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Everything about 1981 In Baseball totally explained

Champions

Major League Baseball

NOTE: Due to a strike in mid-season, the season was divided into a first half and a second half. The division winner of the first half (denoted East 1, West 1) played the division winner of the second half (denoted East 2, West 2).
  • American League Championship Series MVP: Graig Nettles
  • National League Championship Series MVP: Burt Hooton
  • All-Star Game, August 9 at Cleveland Stadium: National League, 5-4; Gary Carter, MVP

    Other champions

  • College World Series: Arizona State
  • Japan Series: Yomiuri Giants over Nippon Ham Fighters (4-2)
  • Little League World Series: Tai-Ping, Taichung, Taiwan

    Awards and honors

  • Most Valuable Player
  • Cy Young Award
  • Rookie of the Year

    MLB statistical leaders

    American LeagueAVG
    National League
    Type Name Stat Name Stat
    Carney Lansford BOS .336 Bill Madlock PIT .341
    HR Tony Armas OAK
    Dwight Evans BOS
    Bobby Grich CAL
    Eddie Murray BAL     		22 Mike Schmidt PHI 31
    RBI Eddie Murray BAL 78 Mike Schmidt PHI 91
    Wins Dennis Martinez BAL
    Steve McCatty OAK
    Jack Morris DET
    Pete Vuckovich MIL     		14 Tom Seaver CIN 14
    ERA Sammy Stewart BAL 2.32 Nolan Ryan HOU 1.69

    • Major League Baseball final standings

    First half of season

    American LeagueNew York YankeesOakland Athletics
    Rank Club Wins Losses Win % GB
    34 22 .607    --
    2nd Baltimore Orioles 31 23 .574   2.0
    3rd Milwaukee Brewers 31 25 .568   3.0
    4th Detroit Tigers 31 26 .544   3.5
    5th Boston Red Sox 30 26 .536   4.0
    6th Cleveland Indians 26 24 .520   5.0
    7th Toronto Blue Jays 16 42 .276 19.0
    37 23 .617    --
    2nd Texas Rangers 33 22 .600   1.5
    3rd Chicago White Sox 31 22 .585   2.5
    4th California Angels 31 29 .517   6.0
    5th Kansas City Royals 20 30 .400 12.0
    6th Seattle Mariners 21 36 .368 14.5
    7th Minnesota Twins 17 39 .304 18.0
    National LeaguePhiladelphia PhilliesLos Angeles Dodgers
    Rank Club Wins Losses Win %   GB
    34 21 .618    --
    2nd St. Louis Cardinals 30 20 .600   2.5
    3rd Montreal Expos 30 25 .545   4.0
    4th Pittsburgh Pirates 25 23 .521   5.5
    5th New York Mets 17 34 .333 15.0
    6th Chicago Cubs 15 37 .288 17.5
    36 21 .632    --
    2nd Cincinnati Reds 35 21 .625   0.5
    3rd Houston Astros 28 29 .491   8.0
    4th Atlanta Braves 25 29 .463   9.5
    5th San Francisco Giants 27 32 .458 10.0
    6th San Diego Padres 23 33 .411 12.5
     

    Second half of season

    American LeagueMilwaukee BrewersKansas City Royals
    Rank Club Wins Losses Win % GB
    31 22 .585    --
    2nd Boston Red Sox 29 23 .558   1.5
    2nd Detroit Tigers 29 23 .558   1.5
    4th Baltimore Orioles 28 23 .549   2.0
    5th Cleveland Indians 26 27 .491   5.0
    6th New York Yankees 25 26 .490   5.0
    7th Toronto Blue Jays 21 27 .438   7.5
    30 23 .566    --
    2nd Oakland Athletics 27 22 .551   2.0
    3rd Texas Rangers 24 26 .480   5.5
    4th Minnesota Twins 24 29 .453   6.0
    5th Seattle Mariners 23 29 .442   6.5
    6th Chicago White Sox 23 30 .434   7.0
    7th California Angels 20 30 .400   8.5
    National LeagueMontreal ExposHouston Astros
    Rank Club Wins Losses Win %   GB
    30 23 .566    --
    2nd St. Louis Cardinals 29 23 .558   0.5
    3rd Philadelphia Phillies 25 27 .481   4.5
    4th New York Mets 24 28 .462   5.5
    5th Chicago Cubs 23 28 .451   6.0
    6th Pittsburgh Pirates 21 33 .389   9.5
    33 20 .623    --
    2nd Cincinnati Reds 31 21 .596   1.5
    3rd San Francisco Giants 29 23 .558   3.5
    4th Los Angeles Dodgers 27 26 .509   6.0
    5th Atlanta Braves 25 27 .481   7.5
    6th San Diego Padres 18 36 .333 15.5
     

    Overall record

    American LeagueMilwaukee BrewersOakland Athletics
    Rank Club Wins Losses Win % GB
    62 47 .569    --
    2nd Baltimore Orioles 59 46 .562   1.0
    3rd New York Yankees 59 48 .551   2.0
    4th Detroit Tigers 60 49 .550   2.0
    5th Boston Red Sox 59 49 .546   2.5
    6th Cleveland Indians 52 51 .505   7.0
    7th Toronto Blue Jays 37 69 .349 23.5
    64 45 .587    --
    2nd Texas Rangers 57 48 .543   5.0
    3rd Chicago White Sox 54 52 .509   8.5
    4th Kansas City Royals 50 53 .485 11.0
    5th California Angels 51 59 .464 13.5
    6th Seattle Mariners 44 65 .404 20.0
    7th Minnesota Twins 41 68 .376 23.0
    National LeagueSt. Louis CardinalsCincinnati Reds
    Rank Club Wins Losses Win %   GB
    59 43 .578    --
    2nd Montreal Expos 60 48 .556   2.0
    3rd Philadelphia Phillies 59 48 .551   2.5
    4th Pittsburgh Pirates 46 56 .451 13.0
    5th New York Mets 41 62 .398 18.5
    6th Chicago Cubs 38 65 .369 21.5
    66 42 .611    --
    2nd Los Angeles Dodgers 63 47 .573   4.0
    3rd Houston Astros 61 49 .555   6.0
    4th San Francisco Giants 56 55 .505 11.5
    5th Atlanta Braves 50 56 .472 15.0
    6th San Diego Padres 41 69 .373 26.0

    Events

    January-March

  • January 15 - In his first year of eligibility, former St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Bob Gibson is the only person elected to the Hall of Fame by the Baseball Writers Association of America. Players falling short of the 301 votes needed for election include Don Drysdale (243), Gil Hodges (241), Harmon Killebrew (239), Hoyt Wilhelm (238) and Juan Marichal (233).
  • January 23 - Fred Lynn traded by the Boston Red Sox with Steve Renko to the California Angels for Frank Tanana, Jim Dorsey, and Joe Rudi.
  • February 12 - Reputedly because the Boston Red Sox mailed out his contract two days late, catcher Carlton Fisk is declared a free agent. He will later sign with the Chicago White Sox.
  • March 11 - Johnny Mize and Rube Foster are elected to the Hall of Fame by the Special Veterans Committee. Mize hit .312 with 359 home runs in 15 seasons for the Cardinals and New York Giants, while Foster was a star pitcher, manager and pioneer of the Negro Leagues during the first quarter of the 20th century.

    April-June

  • April 9 - After pitcher Jerry Reuss pulls a muscle, rookie Fernando Valenzuela is given his first starting assignment. His first Major League start results in a five-hit shutout. It is the beginning of what will be called "Fernandomania" in Southern California.
  • April 10 - Carlton Fisk debuts with the Chicago White Sox, coincidentally in Fenway Park against his former team, the Boston Red Sox. Fisk hits a three-run home run in the eighth to secure a 5-3 win for Chicago.
  • April 18 - Tom Seaver of the Cincinnati Reds records his 3000th career strikeout. Keith Hernandez is the victim.
  • April 27 - Just 18 days after his first start, Fernando Valenzuela has grabbed the attention of the baseball world. In just his fifth start, he pitches his fourth complete game shutout running his record to 5-0 with a microscopic 0.20 ERA. He is also batting over 0.400 to help his own cause.
  • April 29 - Steve Carlton of the Philadelphia Phillies records his 3000th career strikeout. April of 1981 is the only month in history to have two pitchers reach this milestone. He is the first left-handed pitcher in Major League history to reach that mark.
  • May 10 - In the second game of a doubleheader, Charlie Lea of the Montreal Expos no-hits the San Francisco Giants 4-0, the first no-hitter ever pitched at Olympic Stadium.
  • May 15 - Len Barker of the Cleveland Indians pitches a perfect game against the Toronto Blue Jays, 3-0, at Cleveland Municipal Stadium. He struck out 11, all swinging, after the third inning and never had a 3-ball count on any batter on a misty, rain-soaked night where only 7,290 fans took in the game. Current Indians broadcaster Rick Manning caught the 27th out of the night on a fly ball to center field. Barker's catcher, Ron Hassey will later catch Dennis Martinez's 1991 perfect game making him the first catcher in history to catch two perfect games.
  • May 25 - Carl Yastrzemski plays in his 3,000th major league game, scoring the winning run in Boston's 8–7 triumph over Cleveland. Yaz joins Ty Cobb, Stan Musial and Hank Aaron as the fourth major leaguer to appear in 3,000 games.
  • June 5 - Nolan Ryan issues the 1,777th walk in his career, breaking the record previously held by Early Wynn.
  • June 10 - Pete Rose hits a Nolan Ryan pitch for the 3,630th safe hit of his career; tying Stan Musial's National League record for career hits.
  • June 12 - After meeting with major league owners for most of the previous day, players' union chief Marvin Miller announces, "We have accomplished nothing. The strike is on," thus beginning the longest labor action to date in baseball history. By the time the season resumes on August 10, 706 games (38 percent of the season schedule) will have been canceled.
  • June 16 - In the midst of the players' strike, William Wrigley announces the sale of the Chicago Cubs to the Tribune Company for $20 million. This ends the decades long association between the Wrigley family and the Cubs.
  • June 23 - Minor league teams from Pawtucket and Rochester clash in a 33 inning game that extends eight hours and 25 minutes; the longest professional baseball game up to that time. Future Hall of Famers Wade Boggs and Cal Ripken, Jr. go a combined 6-for-25 in the game.

    July-September

  • August 6 - As a result of the nearly two-month interruption in play because of the strike, major league owners elect to split the 1981 season into two halves, with the first-place teams from each half in each division (or a wild card team if the same club wins both halves) meeting in a best-of-five divisional playoff series. The last time the major leagues played a split season was 1892. The Oakland Athletics, New York Yankees, Philadelphia Phillies and Los Angeles Dodgers suddenly find themselves guaranteed playoff spots as first-half champions (a problem noted at this time is that those teams won't have much left to play for in that year's regular season).
  • August 9 - At Cleveland Stadium, the National League wins its tenth consecutive All-Star Game over the American League, 5-4. Gary Carter hits two home runs and is selected the MVP. The 1981 Midsummer Classic becomes the second All-Star Game ever played during the month of August, the first having taken place on August 3, 1959.
  • September 4 - In the conclusion of the longest game in Fenway Park history, the Seattle Mariners beat the Boston Red Sox 8–7 in 20 innings. The game began on September 3, but was suspended after 19 innings with the score tied 7-7.
  • September 6 - Despite having won the first-half American League East title, New York Yankees manager Gene Michael is replaced by Bob Lemon, who managed the club in 1978-79. The Yankees are under .500 in the second half of the season.
  • September 6 - The Los Angeles Dodgers' Fernando Valenzuela beats the St. Louis Cardinals 5-0 to tie the National League record of seven shutouts by a rookie pitcher.
  • September 26 - Nolan Ryan of the Houston Astros breaks the record of four no hitters by pitcher Sandy Koufax by pitching his fifth career no hitter in the Astrodome against, coincidentally, Koufax's former team, the Los Angeles Dodgers. Ryan is also the first pitcher to pitch no hitters in both the American and National Leagues.
  • September 30 - The Kansas City Royals defeat the Minnesota Twins, 5-2, to clinch the second half of the American League Western Division title. More importantly, it's the last Major League game to be played at Metropolitan Stadium, as the Twins prepare to move into the new Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome.

    October-December

  • October 3 - Bob Horner hits two home runs and scores the winning run to give the Atlanta Braves a 4–3 win over the Cincinnati Reds, and give the Houston Astros the second-half title in the NL West division. Cincinnati, which lost the first-half title to the Dodgers by one-half game, will finish with the best overall record (66-42) in the major leagues, but will miss the playoffs due to not winning either half's division title.
  • October 3 - The Milwaukee Brewers (playing since 1970) and Montreal Expos (since 1969) clinch their first-ever postseason appearances. Milwaukee beats Detroit 2–1 to wrap up the second-half title in the AL East division, while Montréal edges the Mets 5–4 to win the NL East division's second playoff spot. (St. Louis finishes with the best overall record in the NL East but misses the playoffs for the same reason as the Cincinnati Reds.)
  • October 5 - The Kansas City Royals shut out Cleveland 9–0 in the first game of a scheduled doubleheader to clinch the second-half title in the AL West division. The second game is canceled as irrelevant.
  • October 19 - Pitcher Rick Monday of the Los Angeles Dodgers hits a ninth inning home run to break a 1-1 tie, and secure a Game five victory in the National League Championship Series. The losing Montréal Expos had been leading the series 2 games-to-none in what would be their only post season appearance.
  • October 28 - Pedro Guerrero drives in five runs, and pitcher Burt Hooton and the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the New York Yankees 9–2 to win the 1981 World Series in six games. In a remarkable postseason, the Dodgers rallied from a 2-0 deficit against the Astros in the division series, they rallied from a 2 games to 1 deficit against the Expos in the National League Championship series, and they rallied from a 2-0 deficit against the Yankees in the World Series. Guerrero, Ron Cey and Steve Yeager are named co-MVPs.
  • November 11 - Fernando Valenzuela of the Los Angeles Dodgers wins the National League Cy Young Award, becoming the first rookie to win the award.
  • November 25 - Rollie Fingers of the Milwaukee Brewers wins the American League Cy Young Award, becoming the first relief pitcher to do so. He led the Milwaukee Brewers with 28 saves and a 1.08 ERA.

    Movies

  • (TV)

    Births

    January- March

  • January 4 - Jailen Peguero
  • January 5 - Andy Cavazos
  • January 8 - Jeff Francis
  • January 13 - José Capellán
  • January 21 - Wilfredo Ledezma
  • January 25 - Andy Machado
  • January 28 - Doug Waechter
  • February 7 - Seth McClung
  • February 12 - Chris Snyder
  • February 14 - Brad Halsey
  • February 16 - Sergio Mitre
  • February 18 - Alex Ríos
  • March 9 - Clay Rapada
  • March 14 - Bobby Jenks
  • March 16 - Curtis Granderson
  • March 19 - José Castillo

    April-June

  • April 3 - Ryan Doumit
  • April 5 - Jorge de la Rosa
  • April 21 - Ronny Paulino
  • April 27 - Joey Gathright
  • May 8 - John Maine
  • May 15 - Justin Morneau
  • May 21 - Josh Hamilton
  • June 2 - Jared Burton
  • June 8 - Kevin Mahar

    July-September

  • August 5 - Carl Crawford
  • August 15 - Oliver Pérez
  • August 31 - Dennis Dove
  • September 6 - Mark Teahen
  • September 10 - Kameron Loe
  • September 25 - Rocco Baldelli

    October-December

  • October 24 - Ben Francisco
  • October 31 - Mike Napoli
  • October 30 - Ian Snell
  • November 22 - Oscar Villarreal
  • November 29 - Guillermo Quiroz
  • November 30 - Rich Harden
  • December 4 - Jerome Williams
  • December 8 - Kory Casto
  • December 10 - Víctor Díaz
  • December 14 - Ángel Guzmán
  • December 15 - Andy González
  • December 25 - Willy Taveras
  • December 26 - Omar Infante

    Deaths

  • January 26 - Ray Oyler, 42, shortstop known for excellent glovework with the Detroit Tigers' 1968 champions, afterwards taken in the expansion draft by the Seattle Pilots
  • February 2 - Al Van Camp, 77, first baseman/left fielder who played from 1928 to 1932 for the Cleveland Indians and Boston Red Sox
  • February 4 - Grant Gillis, 70, utility infielder for the Washington Senators and Boston Red Sox between 1927 and 1929
  • March 7 - Pee-Wee Wanninger, 78, backup shortstop for the Yankees, Red Sox and Reds, better known as the player who replaced Everett Scott with the Yankees in to end his then major league record of 1,307 consecutive games
  • March 10 - Bob Elson, 76, broadcaster for the Chicago White Sox from 1931 to 1970; also worked with the Cubs and Oakland Athletics
  • March 17 - Paul Dean, 67, pitcher who joined his older brother Dizzy on the St. Louis Cardinals, winning 19 games in each of his first two seasons; the brothers each won two games in the 1934 World Series
  • March 19 - Frank Lane, 85, general manager of the White Sox, Indians, Brewers and Cardinals known for his numerous trades
  • March 25 - Red Morgan, 97, third baseman for the 1906 Boston Americans, at the time of his death the oldest living former major leaguer
  • April 16 - Effa Manley, 84, owner of the Negro Leagues' Newark Eagles from 1935 to 1948
  • April 27 - Emerson Dickman, 66, pitcher for the Boston Red Sox between 1936 and 1941, who later became a highly respected coach at Princeton University in the 1950s
  • May 26 - George Smith, 79, pitcher who played from 1926 to 1930 for the Detroit Tigers and Boston Red Sox
  • July 1 - Dan Daniel, 91, sportswriter for The Sporting News and various New York newspapers for over 50 years; also a member of baseball's Rules Committee
  • July 8 - Merl Combs, 61, shortstop for the Boston Red Sox, Washington Senators and Cleveland Indians between 1947 and 1952
  • August 9 - Sammy T. Hughes, 70, 6-time All-Star second baseman of the Negro Leagues, mainly with the Elite Giants
  • October 4 - Freddie Lindstrom, 75, Hall of Fame third baseman for the New York Giants who batted .311 lifetime, twice collecting 230 hits and batting .333 in the 1924 World Series at age 18; later coach at Northwestern
  • October 17 - Johnny Peacock, 71, catcher for the Boston Red Sox, Philadelphia Blue Jays/Phillies and Brooklyn Dodgers, between 1937 and 1945
  • October 25 - Pete Reiser, 62, All-Star center fielder for the Brooklyn Dodgers who led the NL in batting and four other categories in 1941 and in steals twice, but whose fearless defensive style led to numerous injuries
  • December 10 - John F. Kieran, 89, New York sportswriter and radio and television personality who authored books on numerous subjects
  • December 22 - Ed Gallagher, 71, pitcher for the 1932 Boston Red Sox
  • December 28 - John Bischoff, 87, catcher for the Chicago White Sox and Boston Red Sox in the 1920s, and one of the first foreign ballplayers to play in Cuban baseball

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