1944 in baseball

Year in baseball
this year = 1944

Champions

Major League Baseball

*World Series: St. Louis Cardinals over St. Louis Browns (4-2), in the "Streetcar Series"
*All-Star Game, July 11 at Forbes Field: National League, 7-1

Other champions

*Negro League World Series: Homestead Grays over Birmingham Black Barons (4-1)
*Negro League Baseball All-Star Game: West, 7-4
*All-American Girls Professional Baseball League: Milwaukee Chicks over Kenosha Comets

Awards and honors

*Most Valuable Player
**Hal Newhouser (AL) - pitcher, Detroit Tigers
**Marty Marion (NL) - shortstop, St. Louis Cardinals
*The Sporting News Player of the Year Award
**Marty Marion (NL) - St. Louis Cardinals
*The Sporting News Most Valuable Player Award
**Bobby Doerr (AL) - Second base, Boston Red Sox
**Marty Marion (NL) - Shortstop, St. Louis Cardinals
*The Sporting News Pitcher of the Year Award
**Hal Newhouser (AL) - Detroit Tigers
**Bill Voiselle (NL) - New York Giants
*The Sporting News Manager of the Year Award
**Luke Sewell (AL) - St. Louis Browns

MLB Statistical Leaders

Major League Baseball final standings

American League final standings

National League final standings

Negro League Baseball final standings

Negro National League final standings

Events

January-March

April-June

*April 27 - Boston Braves pitcher Jim Tobin tosses a no-hitter in a 2-0 win over the Brooklyn Dodgers.
*May 1 - George Myatt of the Washington Senators goes 6-for-6 as the Nats beat the Red Sox, 11-4.
*May 4 - The St. Louis Browns announce that they are dropping their segregation policy restricting Negro fans to the bleachers.
*May 15 - Clyde Shoun pitches a no-hitter, leading the Cincinnati Reds to a 1-0 win over the Boston Braves.
*June 6 - All games cancelled due to D-Day.
*June 10 - 15-year-old pitcher Joe Nuxhall of the Cincinnati Reds makes his major league debut. He is the youngest person ever to play in a major league game. After giving up five runs to the Cardinals in 2/3 of an inning, he is relieved by Jake Eisenhart, who gets the final out in his only major league appearance.

July-September

*July 11 - At Forbes Field, home of the Pittsburgh Pirates, the National League defeats the American League, 7-1, in the All-Star Game.
*August 10 - Red Barrett of the Boston Braves throws a shutout with just 58 pitches - a record for fewest pitches in a nine-inning game. The game lasted 75 minutes.
*September 30 - Detroit Tigers pitcher Hal Newhouser wins his 29th game, defeating the Washington Senators, 7-3.

October-December

*October 9 - The St. Louis Cardinals defeated the St. Louis Browns, 3-1, in Game 6 of the World Series to win their fifth World Championship, four games to two. The Browns are the last of the orginal eight members of the American League to win the pennant. It would be their only World Series appearance before relocating to Baltimore 10 years later. This marked only the third time in World Series history in which both teams had the same home field, Sportsman's Park (the other two being the 1921 World Series and 1922 World Series in the Polo Grounds). The Series was also known as the "Streetcar Series", or the "St. Louis Showdown."

Births

January-March

*January 4 - Tito Fuentes
*February 1 - Paul Blair
*February 13 - Sal Bando
*February 17 - Dick Bosman
*March 15 - Wayne Granger
*March 17 - Cito Gaston
*March 21 - Manny Sanguillen
*March 23 - George Scott
*March 29 - Denny McLain

April-June

*April 1 - Rusty Staub
*April 3 - Gomer Hodge
*April 7 - Bill Stoneman
*April 9 - Joe Brinkman
*April 24 - Bill Singer
*May 6 - Masanori Murakami
*June 6 - Bud Harrelson
*June 8 - Mark Belanger
*June 30 - Ron Swoboda

July-September

*July 9 - Sonny Jackson
*July 22 - Sparky Lyle
*July 30 - Doug Rader
*August 20 - Graig Nettles
*August 30 - Tug McGraw
*September 11 - John McSherry
*September 20 - Ed Phillips
*September 27 - Gary Sutherland

October-December

*October 4 - Tony La Russa
*October 29 - Jim Bibby
*November 7 - Joe Niekro
*November 8 - Ed Kranepool
*November 17 - Tom Seaver
*December 6 - Tony Horton
*December 15 - Stan Bahnsen
*December 22 - Steve Carlton
*December 30 - José Morales

Deaths

*January 7 - George Mullin, 63, pitcher who won 228 games including a no-hitter, mainly with the Tigers, having five 20-win seasons
*April 25 - Tony Mullane, 85, pitcher who won 284 games, including five 30-win seasons, throwing with both hands; led league in shutouts twice and strikeouts once
*August 4 - Camp Skinner, 47, backup outfielder for the New York Yankees (1922) and Boston Red Sox (1923)
*October 10 - Louis Leroy, 65, pitcher for the New York Highlanders and Boston Red Sox between 1905 and 1910
*October 17 - Jack Powell, 70, pitcher who won 245 games, primarily for the St. Louis Browns and Cardinals
*November 25 - Kenesaw Mountain Landis, 78, commissioner of baseball since that office's creation in 1920 who established the position's authority in overseeing cleanup of corruption in wake of the Black Sox scandal, banishing eight players from the sport for life for involvement in throwing 1919 World Series; as federal judge, had presided over 1914 case in which Federal League challenged major leagues under antitrust law; strong advocate of the independence of minor leagues from control of majors
*December 4 - Roger Bresnahan, 65, catcher and leadoff hitter who starred for the New York Giants from 1902-1908, and was first major leaguer to wear shinguards; led NL in walks in 1908, and was only catcher to steal 200 bases