1956 Major League Baseball season
Sports season
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The 1956 major league baseball season began on April 17, 1956. The regular season ended on September 30, with the Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Yankees as the regular season champions of the National League and American League, respectively. In a rematch of the previous season, the postseason began with Game 1 of the 53rd World Series on October 3 and ended with Game 7 on October 10. The series is notable for Yankees pitcher Don Larsen's perfect game in Game 5. In the seventh iteration of this Subway Series World Series matchup (and a rematch of the previous year), the Yankees defeated the Dodgers, four games to three, capturing their 17th championship in franchise history, since their previous in 1953. This would be the final Subway Series matchup between the two teams, as the next World Series between the two in 1963 would see a relocated Dodgers franchise in Los Angeles, California. Going into the season, the defending World Series champions were the Brooklyn Dodgers from the 1955 season.
National League (NL)
- April 17 – September 30, 1956
- October 3–10, 1956
| 1956 MLB season | |
|---|---|
| League | American League (AL) National League (NL) |
| Sport | Baseball |
| Duration | Regular season:
|
| Games | 154 |
| Teams | 16 (8 per league) |
| TV partner(s) | NBC, CBS |
| Regular season | |
| Season MVP | AL: Mickey Mantle (NYY) NL: Don Newcombe (BRO) |
| AL champions | New York Yankees |
| AL runners-up | Cleveland Indians |
| NL champions | Brooklyn Dodgers |
| NL runners-up | Milwaukee Braves |
| World Series | |
| Venue | |
| Champions | New York Yankees |
| Runners-up | Brooklyn Dodgers |
| World Series MVP | Don Larsen (NYY) |
The 23rd All-Star Game was held on July 10 at Griffith Stadium in Washington, D.C., home of the Washington Senators. The National League won, 7–3.
Schedule
The 1956 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 17, featuring all sixteen teams, the first time since 1954. The final day of the regular season was on September 30, which also saw all sixteen teams play, continuing the trend from the previous season. This was the first time since 1950 that all sixteen teams played their first and last games on the same days. The World Series took place between October 3 and October 10.
Rule changes
The 1956 season saw the following rule changes:
- In an effort to speed up the pace of play, the American League limited the number of times a nonplayer (such as the manager or coaches) could visit the pitcher's mound to one, per each pitcher. A second visit would necessitate the removal of the pitcher.[1]
- The National League required that batting helmets must be worn by all hitters.[1]
Teams
An asterisk (*) denotes the ballpark a team played the minority of their home games at
Standings
American League
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York Yankees | 97 | 57 | .630 | — | 49–28 | 48–29 |
| Cleveland Indians | 88 | 66 | .571 | 9 | 46–31 | 42–35 |
| Chicago White Sox | 85 | 69 | .552 | 12 | 46–31 | 39–38 |
| Boston Red Sox | 84 | 70 | .545 | 13 | 43–34 | 41–36 |
| Detroit Tigers | 82 | 72 | .532 | 15 | 37–40 | 45–32 |
| Baltimore Orioles | 69 | 85 | .448 | 28 | 41–36 | 28–49 |
| Washington Senators | 59 | 95 | .383 | 38 | 32–45 | 27–50 |
| Kansas City Athletics | 52 | 102 | .338 | 45 | 22–55 | 30–47 |
National League
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brooklyn Dodgers | 93 | 61 | .604 | — | 52–25 | 41–36 |
| Milwaukee Braves | 92 | 62 | .597 | 1 | 47–29 | 45–33 |
| Cincinnati Redlegs | 91 | 63 | .591 | 2 | 51–26 | 40–37 |
| St. Louis Cardinals | 76 | 78 | .494 | 17 | 43–34 | 33–44 |
| Philadelphia Phillies | 71 | 83 | .461 | 22 | 40–37 | 31–46 |
| New York Giants | 67 | 87 | .435 | 26 | 37–40 | 30–47 |
| Pittsburgh Pirates | 66 | 88 | .429 | 27 | 35–43 | 31–45 |
| Chicago Cubs | 60 | 94 | .390 | 33 | 39–38 | 21–56 |
Tie games
7 tie games (2 in AL, 5 in NL), which are not factored into winning percentage or games behind (and were often replayed again) occurred throughout the season.
American League
The Boston Red Sox, Cleveland Indians, Detroit Tigers, and Washington Senators had one tie game each.
- June 13, Cleveland Indians vs. Boston Red Sox, tied at 8 after 11 innings following a 33 minute rain delay.[3]
- June 26, Washington Senators vs. Detroit Tigers, tied at 2 after a shortened game of five innings due to rain.[4] Game was also protested by the Tigers, but disallowed.[5]
National League
The Chicago Cubs and Pittsburgh Pirates had three tie games each. The St. Louis Cardinals had two tie games. The Cincinnati Redlegs and Milwaukee Braves had one tie game each.
- April 22, Cincinnati Redlegs vs. Chicago Cubs, tied at 1 after a shortened game of seven innings on account of darkness.[6]
- May 6 (game 2), Pittsburgh Pirates vs. Chicago Cubs, tied at 6 after a shortened game of seven innings on account of darkness.[7]
- July 18, Pittsburgh Pirates vs. St. Louis Cardinals, tied at 1 after nine innings due to rain. Pirate Vern Law had struck out in the 10th but this was negated, as well as Cardinal Hal R. Smith's entry at catcher.[8]
- August 12, St. Louis Cardinals vs. Chicago Cubs, scoreless tie after nine innings on account of darkness. Game was made up on September 25.[9]
- August 30, Pittsburgh Pirates vs. Milwaukee Braves, tied at 1 after a walk and a flyout in the top of the 9th inning due to rain.[10]
Postseason
The postseason began on October 3 and ended on October 10 with the New York Yankees defeating the Brooklyn Dodgers in the 1956 World Series in seven games.
Bracket
| World Series | ||||
| AL | New York Yankees | 4 | ||
| NL | Brooklyn Dodgers | 3 | ||
Managerial changes
Off-season
| Team | Former Manager | New Manager |
|---|---|---|
| New York Giants | Leo Durocher | Bill Rigney |
| Pittsburgh Pirates | Fred Haney | Bobby Bragan |
| St. Louis Cardinals | Harry Walker | Fred Hutchinson |
In-season
| Team | Former Manager | New Manager |
|---|---|---|
| Milwaukee Braves | Charlie Grimm | Fred Haney |
League leaders
American League
| Stat | Player | Total |
|---|---|---|
| AVG | Mickey Mantle1 (NYY) | .353 |
| OPS | Mickey Mantle (NYY) | 1.169 |
| HR | Mickey Mantle1 (NYY) | 52 |
| RBI | Mickey Mantle1 (NYY) | 130 |
| R | Mickey Mantle (NYY) | 132 |
| H | Harvey Kuenn (DET) | 196 |
| SB | Luis Aparicio (CWS) | 21 |
1 Major League Triple Crown batting winner
| Stat | Player | Total |
|---|---|---|
| W | Frank Lary (DET) | 21 |
| L | Art Ditmar (KCA) | 22 |
| ERA | Whitey Ford (NYY) | 2.47 |
| K | Herb Score (CLE) | 263 |
| IP | Frank Lary (DET) | 294.0 |
| SV | George Zuverink (BAL) | 16 |
| WHIP | Dick Donovan (CWS) | 1.155 |
National League
| Stat | Player | Total |
|---|---|---|
| AVG | Hank Aaron (MIL) | .328 |
| OPS | Duke Snider (BRO) | .997 |
| HR | Duke Snider (BRO) | 43 |
| RBI | Stan Musial (STL) | 109 |
| R | Frank Robinson (CIN) | 122 |
| H | Hank Aaron (MIL) | 200 |
| SB | Willie Mays (NYG) | 40 |
| Stat | Player | Total |
|---|---|---|
| W | Don Newcombe (BRO) | 27 |
| L | Ron Kline (PIT) Robin Roberts (PHI) |
18 |
| ERA | Lew Burdette (MIL) | 2.70 |
| K | Sam Jones (CHC) | 176 |
| IP | Bob Friend (PIT) | 314.1 |
| SV | Clem Labine (BRO) | 19 |
| WHIP | Don Newcombe (BRO) | 0.989 |
Milestones
Batters
- Mickey Mantle (NYY):
- Won the Major League Triple Crown by leading both leagues in batting average (.353), home runs (52), and runs batted in (130).
- Dale Long (PIT):
- Set a Major League record by hitting home runs in eight consecutive games between May 19 and 28.[15]
- Ted Williams (BOS):
- Became the fifth player in Major League history to hit 400 home runs in the sixth inning against the Kansas City Athletics in game two of a doubleheader on July 17.[16][17]
Pitchers
Perfect games
- Don Larsen (NYY)
- Pitched the sixth perfect game in major league history and the first in franchise history on October 8, in Game 5 of the 1956 World Series against the Brooklyn Dodgers. It remains the only perfect game in World Series history. Larsen threw 97 pitches, 71 for strikes, and struck out seven in the 2–0 victory.
No-hitters
- Carl Erskine (BRO):
- Erskine threw his second career no-hitter and the 12th no-hitter in franchise history, by defeating the New York Giants 3–0 on May 12. He walked two and struck out three, throwing 66 strikes on 102 pitches.[18]
- Mel Parnell (BOS):
- Parnell threw his first career no-hitter and the 11th no-hitter in franchise history, by defeating the Chicago White Sox 4–0 on July 14. Parnell walked two and struck out four.[19]
- Sal Maglie (BRO/CLE):
- Maglie threw his first career no-hitter and the 13th no-hitter in franchise history as a member of the Brooklyn Dodgers, by defeating the Philadelphia Phillies 5–0 on September 25. Maglie walked two and struck out three, throwing 71 strikes on 110 pitches.[20]
Other pitching accomplishments
- Jack Harshman (CWS) / Connie Johnson (BAL):
- The White Sox defeat the Orioles 1–0 at Comiskey Park in a game in which both pitchers throw matching one-hitters on June 21. This game was only the third double one-hitter thrown in the modern era (since 1901).[21]
Miscellaneous
- Ed Rommel:
- Was the first umpire to wear glasses in a Major League game on April 18. The game was played between the New York Yankees and the Washington Senators.[22]
- New York Yankees:
- Set a Major League record by leaving 20 players on base on September 21 against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park.[23]
Awards and honors
Regular season
| Baseball Writers' Association of America Awards | ||
|---|---|---|
| BBWAA Award | National League | American League |
| Rookie of the Year | Frank Robinson (CIN) | Luis Aparicio (CWS) |
| Cy Young Award | — | Don Newcombe (BRO) |
| Most Valuable Player | Don Newcombe (BRO) | Mickey Mantle (NYY) |
| Babe Ruth Award (World Series MVP) |
— | Don Larsen (NYY) |
Other awards
| The Sporting News Awards | ||
|---|---|---|
| Award | National League | American League |
| Player of the Year[24] | — | Mickey Mantle (NYY) |
| Pitcher of the Year[25] | Don Newcombe (BRO) | Billy Pierce (CWS) |
| Rookie of the Year[26] | Frank Robinson (CIN) | Luis Aparicio (CWS) |
| Manager of the Year[27] | Birdie Tebbetts (CIN) | — |
| Executive of the Year[28] | Gabe Paul (CIN) | — |
Baseball Hall of Fame
Home field attendance
| Team name | Wins | %± | Home attendance | %± | Per game |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Milwaukee Braves[29] | 92 | 8.2% | 2,046,331 | 2.0% | 26,576 |
| New York Yankees[30] | 97 | 1.0% | 1,491,784 | 0.1% | 19,374 |
| Brooklyn Dodgers[31] | 93 | −5.1% | 1,213,562 | 17.4% | 15,761 |
| Boston Red Sox[32] | 84 | 0.0% | 1,137,158 | −5.5% | 14,579 |
| Cincinnati Redlegs[33] | 91 | 21.3% | 1,125,928 | 62.3% | 14,622 |
| Detroit Tigers[34] | 82 | 3.8% | 1,051,182 | −11.1% | 13,477 |
| St. Louis Cardinals[35] | 76 | 11.8% | 1,029,773 | 21.3% | 13,202 |
| Kansas City Athletics[36] | 52 | −17.5% | 1,015,154 | −27.1% | 13,184 |
| Chicago White Sox[37] | 85 | −6.6% | 1,000,090 | −14.9% | 12,988 |
| Pittsburgh Pirates[38] | 66 | 10.0% | 949,878 | 102.4% | 12,178 |
| Philadelphia Phillies[39] | 71 | −7.8% | 934,798 | 1.3% | 12,140 |
| Baltimore Orioles[40] | 69 | 21.1% | 901,201 | 5.8% | 11,704 |
| Cleveland Indians[41] | 88 | −5.4% | 865,467 | −29.2% | 11,240 |
| Chicago Cubs[42] | 60 | −16.7% | 720,118 | −17.8% | 9,001 |
| New York Giants[43] | 67 | −16.3% | 629,179 | −23.7% | 8,171 |
| Washington Senators[44] | 59 | 11.3% | 431,647 | 1.5% | 5,606 |
Venues
The Brooklyn Dodgers began playing several home games in Jersey City, New Jersey, playing seven games on April 19, May 16, June 25, July 25, 31, August 7 and 15.[45][46]
Media
Television
CBS aired the Saturday Game of the Week for the second consecutive year. The All-Star Game and World Series aired on NBC.
Retired numbers
- Bob Feller had his No. 19 retired by the Cleveland Indians on December 28. This was the first number retired by the team.
