1963 in baseball

• World Series: Los Angeles Dodgers beat New York Yankees (4–0); Sandy Koufax, MVP
• All-Star Game, July 9 at Municipal Stadium: National League, 5–3; Willie Mays, MVP

• College World Series: USC
• Japan Series: Yomiuri Giants over Nishitetsu Lions (4–3)
• Little League World Series: Granada Hills National, Granada Hills, California
• Senior League World Series: Monterrey, Mexico
• Pan American Games: Cuba over United States

• Baseball Hall of Fame
  • John Clarkson
  • Elmer Flick
  • Sam Rice
  • Eppa Rixey

Baseball Writers' Association of America Awards
BBWAA Award	National League	American League
Rookie of the Year	Pete Rose (CIN)	Gary Peters (CWS)
Cy Young Award	Sandy Koufax (LAD)	—
Most Valuable Player	Sandy Koufax (LAD)	Elston Howard (NYY)
Gold Glove Awards
Position	National League	American League
Pitcher	Bobby Shantz (STL)	Jim Kaat (MIN)
Catcher	Johnny Edwards (CIN)	Elston Howard (NYY)
1st Base	Bill White (STL)	Vic Power (MIN)
2nd Base	Bill Mazeroski (PIT)	Bobby Richardson (NYY)
3rd Base	Ken Boyer (STL)	Brooks Robinson (BAL)
Shortstop	Bobby Wine (PHI)	Zoilo Versalles (MIN)
Outfield	Roberto Clemente (PIT)	Jim Landis (CWS)
	Curt Flood (STL)	Al Kaline (DET)
	Willie Mays (SF)	Carl Yastrzemski (BOS)

	American League		National League
Stat	Player	Total	Player	Total
AVG	Carl Yastrzemski (BOS)	.321	Tommy Davis (LAD)	.326
HR	Harmon Killebrew (MIN)	45	Hank Aaron (MIL) Willie McCovey (SF)	44
RBI	Dick Stuart (BOS)	118	Hank Aaron (MIL)	130
W	Whitey Ford (NYY)	24	Sandy Koufax1 (LAD) Juan Marichal (SF)	25
ERA	Gary Peters (CWS)	2.33	Sandy Koufax1 (LAD)	1.88
K	Camilo Pascual (MIN)	202	Sandy Koufax1 (LAD)	306

¹ National League Triple Crown pitching winner

Summarize Timeline Top Qs Fact Check

Central League	G	W	L	T	Pct.	GB
Yomiuri Giants	140	83	55	2	.601	—
Chunichi Dragons	140	80	57	3	.584	2.5
Hanshin Tigers	140	69	70	1	.496	14.5
Kokutetsu Swallows	140	65	73	2	.471	18.0
Taiyo Whales	140	59	79	2	.428	24.0
Hiroshima Carp	140	58	80	2	.420	25.0

Pacific League	G	W	L	T	Pct.	GB
Nishitetsu Lions	150	86	60	4	.589	—
Nankai Hawks	150	85	61	4	.582	1.0
Toei Flyers	150	76	71	3	.517	10.5
Kintetsu Buffaloes	150	74	73	3	.503	12.5
Daimai Orions	150	64	85	1	.430	23.5
Hankyu Braves	150	57	92	1	.383	30.5

• January 5 – The National League's greatest hitter of the modern era, Rogers Hornsby, suffers a fatal heart attack at age 66. [See Deaths below.]
• January 10 – Chicago Cubs owner Philip K. Wrigley, who two years ago invented the "College of Coaches" to replace baseball's traditional field-manager-led on-field hierarchy, today creates the position of athletic director, and names ex-Air Force Academy athletics director Robert V. Whitlow to the post. But Whitlow's lack of baseball experience leads to him being ignored by general manager John Holland and the Cubs' coaching staff; he resigns in January 1965 and his position is abolished.^[1][2]
• January 14 – The Baltimore Orioles and Chicago White Sox pull off a blockbuster trade. Baltimore obtains future Baseball Hall of Fame shortstop Luis Aparicio and veteran outfielder Al Smith in exchange for Cooperstown-bound knuckleballer Hoyt Wilhelm, shortstop Ron Hansen (the 1960 American League Rookie of the Year), third baseman Pete Ward and outfielder Dave Nicholson. The White Sox gain, in Wilhelm, a shutdown relief pitcher, as well as three regulars; meanwhile, Aparicio will help the Orioles break through to a World Series championship in 1966.
• January 24 – The Los Angeles Dodgers acquire Don Zimmer from the Cincinnati Reds in exchange for minor league pitcher Scott Breeden. Infielder Zimmer previously played for the Dodgers from 1954 to 1959.
• January 27 – Sam Rice, Eppa Rixey, Elmer Flick and John Clarkson are elected to the Hall of Fame by the Special Veterans Committee.
• January 29 – Elwood "Pete" Quesada divests himself of his majority stake in the Washington Senators, and James Johnston and James Lemon become co-owners of the two-year-old expansion team. Johnston and Lemon hire former New York Yankees outfielder George Selkirk as their new general manager, replacing Ed Doherty.

• February 7 – The Kansas City Athletics sign pitcher Marcel Lachemann, who becomes known as a manager and pitching coach after his playing days.
• February 14 – New York Yankees southpaw relief pitcher Marshall Bridges (8–4 with 18 saves in 52 games pitched in 1962) is wounded in the left calf by a gun-wielding woman in an after-hours incident at a Fort Lauderdale bar. Known as "Fox" and "The Sheriff," Bridges, 31, will recover in time to appear in his first 1963 contest for the Bombers on April 20.
• February 18 – Commissioner of Baseball Ford Frick publicly opposes interleague play; the American League reportedly favors the idea, but the National League, currently considered the stronger of the two circuits, rejects it. "I have always maintained that the two leagues should keep themelves as far apart as possible," says Frick, a former NL president. He does, however, predict expansion and two 12-team leagues, each split into two divisions, which will become reality in 1969.^[3]
• February 20 – On the eve of spring training and Year 3 of the Chicago Cubs' "College of Coaches" era, owner Philip K. Wrigley appoints former American League outfielder/third baseman and native Chicagoan Bob Kennedy "head coach." But in a departure from the coaching rotations of 1961–1962, it is announced that Kennedy is expected to serve in the post for the full 1963 season. In fact, Kennedy leads the Cubs to an 82–80 mark, their first above-.500 season since 1946, and will hold the head coaching job through June 13, 1965.
• February 27 – The Kansas City Athletics trade right-hander Jerry Walker to the Cleveland Indians for outfielder Chuck Essegian. Walker, 24, is a former member of the "Kiddie Corps"—mostly "bonus-baby" pitchers of the Baltimore Orioles. His brief MLB playing career (which ends in 1964) will be superseded by a 40+ year tenure as a pitching coach and front-office executive.

• March 8 – The second-year New York Mets, who finished last in the National League with a 40–120 record in their inaugural season, release veteran Gene Woodling, closing the book on the outfielder's playing career. Known as a key member of five of Casey Stengel's championship New York Yankees teams (1949–1953), Woodling, 40, batted .274 in 81 games for the Mets in 1962.
• March 14 – The Los Angeles Angels sell the contract of fireballing relief pitcher Ryne Duren to the Philadelphia Phillies. Duren, 34, will win six games and save two others for the 1963 Phils.
• March 18 – The Washington Senators purchase the contract of veteran right-hander Ron Kline, 31, from the Detroit Tigers.
• March 22 – The New York Mets purchase pitcher Carl Willey from the Milwaukee Braves. Willey will attempt to boost a pitching rotation that includes Roger Craig, Al Jackson and Tracy Stallard.
• March 25 – The Philadelphia Phillies further strengthen their bullpen by acquiring Johnny Klippstein from the Cincinnati Reds in a cash transaction. Veteran righty Klippstein, 35, will post a stellar 1.93 earned run average in 1963, his 14th MLB season.
• March 28 – After less than three years in their organization, 1960 bonus baby Danny Murphy is dealt by the Chicago Cubs to the Houston Colt .45s, along with pitcher Dave Gerard, for pitchers Hal Haydel and Dick LeMay and catcher Merritt Ranew. Murphy, 20, currently an outfielder, signed a $100,000 contract after his high school graduation, but batted only .171 in three brief trials as a Cub; he will convert to the mound in 1965 and when he finally returns to the majors in 1969 it will be as a relief pitcher.

• April 1 – The New York Mets purchase the contract of outfielder Duke Snider from the Los Angeles Dodgers. Future Hall of Famer Snider, 36, is one of the most celebrated stars of the Brooklyn Dodgers' 1950s National League dynasty.
• April 2 – Another veteran outfielder and future Hall of Famer, Minnie Miñoso, changes teams when the St. Louis Cardinals ship the 39-year-old to the Washington Senators. Miñoso's lone season as a Redbird was ruined by a fractured wrist, limiting him to only 39 games.
• April 4 – The Pittsburgh Pirates and Houston Colt .45s swap outfielders, with Pittsburgh obtaining Manny Mota for Howie Goss. Mota, 24, will establish himself as a major-leaguer after the Pirates recall him from Triple-A in July, and go on to play into 1982 while setting pinch-hitting records.
• April 8:
  • In the seventh inning of the National League's traditional Opening Day contest at Cincinnati's Crosley Field, Reds southpaw Jim O'Toole commits the first balk of the 1963 season with the slow-running Bob Bailey of the Pittsburgh Pirates on first base. Two batters later, Bailey scores an inconsequential run in O'Toole's 5–2 complete-game victory.^[4] But the balk call signals an approaching controversy: prior to the season, NL president Warren Giles has instructed umpires to strictly enforce Rule 8.05(m), which demands that pitchers stop their motions for a full second with a runner on base; as a result, 96 balks will be called in the Senior Circuit over the next four weeks.^[5]
  • Second-inning home runs by Jim Gentile and Boog Powell power the Baltimore Orioles to a 3–1 win over the Washington Senators in the American League's traditional Presidential Opener before 43,022 at District of Columbia Stadium. Steve Barber goes eight innings for the victory. John F. Kennedy throws out the first ball.^[6]
  • The Detroit Tigers acquire pitcher Denny McLain, 19, off first-year waivers from the Chicago White Sox.
• April 11:
  • Warren Spahn of the Milwaukee Braves becomes the all-time winningest left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball history. His 6–1 victory over the New York Mets gives him 328 career wins, moving him ahead of Eddie Plank, star southpaw of the early-century Philadelphia Athletics. Except for Duke Snider's home run in today's game, no Met gets past second base.^[7]
  • In his third American League game since being acquired over the winter from the Pittsburgh Pirates, catcher Don Leppert of the Washington Senators slugs three home runs against the Boston Red Sox, leading his team to an 8–0 rout at D.C. Stadium. His battery-mate, Tom Cheney, fires a one-hitter (a fourth-inning single by Eddie Bressoud) and fans ten. Leppert is one of seven batters who will enjoy three-homer days in 1963; Cheney's one-hitter is the first of ten one-hitters thrown in MLB this year.^[8]
• April 13 – After 11 hitless at bats, Cincinnati Reds second baseman Pete Rose records his first major league hit, a triple off Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Bob Friend. The NL's mandated enforcement of the balk rule produces a major-league record seven in the Pirates' 12–4 trouncing of the Reds at Crosley Field.^[9] Friend commits four of the balks; Cincinnati's John Tsitouris (two) and Jim O'Toole (one) are guilty of the rest.^[10]
• April 21 – The New York Yankees acquire southpaw relief pitcher Steve Hamilton from the Washington Senators for right-handed reliever Jim Coates.
• April 29 – The Baltimore Orioles claim 18-year-old outfielder Curt Blefary from the New York Yankees on first-year waivers. He will win the 1965 American League Rookie of the Year Award.

• May 2 – The Minnesota Twins trade left-hander Jack Kralick to the Cleveland Indians for right-hander Jim Perry. Gaylord Perry's elder sibling, Jim will win 128 games over a decade in a Minnesota uniform, with two 20-game-winning seasons. Perry also will capture the 1970 American League Cy Young Award.
• May 4:
  • The National League's balk craze reaches its peak when umpires call five balks on Milwaukee Braves right-hander Bob Shaw in 41⁄3 innings pitched in a 7–5 Chicago Cubs victory at County Stadium.^[8][11][12] A rattled Shaw also walks six hitters and is ejected by arbiter Al Barlick after facing only 25 batters. His five balks set an MLB record, and when a sixth infraction is called on on reliever Denny Lemaster in the eighth, Milwaukee establishes a new all-time MLB record for most balks by a team in a single game; when Chicago's Paul Toth also commits the same offense, the two clubs tie the record of most balks (seven) in one game, set only three weeks ago.^[9]
  • At the Polo Grounds, the Giants—who abandoned the Manhattan ballyard six years ago for San Francisco—make themselves right at home, scoring an NL-season-high^[11] 17 runs and bashing six homers in thrashing the New York Mets 17–4. Orlando Cepeda (four RBI) and Ed Bailey (three RBI) each hit two long balls; Jim Davenport drives in five runs and adds a homer himself.^[13]
• May 5 – The Detroit Tigers release veteran first baseman and pinch hitter Vic Wertz, 38, who later signs with the Minnesota Twins to close out his 17-year career.
• May 7 – Reacting to the spate of balks called in the National League this season—96 in less than a month—Commissioner Ford Frick, NL president Warren Giles and American League boss Joe Cronin meet in emergency session to simplify Rule 8.05m. While insisting on pitchers' coming to a full stop when a runner is on base, the new rule removes the "one second" minimum stipulation.^[14] Under the re-written rule, 51 balks will be called for the last five months of the NL campaign.
• May 9 – Chicago Cubs first baseman Ernie Banks becomes the first National League player to record 22 putouts in a game, during a 3–1 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates.
• May 11 – At Dodger Stadium, Sandy Koufax of the Los Angeles Dodgers no-hits the San Francisco Giants 8–0, his second no-hitter in as many seasons. He walks two, fans four, and faces 28 hitters, one over the minimum.^[15] The final out is made by Harvey Kuenn on a ground ball back to than Koufax. Kuenn will also make the final out of Koufax's perfect game two years later.
• May 14 – Veteran right-hander Ray Herbert of the Chicago White Sox fires his fourth straight complete-game shutout, defeating the Detroit Tigers 3–0 at Comiskey Park. The 33-year-old, a 20-game winner in 1962, gives up a total of 15 hits and three walks during the four-game stretch, which began May 1. Herbert's scoreless-innings-pitched streak will reach 38 innings, best in MLB in 1963,^[8] before it's snapped by the Baltimore Orioles on May 19 in the third frame.
• May 17 – Houston Colt .45s pitcher Don Nottebart throws the first no-hitter in franchise history, leading his team past the Philadelphia Phillies, 4–1, at Colt Stadium. The 27-year-old right-hander allows three bases on balls and fans eight; the Phils' run is unearned.^[16]
• May 19 – Detroit Tigers center fielder Bill Bruton ties a Major League record for most doubles in a single game. Bruton hits his four doubles in consecutive plate appearances, as Detroit defeats the Washington Senators, 5–1.^[8] Teammate and rookie pitcher Bill Faul tosses a three-hitter in his first Major League start.
• May 21 – Jim Maloney, the Cincinnati Reds' flame throwing 22-year-old, strikes out 16 Milwaukee Braves in 81⁄3 innings in today's 2–0 road victory—the most strikeouts recorded in a 1963 contest in the majors.^[8]
• May 23:
  • The New York Mets trade first baseman Gil Hodges to the Washington Senators for Jimmy Piersall. Hodges, 39, immediately retires as an active player and replaces Mickey Vernon as Washington's manager. He will pilot the Senators through 1967, then returns to the Mets as their manager in 1968.
  • The Cincinnati Reds trade ace pinch-hitter and reserve outfielder Jerry Lynch to the Pittsburgh Pirates for outfielder Bob Skinner.
• May 25 – The Kansas City Athletics trade shortstop Dick Howser and catcher Joe Azcue to the Cleveland Indians for catcher Doc Edwards and $100,000.

• June 2 – At Busch Stadium, Willie Mays hits three home runs off three different pitchers (Ernie Broglio, Bob Humphreys and Bobby Shantz), helping the San Francisco Giants beat the St. Louis Cardinals 6–4.
• June 6 – The New York Mets sign shortstop Bud Harrelson, 19, as an amateur free agent out of San Francisco State University.
• June 9 – Ernie Banks hits three home runs but his Chicago Cubs lose to the Los Angeles Dodgers 11–8.
• June 10 – Al Kaline belts his 200th career home run helping the Detroit Tigers beat the Boston Red Sox 6–1.
• June 11 – Bob Aspromonte clouts a walk-off grand slam in the tenth inning off pitcher Lindy McDaniel to give the Houston Colt .45s a 6–2 victory over the Chicago Cubs at Colt Stadium.
• June 14:
  • The New York Mets' Duke Snider hits his 400th career home run off Bob Purkey in the first inning of the Mets' 10–3 victory over the Cincinnati Reds at Crosley Field.^[17]
  • Willie Kirkland of the Cleveland Indians hits a home run in the 11th inning to tie the game 2–2. In the 19th inning, he hits the game-winning home run to defeat the Washington Senators. Kirkland joins Vern Stephens as the only player to hit two extra-inning home runs. The contest is the majors' longest, as measured in innings, of 1963.^[11]

• June 15:
  • At Candlestick Park, Juan Marichal of the San Francisco Giants no-hits the Houston Colt .45s, 1–0, becoming the first Latin American pitcher to throw a no-hitter. The no-hitter is the first by a Giant since the franchise's move from New York City after the 1957 season. Moreover, Marichal joins Carl Hubbell, who did it while pitching for the New York York Giants in 1929, as the second Giants pitcher to accomplish the feat.
  • An era ends for the Milwaukee Braves when they trade 36-year-old right-hander Lew Burdette to the St. Louis Cardinals for catcher/outfielder Gene Oliver and young hurler Bob Sadowski. A three-time All-Star, Burdette had formed a formidable one-two pitching tandem with southpaw Warren Spahn since the Braves moved to Wisconsin in 1953, and had carried the team to its 1957 World Series championship with three complete-game victories.
  • The Detroit Tigers reacquire outfielder George Thomas from the Los Angeles Angels for pitcher Paul Foytack and infielder Frank Kostro. Thomas, 25, is an ex-"bonus baby" who broke into pro ball with the 1957 Tigers.
• June 18 – Veteran manager Chuck Dressen is called back into harness when he replaces Bob Scheffing as pilot of the struggling Detroit Tigers, who are 24–36 and 11½ games from first place. For Dressen, 68, the Tigers' job represents his fifth MLB managerial assignment since 1934.
• June 21 – Pitcher Early Wynn, 43, in search of his 300th career victory, returns to the Cleveland Indians as a free agent. He had been released by the Chicago White Sox on November 20, 1962.
• June 23 – Colorful Jimmy Piersall hits his 100th career home run in a 5–0 New York Mets victory over the Philadelphia Phillies at the Polo Grounds. In celebration, he runs backwards around the bases (although he touches each bag in the correct, counter-clockwise order); still photos of the stunt make coast-to-coast news but Piersall draws scorn from baseball traditionalists.
• June 24 – The St. Louis Cardinals acquire knuckle-balling reliever Barney Schultz, a 36-year-old journeyman, from the Chicago Cubs. In 1964, Schultz will record saves in 11 straight appearances between September 15 and October 4, playing a major role in the Redbirds' successful late-season pennant drive.
• June 27:
  • Johnny Callison, the Philadelphia Phillies' 24-year-old All-Star outfielder, hits for the cycle against the Pittsburgh Pirates in a 13–4 Philadelphia victory at Forbes Field. It's one of two "cycles" in the majors in 1963.^[8] Callison's four runs batted in help Phillies' rookie right-hander Ray Culp win his tenth game of the year.^[18]
  • In a sparsely attended, weekday-afternoon game, right-fielder Al Luplow of the Cleveland Indians makes one of the most spectacular catches in Fenway Park history, catching Dick Williams' long drive as he leaps over the fence and tumbles into the Boston Red Sox' bullpen. The catch comes in the eighth inning with the tying runs on base, and preserves the Tribe's 6–4 victory over Boston.^[19][20]
• June 30 – The Los Angeles Angels sign 17-year-old outfielder Jay Johnstone as a free agent.

• July 1:
  • The Cincinnati Reds make two trades. They send Don Blasingame to the Washington Senators for reliever Jim Coates. Blasingame, a 31-year-old former NL All-Star, has lost his second-base job to the Reds' standout rookie, Pete Rose. The Reds also deal catcher Jesse Gonder to the New York Mets for catcher Sammy Taylor and infielder Charlie Neal.
  • The Kansas City Athletics purchase the contract of catcher/pinch hitter Charley Lau from the Baltimore Orioles.
• July 2 – The San Francisco Giants' Juan Marichal pitches a 16-inning shutout against the Milwaukee Braves, outdueling Warren Spahn, who hurls 15+1⁄3 scoreless innings before Willie Mays wins the contest 1–0 with a home run in the bottom of the 16th. In the ninth inning, when the Giants' manager suggests Marichal should come out for a pinch hitter, he angrily replies, "I am not going to come out of that game as long as that old man is still pitching." Later, when the Braves' manager suggests to Spahn that it's time he leaves the game, the 42-year-old Spahn replies that if that young kid can still pitch, so can he. When it's over, Marichal has thrown 227 pitches and Spahn 201.
• July 7 – The All-Star break sees two clear league leaders at the season's midpoint: the New York Yankees (50–31), who boast a five-game advantage over the Chicago White Sox (47–38); and the Los Angeles Dodgers (50–33), up by three lengths over the defending NL champions, the rival Giants (48–37).
• July 9 – At Cleveland Municipal Stadium, the National League defeats the American League 5–3 in the 1963 Major League Baseball All–Star Game, as the annual Midsummer Classic returns to a single-game format. The Americans out-hit the Nationals 11–6, but MVP Willie Mays puts on a one-man show. Although he's held to a single, Mays collects two runs, two RBI and two stolen bases, and makes a running catch that deprives Joe Pepitone of an extra base hit in the eighth inning. The game marks the 24th and final All-Star appearance of Stan Musial, who pinch hits in the fifth inning. He lines out to right field, leaving behind a .317 batting average (20-for-63) and an All-Star Game record of six home runs.

• July 13 – Cleveland Indians pitcher Early Wynn finally wins his 300th game thanks to a little help from his bullpen. After going winless in six straight starts dating to September 1962, then struggling through five innings against the Kansas City Athletics today, Wynn, 43, is replaced by relief man Jerry Walker, whose four scoreless frames save the future Hall of Famer's 7–4 triumph.
• July 27 – The Los Angeles Angels sign outfielder Jim Piersall the same day he is unconditionally released by the New York Mets. Piersall, 33, will continue his MLB career as a backup outfielder with the Angels until he's released on May 2, 1967.
• July 30 – In one in a series of trades the Los Angeles Dodgers will make with the Washington Senators, the Dodgers send their ace 1962 right-handed relief pitcher, Ed Roebuck, to Washington for infielder Marv Breeding. On June 24, Los Angeles had sold the contract of veteran infielder Don Zimmer to the Senators. The two teams have become interleague trading partners since ex-Dodger standout Gil Hodges became Washington's manager earlier this season.
• July 31 – A gathering of 7,288 at Cleveland Stadium watches Indians infielder Woodie Held, pitcher Pedro Ramos, outfielder Tito Francona, and shortstop Larry Brown slug four straight solo home runs off Los Angeles Angels right-hander Paul Foytack in the bottom of the sixth inning. The four homers build the Indians' lead to 9–1, and they win, 9–5.

• August 7 – The New York Mets defeat the St. Louis Cardinals, 7–3. Mets outfielder Jim Hickman hits for the cycle, doing it in order.^[8] Both are firsts for the Mets.
• August 9 – Jim Hickman becomes the second player to hit a walk-off grand slam against Chicago Cubs pitcher Lindy McDaniel this season, in a 7–3 New York Mets victory at the Polo Grounds. Hickman's blow enables teammate Roger Craig (3–20) to break a personal 18-game losing steak that dates to May 4. McDaniel—who previously surrendered a game-ending slam to Bob Aspromonte of the Houston Colt .45s on June 11—is the second MLB pitcher to be so victimized in one season, joining Satchel Paige (1952).
• August 16 – The Baltimore Orioles sign 17-year-old free agent pitcher Jim Palmer, a recent graduate of a Scottsdale, Arizona, high school.
• August 27 – Willie Mays hits his 400th career home run helping the San Francisco Giants beat the St. Louis Cardinals 7–2.
• August 23
  • Milwaukee Braves veteran pitcher Warren Spahn sets a National League record for most starts, previously set by Grover Alexander, with his 601st appearance on the mound during a 6–1 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers. Later in 1963, Spahn will match an NL record set by Christy Mathewson with his thirteenth 20-win season, while becoming the oldest pitcher to do so at 42.
  • Two lopsided American League games see the winning side each score 17 runs. At D.C. Stadium, the visiting Los Angeles Angels trounce the Washington Senators 17–0; Ken McBride throws a three-hit shutout and knocks in two runs himself. At Tiger Stadium, host Detroit pummels the Kansas City Athletics 17–2; veteran Frank Lary throws a complete game and Norm Cash slugs two home runs. The 17 runs scored in each game are the most in an AL game this season.^[11]
• August 29 – Helped by a league-record-tying eight home runs,^[11] the Minnesota Twins amass a team-record forty-seven total bases in the first game of a double-header at D.C. Stadium. Harmon Killebrew and Vic Power both strike for two homers in the 14–2 victory. In the second game, a 10–1 Minnesota win, the Twins hit four more homers for a team-record even dozen on the day.

• September 2 – The conclusion of Labor Day weekend ends with the two seemingly decided pennant races. In the American League, the New York Yankees (90–48) have increased their advantage to 12 games over the Chicago White Sox (78–60); in the National League, the Los Angeles Dodgers (83–54) hold a less-comfortable six-game margin over their nearest pursuer, the St. Louis Cardinals (77–60).
• September 5 – Willie McCovey hits his 100th career home run.
• September 6 – Major League Baseball celebrates its 100,000th game with a match-up between the Cleveland Indians and the Washington Senators at D.C. Stadium.
• September 10 – The Alous become the first brother trio to bat consecutively in one game, during the eighth inning of a San Francisco Giants' 4–2 loss to the New York Mets at the Polo Grounds. Jesús pinch-hits in his Major League debut and grounds out to shortstop Al Moran; Matty, also pinch-hitting, strikes out, and Felipe ends the inning by grounding out to pitcher Carl Willey, who goes the distance for the victory.
• September 13 – The New York Yankees beat the Minnesota Twins 2–0 to clinch their 28th American League pennant.
• September 15:
  • The red-hot St. Louis Cardinals, now 91–61, win their 19th game in their last 20, sweeping a twin bill against the Milwaukee Braves by taking the second game, 5–0, at Busch Stadium behind Ray Sadecki's five-hitter. Since August 30, when the streak began, the Cards have leapfrogged the San Francisco Giants to move into second place in the NL and made up 6½ games on the front-running Los Angeles Dodgers (91–59), whom they now trail by only one game, two in the loss column. The Cardinals and Dodgers will square off in a three-game series tomorrow in St. Louis with the pennant on the line.
  • All three Alou brothers—Felipe, Matty and Jesus—play in the outfield for the Giants in a 15–3 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates.^[21]
• September 18:
  • Playing in his first MLB game, Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman Dick Nen clubs a ninth-inning, game-tying home run over the roof at Busch Stadium off Ron Taylor of the St. Louis Cardinals. The Dodgers go on to win in the 13th, 6–5,^[22] completing a three-game road sweep of the Redbirds and effectively wrecking St. Louis' pennant drive.
  • In the final regular-season game ever played at the Polo Grounds, the Philadelphia Phillies defeat the New York Mets 6–1. New York gets its only run on Jim Hickman's fourth-inning home run, the last home run to be hit at Upper Manhattan's venerable stadium.
• September 21 – Harmon Killebrew, in a double-header split between his Minnesota Twins and the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park, hits four home runs on the day to tie an American League record.
• September 22:
  • Willie McCovey hits three home runs to help San Francisco Giants beat the New York Mets 13–4.
  • Outfielder Jimmie Hall of the Minnesota Twins hits his 33rd and final home run of the year. No other rookie without previous-year at bats has hit more. Hall tops the current record-holder, Boston's Ted Williams, who hit 31 in 1939.
• September 24 – Don Drysdale wins his 19th game and the Dodgers win their second West Coast pennant, defeating the New York Mets 4–1 at Los Angeles. Meanwhile, the second-place St. Louis Cardinals drop a 6–3 decision to the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field. The 1963 World Series will match the Dodgers against the New York Yankees for the eighth time since 1941 and the first time since 1956 when they represented Brooklyn.
• September 27 – Manager Harry Craft of the Houston Colt .45s fields the "Baby Colts", a starting lineup with an average age of nineteen years, against the New York Mets at Colt Stadium. The oldest player used by Houston all game is 26-year-old Dick Drott, who pitches the ninth inning.^[23]
• September 28 – Minnesota Twins first baseman Vic Power hits the club's 225th home run of 1963, a season total that ranks second behind the 1961 New York Yankees' 240.
• September 29:
  • Stan Musial's RBI single off Cincinnati Reds pitcher Jim Maloney is his 3,630th hit (then a National League record) in the final at-bat of his 22-year major league career spent entirely with the St. Louis Cardinals; his Redbirds go on to defeat the Reds 3–2.
  • John Paciorek makes his MLB debut for the Houston Colt .45s at age 18, lashing three hits, driving in four runs, and drawing two walks. He reaches base in all five plate appearances for a batting average of 1.000 and an OPS of 2.000. However, this will be Paciorek's only appearance in a major league game, after he suffers an injury in the minors that ends his career by the time he's 24.
• September 30 – The off-season, and trade season, begin for the 18 clubs not playing in the upcoming World Series. In the first major transaction, the Cleveland Indians purchase the contract of 33-year-old relief pitcher Don McMahon from the Houston Colt .45s.

• October 2 – In Game 1 of the 1964 World Series—and his first and only official appearance on the Yankee Stadium mound—ace southpaw Sandy Koufax sets a new Fall Classic record, striking out 15 (breaking ex-teammate Carl Erskine's ten-year old mark), and giving his Los Angeles Dodgers the jump on the New York Yankees with a 5–2 victory. The Dodgers' four-run second inning, keyed by a mammoth Frank Howard drive over Mickey Mantle's head in centerfield (it lands for a double), an RBI single by ex-Yankee Bill Skowron, and a three-run homer from catcher John Roseboro, provides all the support Koufax needs; he holds the Yanks off the scoreboard until Tom Tresh reaches him for a two-run homer in the eighth, allows six hits, and walks three in his complete-game triumph.^[24][25]
• October 4 – Among the veteran players receiving career-ending unconditional releases during early October is Sherm Lollar, 39, nine-time All-Star and 3x Gold Glove Award-winning catcher, who is cut loose by the Chicago White Sox.
• October 6 – At Dodger Stadium in Game 4, Sandy Koufax again defeats the New York Yankees, 2–1, completing a shocking World Series sweep for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Whitey Ford gives up only two hits, both by Frank Howard, who belts a long home run in the fifth inning to start the Dodgers' scoring. The Yankees are swept in a World Series for the first time; they bat just .171 and score only four runs, second-lowest in World Series history. Curiously, the Dodgers will set the mark for fewest runs scored in a World Series only three years later, falling victim to a decisive sweep at the hands of the Baltimore Orioles.
• October 8 – The St. Louis Cardinals sign amateur free agent left-hander and future Hall-of-Famer Steve Carlton, 18, from Miami Dade College.
• October 10 – Reacting to the poor performances of its two 1962 expansion teams—especially the New York Mets, who have posted a ghastly 91–231 (.283) record and finished a combined 108½ games out of first place during their two-year lifespan so far—the National League holds a special, one-of-a-kind "assistance" draft to supplement their rosters. The eight pre-1962 NL franchises offer up a total of 32 players available to the Mets and Houston Colt .45s for $30,000 each, but only three are chosen in the draft, which is conducted by phone and lasts a mere five minutes:
  • The Mets select pitcher Jack Fisher, 24, from the San Francisco Giants and first base prospect Bill Haas, 20, from the Dodgers.
  • The Colt .45s—who have fared better than the Mets, with a two-year mark of 130–192 (.404)—select relief pitcher Claude Raymond, 26, from the Milwaukee Braves.^[26]
• October 12 – In what is the only Hispanic American major league All-Star Game, the National League team beats the American League 5–2 at the Polo Grounds. The game features such names as Felipe Alou, Luis Aparicio, Orlando Cepeda, Roberto Clemente, Julián Javier, Minnie Miñoso, Tony Oliva and Zoilo Versalles. Vic Power receives a pregame award as the number one Latin player. NL starter Juan Marichal strikes out six in four innings, though reliever Al McBean is the winning pitcher. Pinch hitter Manny Mota drives in two runs against loser Pedro Ramos. This was the last baseball game played at the Polo Grounds, as the New York Mets would move into the brand new Shea Stadium in 1964.^[27]
• October 14 – The Cleveland Indians release 300-game-winner and future Hall-of-Famer Early Wynn, 43, and name him their new pitching coach.
• October 29 – The New York Yankees release catcher and playing coach Yogi Berra, 38, so he can manage the 1964 Bombers. He succeeds Ralph Houk, who moves up to general manager, replacing the retiring Roy Hamey.
• October 30 – Capping a brilliant 1963 season and a sweep of major awards during the month of October, Sandy Koufax breezes to the National League's Most Valuable Player Award. Today, he captures 14 of a possible 20 first place votes and 237 points to best Dick Groat of the St. Louis Cardinals (four, 190). Six days earlier, he was unanimously voted winner of the Cy Young Award—then given to only one hurler across both major leagues; and 24 days ago, he was selected World Series MVP. Before winning two games in the World Series, and setting a new, single-game strikeout record in Game 1, Koufax led the NL (and all of MLB) in games won (25), strikeouts (306), earned run average (1.88) and shutouts (11).^[28][29]

• November 4 – The New York Mets trade pitcher Roger Craig to the St. Louis Cardinals for young pitcher Bill Wakefield and veteran outfielder George Altman. Craig, 33, went 15–46 (including an 18-game personal losing streak) for the expansion Mets but he will help the Cardinals win the 1964 World Series.
• November 7 – Catcher Elston Howard becomes the first Black player to win the American League Most Valuable Player Award. The 34-year-old, nine-year veteran of the New York Yankees this year is selected to the AL All-Star team for the seventh straight year and wins the first of his two Gold Glove Awards. In the MVP voting, Howard wins 15 of 20 first place votes and 248 points; Al Kaline (one first-place vote, 148) is runner-up.^[28]
• November 18 – The Detroit Tigers trade slugger Rocky Colavito, whose production dropped to 22 homers in 1963, pitcher Bob Anderson and $50,000 to the Kansas City Athletics for pitchers Dave Wickersham and Ed Rakow and second baseman Jerry Lumpe.
• November 19 – United States Marine Corps veteran and former New York Yankees outfielder Hank Bauer signs a one-year contract to manage the Baltimore Orioles. Bauer succeeds Billy Hitchcock, fired September 29, and is expected to bring greater discipline to the Orioles' culture. Bauer's term will last into July 1968, during which the Birds narrowly miss the 1964 pennant, but take home the 66-year-old franchise's first-ever World Series championship in 1966.
• November 26
  • Second baseman Pete Rose is a landslide winner of National League Rookie of the Year honors, taking 17 of 20 first place votes, with the others going to Ron Hunt (2) and Ray Culp (1). Rose becomes the second Cincinnati Reds player to win the award, joining Frank Robinson.
  • The Reds sell the contract of former starting third baseman Gene Freese to the Pittsburgh Pirates. A key member of Cincinnati's 1961 NL champions, Freese, 29, suffered a badly broken ankle in spring training the following season and was able to appear in only 84 total games during 1962 and 1963.
• November 27:
  • Chicago White Sox pitcher Gary Peters, who posted a 19–8 record with 189 strikeouts and a 2.33 ERA, edges teammate third baseman Pete Ward (.295 BA, 22 HR, 84 RBI) and Minnesota Twins outfielder Jimmie Hall (.260, 33, 80) for American League Rookie of the Year honors. Peters takes 10 of 20 first-place votes, Ward six and Hall four.
  • In an "all first basemen" transaction, the Kansas City Athletics acquire Jim Gentile and $25,000 from the Baltimore Orioles in exchange for Norm Siebern.

• December 2:
  • In today's Rule 5 draft, the Los Angeles Angels select second baseman Bobby Knoop, 25, from the Milwaukee Braves. Knoop will form a formidable double play combo with shortstop Jim Fregosi for the next five seasons, winning three Gold Glove Awards and making the 1966 AL All-Star squad.
  • In the first-year professional player draft then in force, 19 young players change organizations. They include future All-Star Reggie Smith (selected by the Boston Red Sox from the Minnesota Twins) and longtime major-leaguers Rudy May (selected by the Chicago White Sox from the Twins), Bobby Tolan (by the St. Louis Cardinals from the Pittsburgh Pirates) and Luke Walker (by the Pirates from the Red Sox). This short-lived draft will be phased out in 1965 when the MLB amateur draft is adopted.
  • The Angels trade outfielder Leon Wagner, a former All-Star, to the Cleveland Indians for pitcher Barry Latman and first baseman Joe Adcock (as a "player to be named later").
  • Bad news for knuckleball pitchers: the MLB Rules Committee bans oversized catcher's mitts, effective in 1965.
  • The Indianapolis and Little Rock franchises are transferred from the International League to the Pacific Coast League. With the movement, the IL is reduced to eight clubs while the PCL membership is raised to 12 clubs. The Class A Pioneer League steps down a classification to become a Rookie league with a "short season" schedule, and two new spring training complex-based circuits, the Sarasota Rookie League and Cocoa Rookie League, are planned to debut in Florida in 1964.^[30]
• December 3 – The San Francisco Giants and Milwaukee Braves announce a seven-player trade. The Giants send pitcher Billy Hoeft, catcher Ed Bailey, infielder Ernie Bowman ("PTBNL") and outfielder Felipe Alou to the Braves for pitchers Bob Hendley and Bob Shaw and catcher Del Crandall. Alou, Bailey, Crandall and Shaw are former or future All-Stars.
• December 4 – The Cleveland Indians reacquire Al Smith, a member of their 1954 AL champions, from the Baltimore Orioles for fellow outfielder Willie Kirkland and $25,000.
• December 5 – The Philadelphia Phillies obtain a top-of-the-rotation starting pitcher—and future Hall of Famer—by acquiring seven-time American League All-Star Jim Bunning from the Detroit Tigers. The Phils also receive veteran catcher Gus Triandos and send back outfielder Don Demeter and pitcher Jack Hamilton to Detroit.
• December 6 – The Los Angeles Dodgers sell the contract of 1963 World Series batting star Bill Skowron to the Washington Senators.
• December 10 – The Chicago White Sox bid goodbye to future Hall-of-Famer and former American League MVP Nellie Fox, almost 36, trading him to the Houston Colt .45s for pitcher Jim Golden, outfielder Danny Murphy and cash. Fox had played 14 full seasons in a White Sox uniform.
• December 13 – The World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers obtain left-hander Jim Brewer and catcher Cuno Barragan from the Chicago Cubs for southpaw Dick Scott. Brewer, 26, will spent all or part of 12 seasons with the Dodgers, almost exclusively as a relief pitcher, and post a 61–51 (2.62) record, with 126 saves.
• December 14 – The Baltimore Orioles acquire lefty Harvey Haddix from the Pittsburgh Pirates for minor-league shortstop Richard Yencha and cash. Famous for throwing 12 perfect innings for the Pirates as a starter in May 1959, Haddix, now 38, has become a relief specialist and will join the Baltimore bullpen in 1964.
• December 21 – Sandy Koufax is named the Southern California Athlete of the Year by the Helms Athletic Foundation.
• December 27 – The Houston Colt .45s purchase the contract of hard-hitting outfielder/first baseman Walt Bond from the Cleveland Indians. Diagnosed with leukemia in 1962, the 26-year-old Bond is examined by Houston's team physician before the deal is made; his findings determine that the disease is in remission.