1933 Major League Baseball season
Sports season
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The 1933 major league baseball season began on April 12, 1933. The regular season ended on October 1, with the New York Giants and Washington Senators as the regular season champions of the National League and American League, respectively. The postseason began with Game 1 of the 30th World Series on October 3 and ended with Game 5 on October 7. In the second iteration of this World Series matchup, the Giants defeated the Senators, four games to one, capturing their fourth championship in franchise history, since their previous in 1922. Going into the season, the defending World Series champions were the New York Yankees from the 1932 season.
National League (NL)
- April 12 â October 1, 1933
- October 3â7, 1933
| 1933 MLB season | |
|---|---|
| League | American League (AL) National League (NL) |
| Sport | Baseball |
| Duration | Regular season:
|
| Games | 154 |
| Teams | 16 (8 per league) |
| Regular season | |
| Season MVP | AL: Jimmie Foxx (PHA) NL: Carl Hubbell (NYG) |
| AL champions | Washington Senators |
| AL runners-up | New York Yankees |
| NL champions | New York Giants |
| NL runners-up | Pittsburgh Pirates |
| World Series | |
| Champions | New York Giants |
| Runners-up | Washington Senators |
The first Major League Baseball All-Star Game was held on July 6 at Comiskey Park in Chicago, Illinois, home of the Chicago White Sox. The American League won, 4â2.
The season featured eight players hitting for the cycle, tied for the most of any single major league season. It was also the last season before the Senators and Philadelphia Athletics became perennial American League cellar-dwellers. The Senators would have only four more winning seasons in Washington, D.C., and would not return to the World Series until 1965 as the Minnesota Twins,[1] while the Athletics would have only four winning seasons until moving to Oakland in 1968, winning only 40.2 percent of their games over 34 seasons.[2]
Schedule
The 1933 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.
Opening Day took place on April 12 and saw ten teams across both leagues play. The final day of the regular season was on October 1 and featured all sixteen teams, continuing the trend which began with the 1930 season. The World Series took place between October 3 and October 7.
Rule change
The 1933 season saw a rule change regarding player limits; all teams were required to reach the 23 player limit by May 15 (previously, the required date was June 15). June 15 was retained as the day of the trade deadline.[3]
Teams
Standings
American League
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Washington Senators | 99 | 53 | .651 | â | 46âââ30 | 53âââ23 |
| New York Yankees | 91 | 59 | .607 | 7 | 51âââ23 | 40âââ36 |
| Philadelphia Athletics | 79 | 72 | .523 | 19½ | 46âââ29 | 33âââ43 |
| Cleveland Indians | 75 | 76 | .497 | 23½ | 45âââ32 | 30âââ44 |
| Detroit Tigers | 75 | 79 | .487 | 25 | 43âââ35 | 32âââ44 |
| Chicago White Sox | 67 | 83 | .447 | 31 | 35âââ41 | 32âââ42 |
| Boston Red Sox | 63 | 86 | .423 | 34½ | 32âââ40 | 31âââ46 |
| St. Louis Browns | 55 | 96 | .364 | 43½ | 30âââ46 | 25âââ50 |
National League
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York Giants | 91 | 61 | .599 | â | 48âââ27 | 43âââ34 |
| Pittsburgh Pirates | 87 | 67 | .565 | 5 | 50âââ27 | 37âââ40 |
| Chicago Cubs | 86 | 68 | .558 | 6 | 56âââ23 | 30âââ45 |
| Boston Braves | 83 | 71 | .539 | 9 | 45âââ31 | 38âââ40 |
| St. Louis Cardinals | 82 | 71 | .536 | 9½ | 47âââ30 | 35âââ41 |
| Brooklyn Dodgers | 65 | 88 | .425 | 26½ | 36âââ41 | 29âââ47 |
| Philadelphia Phillies | 60 | 92 | .395 | 31 | 32âââ40 | 28âââ52 |
| Cincinnati Reds | 58 | 94 | .382 | 33 | 37âââ42 | 21âââ52 |
Tie games
10 tie games (4 in AL, 6 in NL), which are not factored into winning percentage or games behind (and were often replayed again) occurred throughout the season.
American League
- Chicago White Sox, 1
- Detroit Tigers, 1
- New York Yankees, 2
- Philadelphia Athletics, 1
- St. Louis Browns, 2
- Washington Senators, 1
National League
- Boston Braves, 2
- Brooklyn Dodgers, 4
- Cincinnati Reds, 1
- New York Giants, 4
- St. Louis Cardinals, 1
Postseason
The postseason began on October 3 and ended on October 7 with the New York Giants defeating the Washington Senators in the 1933 World Series in five games.
Bracket
| World Series | ||||
| AL | Washington Senators | 1 | ||
| NL | New York Giants | 4 | ||
Managerial changes
Off-season
| Team | Former Manager | New Manager |
|---|---|---|
| Cincinnati Reds | Dan Howley | Donie Bush |
| Washington Senators | Walter Johnson | Joe Cronin |
In-season
League leaders
Any team shown in small text indicates a previous team a player was on during the season.
American League
| Stat | Player | Total |
|---|---|---|
| AVG | Jimmie Foxx1 (PHA) | .356 |
| OPS | Jimmie Foxx (PHA) | 1.153 |
| HR | Jimmie Foxx1 (PHA) | 48 |
| RBI | Jimmie Foxx1 (PHA) | 163 |
| R | Lou Gehrig (NYY) | 138 |
| H | Heinie Manush (WSH) | 221 |
| SB | Ben Chapman (NYY) | 27 |
1 American League Triple Crown batting winner
| Stat | Player | Total |
|---|---|---|
| W | Alvin Crowder (WSH) Lefty Grove (PHA) |
24 |
| L | Ted Lyons (CWS) | 21 |
| ERA | Mel Harder (CLE) | 2.95 |
| K | Lefty Gomez (NYY) | 163 |
| IP | Bump Hadley (SLB) | 316.2 |
| SV | Jack Russell (WSH) | 13 |
| WHIP | Firpo Marberry (DET) | 1.229 |
National League
| Stat | Player | Total |
|---|---|---|
| AVG | Chuck Klein2 (PHI) | .368 |
| OPS | Chuck Klein (PHI) | 1.025 |
| HR | Chuck Klein2 (PHI) | 28 |
| RBI | Chuck Klein2 (PHI) | 120 |
| R | Pepper Martin (STL) | 122 |
| H | Chuck Klein (PHI) | 223 |
| SB | Pepper Martin (STL) | 26 |
2 National League Triple Crown batting winner
| Stat | Player | Total |
|---|---|---|
| W | Carl Hubbell (NYG) | 23 |
| L | Paul Derringer (CIN/STL) | 27 |
| ERA | Carl Hubbell (NYG) | 1.66 |
| K | Dizzy Dean (STL) | 199 |
| IP | Carl Hubbell (NYG) | 308.2 |
| SV | Phil Collins (PHI) | 6 |
| WHIP | Carl Hubbell (NYG) | 0.982 |
Milestones
Batters
Cycles
- Pepper Martin (STL):
- Martin hit for his first cycle and seventh in franchise history, on May 5 against the Philadelphia Phillies.[9]
- Chuck Klein (PHI):
- Klein hit for his second cycle and fifth in franchise history, on May 26 against the St. Louis Cardinals.[10]
- Arky Vaughan (PIT):
- Vaughan hit for his first cycle and 10th in franchise history, on June 24 against the Brooklyn Dodgers.[11]
- Mickey Cochrane (PHA):
- Cochrane hit for his second cycle and fifth in franchise history, on August 2 against the New York Yankees.[12]
- Pinky Higgins (PHA):
- Higgins hit for his first cycle and sixth in franchise history, on August 6 against the Washington Senators.[13]
- Jimmie Foxx (PHA):
- Higgins hit for his first cycle and seventh in franchise history, on August 14 against the Cleveland Indians.[14]
- Earl Averill (CLE):
- Averill hit for his first cycle and second in franchise history, on August 17 against the Philadelphia Athletics.[15]
- Babe Herman (CHC):
- Herman hit for his third cycle and fourth in franchise history, on September 30 against the St. Louis Cardinals.[16]
Miscellaneous
- Lou Gehrig (NYY):
- Broke a Major League record for most consecutive games on August 17 by surpassing Everett Scott's record of 1,307.
Awards and honors
Regular season
| Baseball Writers' Association of America Awards | ||
|---|---|---|
| BBWAA Award | National League | American League |
| Most Valuable Player | Carl Hubbell (NYG) | Jimmie Foxx (PHA) |
| The Sporting News Awards | ||
|---|---|---|
| Award | National League | American League |
| Most Valuable Player[17] | Carl Hubbell (NYG) | Jimmie Foxx (PHA) |
Home field attendance
| Team name | Wins | %± | Home attendance | %± | Per game |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York Yankees[18] | 91 | â15.0% | 728,014 | â24.3% | 9,707 |
| New York Giants[19] | 91 | 26.4% | 604,471 | 24.7% | 7,850 |
| Chicago Cubs[20] | 86 | â4.4% | 594,112 | â39.0% | 7,520 |
| Brooklyn Dodgers[21] | 65 | â19.8% | 526,815 | â22.7% | 6,585 |
| Boston Braves[22] | 83 | 7.8% | 517,803 | 2.0% | 6,725 |
| Washington Senators[23] | 99 | 6.5% | 437,533 | 17.8% | 5,757 |
| Chicago White Sox[24] | 67 | 36.7% | 397,789 | 70.6% | 5,166 |
| Cleveland Indians[25] | 75 | â13.8% | 387,936 | â17.3% | 5,038 |
| Detroit Tigers[26] | 75 | â1.3% | 320,972 | â19.2% | 4,115 |
| Philadelphia Athletics[27] | 79 | â16.0% | 297,138 | â26.7% | 3,910 |
| Pittsburgh Pirates[28] | 87 | 1.2% | 288,747 | 0.5% | 3,750 |
| Boston Red Sox[29] | 63 | 46.5% | 268,715 | 47.5% | 3,732 |
| St. Louis Cardinals[30] | 82 | 13.9% | 256,171 | â8.3% | 3,327 |
| Cincinnati Reds[31] | 58 | â3.3% | 218,281 | â38.8% | 2,763 |
| Philadelphia Phillies[32] | 60 | â23.1% | 156,421 | â41.8% | 2,173 |
| St. Louis Browns[33] | 55 | â12.7% | 88,113 | â21.7% | 1,144 |
Venues
The 1933 saw the Cleveland Indians play their first full season at Cleveland Stadium, though would not do so again for another 13 seasons. The team would return to League Park following the conclusion of the season after only playing at Cleveland Stadium since mid-1932, but would play an increasing part of their 1936 to 1946 seasons at the Stadium until they permanently left League Park starting with the 1947 season.