their traditional enemies, the Los Angeles Dodgers (46–34), by two games in the NL West, with the Cincinnati Reds (46–35) only 2½ back. In the NL East, the two-time defending division champ Philadelphia Phillies (43–32) sport a four-game bulge over the Chicago Cubs (40–37). On the crowded AL West leaderboard, the California Angels (42–38) sit in first place, with every other club in the division, except the last-place Seattle Mariners, within six games of the top. However, the AL East race appears to be a runaway, with the Boston Red Sox (53–24) nine full games in front of the Milwaukee Brewers and New York Yankees (both 45–34).
- July 9 – The first dark cloud appears on the Boston Red Sox' 1978 horizon when shortstop Rick Burleson suffers an ankle injury. The AL All-Star will miss 17 games, and the Bosox will win only six of them before Burleson returns to the lineup on July 28. Burleson's replacement, veteran Frank Duffy, makes three errors in today's game, a 7–1 loss to the Cleveland Indians; a .973 career fielder, Duffy cannot maintain that level of defense in 1978, posting a .929 mark in 21 games as Boston's backup shortstop.
- July 11 – At San Diego, the National League wins the All-Star Game over the American League, 7–3. Dodgers first baseman Steve Garvey earns the MVP trophy. Vida Blue starts for the NL, becoming the first pitcher to start for both leagues in the All-Star Game. Blue also started in 1971 and 1975 for the American League.
- July 13 – Jerry Koosman and Tom Seaver lock up for the second time since Seaver's trade to the Cincinnati Reds. Koosman and the Mets beat Seaver and the Reds, 4–2. Only one of the three runs Seaver gives up is earned.
- July 17
- The Kansas City Royals defeat the New York Yankees 9–7 in 11 innings, but the game is remembered for Reggie Jackson ignoring signs from third-base coach Dick Howser. With the score tied 5–5 in the bottom of the tenth and Thurman Munson on first, manager Billy Martin signals for Jackson to sacrifice bunt. Jackson makes a half-hearted attempt on the first pitch, and Martin removes the bunt sign. Jackson, however, then defies Martin and still attempts a bunt, popping out to the catcher. Jackson is suspended by Martin for five games.
- In a Monday Night Baseball game televised nationally by ABC, the San Francisco Giants' Rob Andrews hits his first major league home run. The hit turns out to be the game-winning run in a 9-7 win over the St. Louis Cardinals. The game is only shown nationally because ABC's scheduled game between the Boston Red Sox and Minnesota Twins is long-delayed by rain.
- July 21
- As Reggie Jackson is returning from suspension, Billy Martin says in a post-game interview about Jackson and Yankee owner George Steinbrenner, "One's a born liar [referring to Jackson], and the other's convicted [Steinbrenner, referring to his 1974 conviction on charges of making illegal presidential campaign contributions]." Martin later appears on live television tearfully announcing his resignation from the Yankees, although some sources believe that Steinbrenner actually fired him. With the Yankees at 50–42 and 12 games behind the front-running Boston Red Sox, Steinbrenner names Bob Lemon manager for the remainder of the season; he'd been fired from the Chicago White Sox three weeks earlier.
- Cleveland Indians starter Mike Paxton strikes out four batters in the fifth inning of an 11–0 win over the Seattle Mariners.
- July 26 – Johnny Bench hits his 300th career home run.
- July 31 – The slumping Boston Red Sox defeat the Chicago White Sox, 9–2, at Fenway Park. It's only Boston's third win in their final 13 July games, and their AL East lead has shrunk from nine games on July 19 to five games (over the Milwaukee Brewers) today. The New York Yankees are third, 7½ back.
August
- August 1 – The Atlanta Braves trounce the Cincinnati Reds, 16–4, and stop Pete Rose's hitting streak at 44 games. Larry McWilliams and Gene Garber are the Atlanta pitchers. Rose goes 0-for-4, including striking out in the 9th inning to end the game. Rose's streak is the second-longest in major league history. He goes 70-for-182 during the skein (a batting average of .385).
- August 2–3 – In a game played over successive nights in The Bronx, the first-place Boston Red Sox overcome an early, 5–0 deficit, tie the score at five, and battle the New York Yankees into extra innings. When a 1 a.m. curfew suspends the contest in the 15th frame, it resumes the next night. In the top of the 17th, Rick Burleson's two-run single gives Boston a 7–5 lead, and Bob Stanley holds the Yanks scoreless in the home half to deliver a Bosox victory. The Red Sox also win a rain-shortened regularly scheduled game on August 3, 8–1, increasing their margin over the fourth-place Yankees to 8½ games. However, Boston will lose its next six games against its foes when the teams meet again in September.
- August 5 – At Old-Timers Day at Yankee Stadium, recently fired Billy Martin is announced as the Bombers' manager for the 1980 season.
- August 6 – Setting a record no batter wants, in the ninth inning of an important game, future Baseball Hall of Fame slugger Willie Stargell strikes out for the 1,711th time, breaking the major-league record for Ks by a hitter previously held by Mickey Mantle. Stargell's strikeout comes in the ninth inning of a 3–2 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies.
- August 10 – Ron Guidry fires a three-hitter to become the American League's first 16-game winner this year, and Chris Chambliss knocks in four runs with a single and a double, leading the New York Yankees to their fifth straight win, a 9–0 triumph over the Milwaukee Brewers. Now in second place, the Yankees (64–49) trail the Boston Red Sox (71–41) by 7½ games in the AL East.
- August 15 – The Toronto Blue Jays trade designated hitter Rico Carty to the Oakland Athletics for pitcher Phil Huffman and DH Willie Horton. Carty, 38, is in the process of slugging 31 homers in his next-to-last MLB season.
- August 20 – Before the Los Angeles Dodgers' game against the New York Mets, Steve Garvey and Don Sutton engage in a clubhouse fistfight over sardonic comments made by Sutton in an interview with The Washington Post describing Garvey as the "All-American boy".
- August 25 – A one-day strike by the Major League Umpires Association causes amateur arbiters (and two MLB coaches, Jerry Zimmerman of the Minnesota Twins and Don Leppert of the Toronto Blue Jays) to officiate today's 14 MLB games. A federal judge based in Philadelphia then enjoins the union from staging a longer walk-out to protest pay and working conditions. The abortive work stoppage is a prelude to the 1979 Major League umpires strike, which will last from March 7 to May 17. [5] [6]
- August 31
- Joe Morgan, George Foster and Johnny Bench hit home runs to help the Cincinnati Reds snap a six-game losing streak via 12–6 win over the St. Louis Cardinals. Tom Seaver goes seven innings for the win and reliever Tom Hume gave a ninth inning grand slam by Wayne Garrett.
- The Cleveland Indians trade outfielder Johnny Grubb to the Texas Rangers for two "players to be named later": pitcher Bobby Cuellar and minor-league outfielder Dave Rivera.
September
- September 3 - in Pittsburgh, Willie Stargell collects his 2,000th career Hit against Craig Skok of the Braves in the ninth inning. Dale Berra homers in the ninth and the Pirates win 6-3.
- September 5 – The Montreal Expos beat the Chicago Cubs 10–8 in a 9-inning game that sees a Major-League record 45 players participate.
- September 7 – The "Boston Massacre" begins. The Boston Red Sox enter today's opening game of a four-game series in Boston with a four-game lead over the New York Yankees; a lead which had been fourteen games just weeks earlier. The Yankees defeat the Red Sox 15–3, and go on to sweep the series, erasing the Red Sox lead in the American League East Division.
- September 14 – Thirty-nine-year-old Atlanta Braves pitcher Jim Bouton earns his 62nd and final big league victory (and first since 1970), a 4–1 win over the San Francisco Giants. Bouton is best known as the author of the baseball diary Ball Four . His win over the Giants comes four days after his first start against the Los Angeles Dodgers in which he was hit hard for six hits and six runs over five innings. The Giants were vocal with their displeasure over the Braves using Bouton in the Dodger game because they were still in a tight division race with their arch-rivals, only to lose to him in this, his very next start.
- September 20 – The Yankees' Ron Guidry suffers his third and final loss in a stellar 25–3, Cy Young Award-winning season. The Yankees are defeated by the Toronto Blue Jays with left-hander Mike Willis the winning pitcher. All three of Guidry's losses in 1978 were to left-handers named "Mike": Caldwell, Flanagan, and Willis.
- September 22
- Third baseman Butch Hobson, still in the Boston Red Sox' lineup despite crippling bone chips in his right elbow, commits his record-setting 43rd error of the 1978 season. His miscue leads to two unearned runs, as the Red Sox fall 5–4 to the Toronto Blue Jays and remain two games behind the New York Yankees in the AL East race. Manager Don Zimmer finally replaces Hobson and makes utilityman Jack Brohamer his starting third baseman on September 23. The Red Sox then win eight games in a row to force the 1978 American League East tie-breaker game on October 2.
- Ralph Houk, 59, manager of the Detroit Tigers since 1974, announces his retirement after five years at the helm. Houk supervised the rebuilding of the Tigers on the field: in 1975, they went 57–102; this season, their record will be 86–76 with their roster featuring some of the brightest young stars in baseball. Former MLB catcher Les Moss, the highly successful, 53-year-old manager of the Tigers' Triple-A Evansville affiliate, is named Houk's successor.
- September 23 – California Angels outfielder and marquee free-agent signing Lyman Bostock, 27, is shot to death while riding in a car with his uncle and several others following a dinner party in Gary, Indiana. The estranged husband of a female passenger pulls alongside Bostock's uncle's car and fires a single shotgun blast into the vehicle, inflicting fatal head wounds on the Angels' star. The shooter is ultimately acquitted by reason of insanity.
- September 30
- The Philadelphia Phillies overcome a first-inning grand slam by Willie Stargell to beat the host Pittsburgh Pirates, their in-state rivals, 10–8, to clinch their third straight National League East Title. Winning pitcher Randy Lerch contributes two home runs to his cause. The loss snaps the Pirates' streak of 24 straight wins at Three Rivers Stadium.
- With one game left in the season, volatile Texas Rangers owner Brad Corbett fires manager Billy Hunter and replaces him with coach Pat Corrales. Hunter had turned down a five-year contract extension offered by Corbett a few weeks earlier. The Rangers are 86–75, second in the AL West and five games behind the division champion Kansas City Royals.
October
- October 1
- Led by home runs from Rick Burleson and Jim Rice, and Luis Tiant's two-hit pitching, the Boston Red Sox shut out the Toronto Blue Jays 5–0 at Fenway Park, closing out the regular season with an eight-game winning streak. They will have to play a one-game playoff at Fenway the very next day against the New York Yankees, whom they had led by as many as 14 games in July, as the Cleveland Indians and Rick Waits defeat the Yankees 9–2 at Yankee Stadium. News of the Indians' victory is announced on Fenway Park's video screen with the words "THANK YOU, RICK WAITS – GAME TOMORROW." His brilliant two-hitter comes in what will be Tiant's final appearance in a Red Sox uniform.
- Gaylord Perry of the San Diego Padres records his 3,000th career strikeout.
- October 2 – Bucky Dent's crucial 7th-inning home run helps the New York Yankees beat the Boston Red Sox, 5–4, in a one-game playoff for the American League East title. It is another defining moment in the Yankees – Red Sox rivalry. With Kansas City, Los Angeles and Philadelphia also having won their divisions, all four defending division winners repeat. Ron Guidry closes out the year with a 25–3 record, but not before giving up a home run to Carl Yastrzemski—the only one he will allow to a left-handed hitter all season
- October 3 – Three-time former All-Star outfielder Bobby Bonds changes addresses again when the Texas Rangers trade him, along with pitcher Len Barker, to the Cleveland Indians for pitcher Jim Kern and infielder Larvell Blanks. After spending his first seven seasons with the San Francisco Giants, Bonds has now been traded five times in less than four calendar years.
- October 4 – Steve Garvey smashes two home runs and a triple to pace the Los Angeles Dodgers to a 9–5 win over the Philadelphia Phillies in the opener of the National League Championship Series. Davey Lopes and Steve Yeager also homer at Veterans Stadium.
- October 7
- The Los Angeles Dodgers win the National League Championship Series, three games to one, with a 4–3 home victory over the Philadelphia Phillies. Bill Russell's 10th-inning, two-out single scores Ron Cey with the winning run. A walk to Cey and a routine liner that Garry Maddox muffs in center field sets up Russell's game-winner. Dusty Baker collects four hits for the Dodgers.
- For the third straight year, the New York Yankees defeat the Kansas City Royals in the American League Championship Series, also three games to one. In their Game 4, 2–1 clinching victory, Ron Guidry goes eight innings for his second win of the ALCS, and Goose Gossage nails down the save. Roy White's sixth-inning homer provides the winning run. The Yankees and Dodgers will thus meet for the second straight year in the World Series—their tenth such clash since 1941.
- October 10 - Shortly before the start of game one of the world series, the Los Angeles Dodgers hold a special ceremony where the franchise retires the number 19 in honor of one of the team coaches, Jim Gilliam, who died suddenly from a massive brain hemorrhage two days prior to the start of the series. Gilliam becomes the first non hall of fame member of the Dodgers to receive this honor.
- October 17 – The New York Yankees win their fourth straight game, 7–2, to clinch their second consecutive World Series over the Los Angeles Dodgers. Yankees shortstop Bucky Dent is named Series MVP.
- October 18
- The St. Louis Cardinals fire general manager Bing Devine, 62, and replace him with former Redbird executive John Claiborne, 38. Devine was a major architect of the Cardinals' mid-1960s three-time pennant-winners and 2x World Series champions, but in 1978 his club fell to a 69–93 record, their worst in over a half-century.
- John J. McHale, president/CEO of the Montreal Expos since the team's founding in 1968, adds additional responsibilities when he also becomes the Expos' general manager. McHale, 57, succeeds Charlie Fox as the third GM in franchise history.
- October 19 – The Chicago White Sox change managers again, replacing Larry Doby, who led them to a 37–50 record from July 1 through the end of the 1978 campaign, with shortstop Don Kessinger, 36, who will be a player-manager. It's Bill Veeck's fourth managerial change in less than three years as owner of the ChiSox.
- October 25
- The San Diego Padres' Gaylord Perry (21–6, 2.73) is named winner of the 1978 National League Cy Young Award; the 40-year-old veteran, who won the 1972 AL Cy Young Award with the Cleveland Indians, becomes the first pitcher to earn the award in each major league.
- The Padres trade third baseman Dave Roberts, outfielder Oscar Gamble and $300,000 to the Texas Rangers for catcher Bill Fahey, first baseman Mike Hargrove and infielder Kurt Bevacqua.
- October 27 – George Bamberger of the Milwaukee Brewers is named the United Press International American League Manager of the Year. He guided the Brewers to 93 triumphs and the Brewers' first winning season. Bamberger receives 20 first-place votes to nine for Bob Lemon of the New York Yankees.
November
- November 1 – Ron Guidry of the New York Yankees is named winner of the American League Cy Young Award by a unanimous vote, taking all 28 first-place tallies.
- November 2 – Thirty-eight players are granted free agency after playing out their contracts, including Pete Rose, Tommy John and Luis Tiant.
- November 6 – Pitcher Andy Messersmith, the co-plaintiff with Dave McNally in the 1975 arbitration case that led to the Seitz decision and free agency, is unconditionally released by the New York Yankees. He will return to the Los Angeles Dodgers, the team he took to arbitration in the Seitz case, as a free agent in February 1979 and finish his career there.
- November 7 – Jim Rice of the Boston Red Sox, who led his league in almost every offensive category (including hits, triples, home runs, runs batted in, slugging percentage, OPS, and total bases), is rewarded by being selected American League MVP.
- November 10 – In a ten-player transaction, the New York Yankees send former Cy Young Award winner Sparky Lyle along with Mike Heath, Larry McCall, Dave Rajsich, Domingo Ramos and cash consideration to the Texas Rangers, in exchange for Juan Beníquez, Mike Griffin, Paul Mirabella, Dave Righetti and minor-leaguer Greg Jemison. Righetti, considered the top left-handed pitching prospect in the minors, will win AL Rookie of the Year honors in 1981.
- November 13
- Pitcher Luis Tiant, famed as "El Tiante" when he won 122 games with the Boston Red Sox since joining them in 1971, signs as a free agent with the Bosox' dreaded rivals, the New York Yankees.
- Left-hander Larry Gura, who was granted free agency November 2, decides to return to his 1978 team, the Kansas City Royals. Gura had gone 16–4 (2.72) this past season, and he'll post two 18-win seasons for the Royals in 1980 and 1982.
- November 16 – Future Baseball Hall of Fame inductee and Pittsburgh Pirates right-fielder Dave Parker, already a Gold Glove recipient, now wins the 1978 National League Most Valuable Player Award with 21 of 24 first-place votes.
- November 21 – The New York Yankees sign free-agent left-hander Tommy John, formerly with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
- November 22 – Detroit Tigers second baseman Lou Whitaker wins the American League Rookie of the Year Award with 21 of 28 first places votes over future Hall-of-Famer Paul Molitor of the Milwaukee Brewers.
- November 27
- The Houston Astros acquire catcher Alan Ashby from the Toronto Blue Jays for pitcher Mark Lemongello, third baseman Pedro Hernández and outfielder Joe Cannon. Ashby will play for the Astros for 11 seasons and later become a member of their broadcast team.
- The Baltimore Orioles obtain outfielder John Lowenstein on waivers from the Texas Rangers. Lowenstein, 31, will play a key role on two American League pennant-winning teams, including the Orioles' 1983 World Series champions.
- November 28 – The Cincinnati Reds dismiss their nine-year, Cooperstown-bound manager, Sparky Anderson, who has refused his front office's demand that he overhaul his coaching staff. Since 1970, Anderson has led the Reds to five NL West titles, four National League pennants, two World Series championships (1975–1976), and averaged 96 wins per season. Cincinnati appoints John McNamara as Anderson's successor the same day; McNamara, 46, is the former skipper of the Oakland Athletics (1969–1970) and San Diego Padres (1974–1977).
- November 29 – The Baltimore Orioles sign veteran right-hander Steve Stone, who had been granted free agency from the Chicago White Sox. In Baltimore, Stone, 31, will win 25 games and the 1980 American League Cy Young Award before beginning his long broadcasting career.
December
- December 4
- The Detroit Tigers obtain right-hander Aurelio López and outfielder Jerry Morales from the St. Louis Cardinals for two left-handers, Bob Sykes and minor-leaguer John Murphy. López, 30, will earn the nickname "Señor Smoke" coming out of the Detroit bullpen, and play a key role on the Tigers' 1984 world championship team.
- The California Angels trade first baseman Ron Jackson and designated hitter Danny Goodwin to the Minnesota Twins for outfielder Dan Ford.
- December 5
- The Philadelphia Phillies sign free-agent Pete Rose to a four-year, $3.2 million contract after he plays out his contract with his hometown team, the Cincinnati Reds. Rose is expected to become the Phils' regular first baseman in 1979.
- Free-agent third baseman Darrell Evans decides to remain with the San Francisco Giants, signing a five-year, $1.44 million contract.
- The Toronto Blue Jays acquire shortstop prospect Alfredo Griffin, along with minor-league first baseman Phil Lansford, from the Cleveland Indians for pitcher Víctor Cruz. Griffin, 21, will win the 1979 American League Rookie of the Year Award and spend six seasons as Toronto's starting shortstop.
- The New York Mets acquire left-hander Pete Falcone from the St. Louis Cardinals for pitcher Kim Seaman and outfielder Tom Grieve. Falcone is a cousin of Mets' bullpen coach Joe Pignatano.
- December 6 – The Philadelphia Phillies trade outfield prospect "Super Joe" Charboneau to the Cleveland Indians for pitcher Cardell Camper. Charboneau will win the 1980 American League Rookie of the Year Award.
- December 7 – Purging another discontented player via another one-sided trade, the Boston Red Sox send veteran left-hander Bill "Spaceman" Lee to the Montreal Expos for utility infielder Stan Papi. Lee—at odds with Boston management, especially skipper Don Zimmer—is a three-time 17-game winner with the Red Sox. He wins 16 games for Montreal in 1979. Papi plays 51 games in a Bosox uniform and bats .188.
- December 8
- The New York Mets trade pitcher Jerry Koosman to the Minnesota Twins for minor league pitcher Greg Field and a player to be named later. The trade leaves Ed Kranepool as the last remaining member of the ″Miracle Mets″ team that won the 1969 World Series. The Twins will complete the trade by sending Jesse Orosco to the Mets on February 7, 1979.
- Two of the American League's top third basemen change teams, when the Cleveland Indians trade Buddy Bell to the Texas Rangers for Toby Harrah in a one-for-one transaction.
- The Seattle Mariners deal their 25-year-old All-Star shortstop, Craig Reynolds, to the Houston Astros for left-hander Floyd Bannister, 23. Both Reynolds and Bannister will become All-Stars in their respective new leagues.
