1944 in baseball

The following are the baseball events of the year 1944 throughout the world.  

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.^[1]
• 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. Barrett gave up only two hits. He did not strikeout or walk any batters, and threw an average of only 2 pitches per batter. In 1944, 96 of the Reds games was completed in under two hours.
• 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 Series, four games to two. The Browns are the last of the original eight members of the American League to win the pennant. It would be their only World Series appearance before relocating to Baltimore ten years later. This only marked only the third time in World Series history in which both teams had the same home field, Sportsman's Park, with the other two being in 1921 and 1922 at the Polo Grounds. The Series was also known as the "Streetcar Series", or the "St. Louis Showdown."

• November 28 - Detroit Tigers pitcher Hal Newhouser, who posted a 29-9 record with 187 strikeouts and a 2.22 ERA, is named the American League Most Valuable Player, gathering four more votes than pitching teammate Dizzy Trout (27-14, 144, 2.12).

• December 2 - Japan, where baseball has been banned as an undesirable enemy influence, mourns the death of Eiji Sawamura. The Japanese pitcher, who is killed in action in the Pacific, became a national hero by striking out Babe Ruth in an exhibition game.

Births

January–March

• January 4 - Tito Fuentes
• January 4 - Charlie Manuel
• January 10 - Chuck Dobson
• January 11 - Jim McAndrew
• January 13 - Larry Jaster
• January 17 - Denny Doyle
• January 18 - Carl Morton
• February 1 - Paul Blair
• February 1 - Hal King
• February 3 - Celerino Sánchez
• February 11 - Ollie Brown
• February 13 - Sal Bando
• February 17 - Dick Bosman
• February 25 - Stump Merrill
• February 29 - Steve Mingori
• March 15 - Wayne Granger
• March 17 - Cito Gaston
• March 21 - Manny Sanguillén
• 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 12 - Terry Harmon
• April 16 - Bob Montgomery
• April 24 - Bill Singer
• April 25 - Drew Baur
• May 6 - Masanori Murakami
• May 14 - Jim Driscoll
• June 6 - Bud Harrelson
• June 7 - Roger Nelson
• June 8 - Mark Belanger
• June 11 - Frank Baker
• June 20 - Dave Nelson
• June 30 - Ron Swoboda

July–September

• July 9 - Sonny Jackson
• July 14 - Billy McCool
• July 18 - Rudy May
• July 22 - Sparky Lyle
• July 25 - Fred Scherman
• July 30 - Doug Rader
• August 4 - Rich Nye
• August 18 - Mike Ferraro
• August 20 - Graig Nettles
• August 30 - Tug McGraw
• September 7 - Barry Lersch
• September 11 - John McSherry
• September 11 - Dave Roberts
• September 20 - Ed Phillips
• September 27 - Gary Sutherland

October–December

• October 4 - Tony La Russa
• October 8 - Ed Kirkpatrick
• October 9 - Freddie Patek
• October 29 - Jim Bibby
• November 7 - Joe Niekro
• November 8 - Ed Kranepool
• November 17 - Tom Seaver
• December 6 - Tony Horton
• December 9 - Del Unser
• December 10 - Steve Renko
• December 15 - Stan Bahnsen
• December 15 - Jim Leyland
• 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
• June 28 - Dan Stearns, 82, first baseman for seven season from 1880 to 1885, and 1889.
• July 3 - Charlie Reynolds, 79, catcher for two teams in 1889, the Kansas City Cowboys and the Brooklyn Bridegrooms.
• 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.

References