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1938 Major League Baseball season

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1938 MLB season
LeagueAmerican League (AL)
National League (NL)
SportBaseball
DurationRegular season:
  • April 18 – October 2, 1938 (AL)
  • April 19 – October 2, 1938 (NL)
World Series:
  • October 5–9, 1938
Games154
Teams16 (8 per league)
Regular season
Season MVPAL: Jimmie Foxx (BOS)
NL: Ernie Lombardi (CIN)
AL championsNew York Yankees
  AL runners-upBoston Red Sox
NL championsChicago Cubs
  NL runners-upPittsburgh Pirates
World Series
Venue
ChampionsNew York Yankees
  Runners-upChicago Cubs
MLB seasons
Locations of teams for the 1934–1939 American League seasons
American League

The 1938 major league baseball season began on April 18, 1938. The regular season ended on October 2, with the Chicago Cubs 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 35th World Series on October 5 and ended with Game 4 on October 9. In the second iteration of this World Series matchup, the Yankees swept the Cubs in four games, capturing their seventh championship in franchise history, and their third in a four-World Series run, becoming the first team to win three consecutive World Series.

The sixth All-Star Game was held on July 6 at Crosley Field in Cincinnati, Ohio, home of the Cincinnati Reds. The National League won, 4–1.

Schedule

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The 1938 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.

American League Opening Day took place on April 18 with four teams playing, while National League Opening Day took place the following day, featuring all eight teams. This was the first season since 1932 that both leagues opened on different days. The final day of the regular season was on October 2 and featured all sixteen teams, continuing the trend since the previous season. The World Series took place between October 5 and October 9.

Teams

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

League Team City Ballpark Capacity Manager[1]
American League Boston Red Sox Boston, Massachusetts Fenway Park 33,817 Joe Cronin
Chicago White Sox Chicago, Illinois Comiskey Park 50,000 Jimmy Dykes
Cleveland Indians Cleveland, Ohio League Park 22,500 Ossie Vitt
Cleveland Stadium* 78,811*
Detroit Tigers Detroit, Michigan Briggs Stadium 58,000 Mickey Cochrane
Del Baker
New York Yankees New York, New York Yankee Stadium 71,699 Joe McCarthy
Philadelphia Athletics Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Shibe Park 33,000 Connie Mack
St. Louis Browns St. Louis, Missouri Sportsman's Park 34,023 Gabby Street
Oscar Melillo
Washington Senators Washington, D.C. Griffith Stadium 32,000 Bucky Harris
National League Boston Bees Boston, Massachusetts National League Park 41,700 Casey Stengel
Brooklyn Dodgers New York, New York Ebbets Field 35,000 Burleigh Grimes
Chicago Cubs Chicago, Illinois Wrigley Field 38,396 Charlie Grimm
Gabby Hartnett
Cincinnati Reds Cincinnati, Ohio Crosley Field 29,401 Bill McKechnie
New York Giants New York, New York Polo Grounds 51,856 Bill Terry
Philadelphia Phillies Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Baker Bowl* 18,800* Jimmie Wilson
Shibe Park 33,000
Hans Lobert
Pittsburgh Pirates Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Forbes Field 40,000 Pie Traynor
St. Louis Cardinals St. Louis, Missouri Sportsman's Park 34,023 Frankie Frisch
Mike González

Standings

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American League

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American League
Team W L Pct. GB Home Road
New York Yankees 9953 .651 — 55‍–‍22 44‍–‍31
Boston Red Sox 8861 .591 9½ 52‍–‍23 36‍–‍38
Cleveland Indians 8666 .566 13 46‍–‍30 40‍–‍36
Detroit Tigers 8470 .545 16 48‍–‍31 36‍–‍39
Washington Senators 7576 .497 23½ 44‍–‍33 31‍–‍43
Chicago White Sox 6583 .439 32 33‍–‍39 32‍–‍44
St. Louis Browns 5597 .362 44 31‍–‍43 24‍–‍54
Philadelphia Athletics 5399 .349 46 28‍–‍47 25‍–‍52

National League

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National League
Team W L Pct. GB Home Road
Chicago Cubs 8963 .586 — 44‍–‍33 45‍–‍30
Pittsburgh Pirates 8664 .573 2 44‍–‍33 42‍–‍31
New York Giants 8367 .553 5 43‍–‍30 40‍–‍37
Cincinnati Reds 8268 .547 6 43‍–‍34 39‍–‍34
Boston Bees 7775 .507 12 45‍–‍30 32‍–‍45
St. Louis Cardinals 7180 .470 17½ 36‍–‍41 35‍–‍39
Brooklyn Dodgers 6980 .463 18½ 31‍–‍41 38‍–‍39
Philadelphia Phillies 45105 .300 43 26‍–‍48 19‍–‍57

Tie games

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16 tie games (8 in AL, 8 in NL), which are not factored into winning percentage or games behind (and were often replayed again) occurred throughout the season.

American League

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  • Boston Red Sox, 1
  • Chicago White Sox, 1
  • Cleveland Indians, 1
  • Detroit Tigers, 1
  • New York Yankees, 5
  • Philadelphia Athletics, 2
  • St. Louis Browns, 4
  • Washington Senators, 1

National League

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  • Boston Bees, 1
  • Brooklyn Dodgers, 2
  • Chicago Cubs, 2
  • Cincinnati Reds, 1
  • New York Giants, 2
  • Philadelphia Phillies, 1
  • Pittsburgh Pirates, 2
  • St. Louis Cardinals, 5

Postseason

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The postseason began on October 5 and ended on October 9 with the New York Yankees sweeping the Chicago Cubs in the 1938 World Series in four games.

Bracket

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World Series
   
AL New York Yankees 4
NL Chicago Cubs 0

Managerial changes

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Off-season

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Team Former Manager New Manager
Boston Bees Bill McKechnie Casey Stengel
Cincinnati Reds Bobby Wallace Bill McKechnie
Cleveland Indians Steve O'Neill Ossie Vitt
Detroit Tigers Cy Perkins Mickey Cochrane
Philadelphia Athletics Earle Mack Connie Mack
St. Louis Browns Jim Bottomley Gabby Street

In-season

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Team Former Manager New Manager
Chicago Cubs Charlie Grimm Gabby Hartnett
Detroit Tigers Mickey Cochrane Del Baker
Philadelphia Phillies Jimmie Wilson Hans Lobert
St. Louis Browns Gabby Street Oscar Melillo
St. Louis Cardinals Frankie Frisch Mike González

League leaders

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American League

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Hitting leaders[2]
Stat Player Total
AVG Jimmie Foxx (BOS) .349
OPS Jimmie Foxx (BOS) 1.166
HR Hank Greenberg (DET) 58
RBI Jimmie Foxx (BOS) 175
R Hank Greenberg (DET) 143
H Joe Vosmik (BOS) 201
SB Frankie Crosetti (NYY) 27
Pitching leaders[3]
Stat Player Total
W Red Ruffing (NYY) 21
L George Caster (PHA) 20
ERA Lefty Grove (BOS) 3.08
K Bob Feller (CLE) 240
IP Bobo Newsom (SLB) 329.2
SV Johnny Murphy (NYY) 11
WHIP Dutch Leonard (WSH) 1.227
Hank Greenberg, Hall of Famer and 2-time MVP

National League

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Hitting leaders[4]
Stat Player Total
AVG Ernie Lombardi (CIN) .342
OPS Johnny Mize (STL) 1.036
HR Mel Ott (NYG) 36
RBI Joe Medwick (STL) 122
R Mel Ott (NYG) 116
H Frank McCormick (CIN) 237
SB Stan Hack (CHC) 16
Pitching leaders[5]
Stat Player Total
W Bill Lee (CHC) 22
L Hugh Mulcahy (PHI) 20
ERA Bill Lee (CHC) 2.66
K Clay Bryant (CHC) 135
IP Paul Derringer (CIN) 307.0
SV Dick Coffman (NYG) 12
WHIP Carl Hubbell (NYG) 1.140

Milestones

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Batters

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Cycles

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Other batting accomplishments

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Pitchers

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No-hitters

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  • Johnny Vander Meer (CIN):
    • Vander Meer threw his first career no-hitter and sixth no-hitter in franchise history, by defeating the Boston Bees 3–0 on June 11. Vander Meer walked three and struck out four.[9]
    • Vander Meer threw his second career no-hitter and seventh no-hitter in franchise history, by defeating the Brooklyn Dodgers 6–0 on June 15. Vander Meer walked eight and struck out seven.[10] He is the first in major league history to throw two no-hitters in a season, as well as the only player to ever throw no-hitters in back-to-back starts, the latter of which has been described as "the most unbreakable of all baseball records" by LIFE.[11]
  • Monte Pearson (NYY):
    • Pearson threw his first career no-hitter and third no-hitter in franchise, by defeating the Cleveland Indians 13–0 on August 27. Pearson walked two and struck out seven.[12]

Other pitching accomplishments

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Awards and honors

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Regular season

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Baseball Writers' Association of America Awards
BBWAA Award National League American League
Most Valuable Player Ernie Lombardi (CIN) Jimmie Foxx (BSN)

Other awards

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The Sporting News Awards
Award National League American League
Most Valuable Player[14] Ernie Lombardi (CIN) Jimmie Foxx (BSN)
Player of the Year[15] Johnny Vander Meer (CIN) —
Manager of the Year[16] — Joe McCarthy (NYY)
Executive of the Year[17] Warren Giles (CIN) —

Baseball Hall of Fame

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Home field attendance

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Team name Wins %± Home attendance %± Per game
New York Yankees[18] 99 −2.9% 970,916 −2.7% 12,290
Chicago Cubs[19] 89 −4.3% 951,640 6.3% 12,359
New York Giants[20] 83 −12.6% 799,633 −13.7% 10,954
Detroit Tigers[21] 84 −5.6% 799,557 −25.4% 10,121
Cincinnati Reds[22] 82 46.4% 706,756 71.9% 9,179
Brooklyn Dodgers[23] 69 11.3% 663,087 37.4% 8,961
Cleveland Indians[24] 86 3.6% 652,006 15.4% 8,579
Boston Red Sox[25] 88 10.0% 646,459 15.5% 8,619
Pittsburgh Pirates[26] 86 0.0% 641,033 39.5% 8,218
Washington Senators[27] 75 2.7% 522,694 31.4% 6,701
Philadelphia Athletics[28] 53 −1.9% 385,357 −10.5% 5,070
Boston Bees[29] 77 −2.5% 341,149 −11.5% 4,549
Chicago White Sox[30] 65 −24.4% 338,278 −42.6% 4,634
St. Louis Cardinals[31] 71 −12.3% 291,418 −32.4% 3,598
Philadelphia Phillies[32] 45 −26.2% 166,111 −21.9% 2,215
St. Louis Browns[33] 55 19.6% 130,417 5.9% 1,694

Venues

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Over 76 home games, the Cleveland Indians played 58 games at League Park and 18 games at Cleveland Stadium.[34] All Thursday games took place at League Park. This would be the 4th of 12 seasons since 1932 that saw the Indians play at both venues.

The Detroit Tigers' venue, Navin Field, named after former owner Frank Navin, was renamed to Briggs Stadium, named after new owner Walter Briggs Sr., prior to the season's start.

The Philadelphia Phillies would play their last game at the Baker Bowl on June 30 after 28 home games, having played 52 seasons there going back to 1887, and moved into the Philadelphia Athletics' home at Shibe Park, where they would go on to play for 33 seasons through 1970.

See also

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References

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  1. ↑ "1938 Major League Managers". Baseball Reference. Retrieved February 5, 2025.
  2. ↑ "1938 American League Batting Leaders". Baseball Reference. Retrieved February 5, 2025.
  3. ↑ "1938 American League Pitching Leaders". Baseball Reference. Retrieved February 5, 2025.
  4. ↑ "1938 National League Batting Leaders". Baseball Reference. Retrieved February 5, 2025.
  5. ↑ "1938 National League Pitching Leaders". Baseball Reference. Retrieved February 5, 2025.
  6. ↑ "Washington Senators 9, Cleveland Indians 8". Retrosheet. July 12, 1938. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved September 10, 2011.
  7. ↑ "Jimmie Foxx Career Home Runs". Baseball Reference. Retrieved May 4, 2026.
  8. ↑ Thosar, Deesha. "Every member of the 400-HR club". MLB.com. Retrieved May 4, 2026.
  9. ↑ "Boston Bees vs Cincinnati Reds Box Score: June 11, 1938". Baseball Reference. Retrieved March 17, 2026.
  10. ↑ "Cincinnati Reds vs Brooklyn Dodgers Box Score: June 15, 1938". Baseball Reference. Retrieved March 17, 2026.
  11. ↑ "1. Johnny Vander Meer's Back-to-Back No-Nos – Unbreakable Baseball Records". LIFE.com. See Your World LLC. Archived from the original on May 5, 2010.
  12. ↑ "Cleveland Indians vs New York Yankees Box Score: August 27, 1938". Baseball Reference. Retrieved March 17, 2026.
  13. ↑ "Detroit Tigers vs Cleveland Indians Box Score: October 2, 1938". Baseball Reference. Retrieved May 14, 2026.
  14. ↑ "Most Valuable Player Award by The Sporting News". Baseball Almanac. Retrieved January 14, 2025.
  15. ↑ "Major League Player of the Year Award by The Sporting News". Baseball Almanac. Retrieved January 14, 2025.
  16. ↑ "Manager of the Year Award by The Sporting News". Baseball Almanac. Retrieved January 14, 2025.
  17. ↑ "MLB Executive of the Year Award". Baseball Almanac. Retrieved January 14, 2025.
  18. ↑ "New York Yankees Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball Reference. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  19. ↑ "Chicago Cubs Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball Reference. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  20. ↑ "San Francisco Giants Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball Reference. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  21. ↑ "Detroit Tigers Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball Reference. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  22. ↑ "Cincinnati Reds Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball Reference. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  23. ↑ "Los Angeles Dodgers Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball Reference. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  24. ↑ "Cleveland Indians Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball Reference. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  25. ↑ "Boston Red Sox Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball Reference. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  26. ↑ "Pittsburgh Pirates Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball Reference. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  27. ↑ "Minnesota Twins Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball Reference. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  28. ↑ "Oakland Athletics Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball Reference. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  29. ↑ "Atlanta Braves Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball Reference. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  30. ↑ "Chicago White Sox Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball Reference. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  31. ↑ "St. Louis Cardinals Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball Reference. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  32. ↑ "Philadelphia Phillies Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball Reference. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  33. ↑ "Baltimore Orioles Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". Baseball Reference. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  34. ↑ "Seamheads.com Ballparks Database — 1938 Season". www.seamheads.com. Retrieved November 13, 2025.
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