1945 In Baseball

Champions

Major League Baseball

*World Series: Detroit Tigers over Chicago Cubs (4-3)
*All-Star Game cancelled due to flight restrictions. However, inter-league games were played during the All-Star break.

Other champions

*Amateur World Series: Venezuela
*Negro League World Series: Cleveland Buckeyes over Homestead Grays (4-0)
* Negro League Baseball All-Star Game: West, 9-6
*All-American Girls Professional Baseball League: Rockford Peaches

Awards and honors

*Baseball Hall of Fame
**Roger Bresnahan
**Dan Brouthers
** Fred Clarke
**Jimmy Collins
**Ed Delahanty
**Hugh Duffy
**Hughie Jennings
**King Kelly
** Jim O'Rourke
**Wilbert Robinson
*Most Valuable Player
**Hal Newhouser (AL) – P, Detroit Tigers
**Phil Cavarretta (NL) – 1B, Chicago Cubs
*The Sporting News Player of the Year Award
**Hal Newhouser – P, Detroit Tigers
*The Sporting News Most Valuable Player Award
**Eddie Mayo (AL) – 2B, Detroit Tigers
**Tommy Holmes (NL) – OF, Boston Braves
*The Sporting News Pitcher of the Year Award
**Hal Newhouser (AL) – Detroit Tigers
**Hank Borowy (NL) – Chicago Cubs
*The Sporting News Manager of the Year Award
**Ossie Bluege – Washington Senators

MLB statistical leaders

Major league baseball final standings

American League final standings

National League final standings

Negro league baseball final standings

Negro American League final standings

Negro National League final standings

Events

January–July

*January 25 - Dan Topping, along with Del Webb and Larry MacPhail purchase a majority control of ownership of the New York Yankees from the estate of Col. Ruppert for $2.8 million. The trio would later purchase the remaining 3.12% in March 1945, with Webb and Topping buying out MacPhail after a few years.
*March 6 - Harry O'Neill, who appeared in one game for the Philadelphia A's in 1939, is killed in the battle for Iwo Jima.
*April 7 - Pitcher Terris McDuffie and infielder Dave Thomas partake in a special tryout for the Brooklyn Dodgers. What made the tryout unique was that both players were black.
*April 17 – Amputee Pete Gray makes his major league debut with the St. Louis Browns.
*April 24 - Happy Chandler is selected by the owners to replace Kenesaw Mountain Landis as commissioner of baseball. Landis died after being elected to a new seven-year term. Chandler agrees to fulfil his term in the U.S. Senate, which overlapped his first six months in office.
*May 3 - The New York Yankees released outfielder Paul Waner after just one game. Waner had come out of retirement the previous season due to a shortage of players because of World War II.
*May 17 – For the fourth time in four days, every American League game was postponed due to rain.
*May 21 - The Brooklyn Dodgers released Leo Durocher.
*May 25 - In the Boston Red Sox 5–0 home loss to the St. Louis Browns, outfielder Leon Culberson of the Red Sox makes an unassisted double play. Culberson raced from center field to catch a short fly ball. He then ran to second and stepped on the bag and doubled up Vern Stephens of the Browns.
*July 1 - Hank Greenberg makes his return to the major leagues. Greenberg had been one of the first players to register for the peacetime draft. In his return after forty-seven months away from the majors, Greenberg hits a home run, helping the Detroit Tigers beat the Philadelphia A's 9–5.
*July 3 - Stan Hack, Phil Cavarretta and Don Johnson of the Chicago Cubs each scored five runs apiece, trying a major league record. The Cubs went on to defeat the Boston Braves 24–2.
*July 4 - Augie Bergamo of the St. Louis Cardinals gets eight heads in a double header versus the New York Giants. In the second game alone, Bergamo in the second game got five of his eight hits. In the second game he hit three singles, a two run home run, and a grand slam. In all, Bergamo totaled 11 bases on the day as the Cardinals swept the Giants.
*July 5 - Whitey Lockman hits a home run in his first major league at bat. In the game matching the Giants versus the Cardinals, Lockman hits his home run off Cardinals pitcher George Dockins, but the Giants end up losing 7–5.
*July 6 - Tommy Holmes of the Boston Braves passes Rogers Hornsby in hitting in his 34th consecutive game. Hornsby's record had stood since 1922. Holmes record would stand until 1978 when it is broken by Pete Rose of the Cincinnati Reds. Holmes streak would end six days later.
*July 21 – The Detroit Tigers and Philadelphia A's battle for 24 innings, ending the game tied at one. Tigers starter Les Mueller pitches 19.2 innings, while his A's counterpart, Russ Christopher, lasts thirteen.

August–September

*August 1 – Mel Ott hits the 500th home run of his major league career.
*August 4
**World War II amputee Bert Shepard pitches in a game for the Washington Senators.
** Tom McBride of the Boston Red Sox ties a major league record with 6 RBI in the 4th inning of a game with the Washington Senators.
**Senators pitcher Joe Cleary becomes the last native of Ireland as of today to appear in a major league game.
**Bill Salkeld, a catcher for the Pittsburgh Pirates, hits for the cycle and drives in all of Pittsburgh's runs in their 6–5 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals.
*August 19 - In his final major league season, outfielder Jimmie Foxx makes his debut as a pitcher. He pitches seven innings, giving up just four hits as the Phillies defeated the Cincinnati Reds 4–2.
*August 28 - Seventeen year old Tommy Brown of the Brooklyn Dodgers hits a triple off Rene Monteagudo of the Philadelphia Phillies. Brown then takes advantage of Monteagudo's wide-up to steal home. Brown became the youngest player in major league history to steal home plate. The Dodgers defeated the Phillies 7–1.
*September 1- Vince DiMaggio of Philadelphia ties a major league mark with his fourth grand slam of the season. The Phillies defeated the Braves 8–3.
*September 8 - In a contest between the Washington Senators and St. Louis Browns, Harry Truman, sworn in back in April after the death of FDR, becomes the first left hander and oldest president to ever throw out a ceremonial pitch. Washington defeated St. Louis 4–1.
*September 9 – Cleveland Indians first baseman Mickey Rocco leads the way to a doubleheader sweep of the New York Yankees with two home runs, two doubles, and two singles. A crowd of 72,252 is on hand at Yankee Stadium to see their team lose 10-3 and 4–3.
*September 9 – In the second game of a doubleheader, Dick Fowler pitches a no-hitter as the Philadelphia Athletics defeat the St. Louis Browns, 1–0.
*September 13 - The Cincinnati Reds defeat the New York Giants 3–2. There were only 281 fans in attendance, making it the smallest crowd to see a game at Crosley Field.
*September 29 – Chicago Cubs catcher Paul Gillespie homers in his final major league at bat. In 1942 he homered in his first major league at bat. He was the first player in MLB history to do both. John Miller was the second, in 1966 and 1969.

October–December

*October 6 - Attempting to promote his pub, the Billy Goat Tavern, William Sanis purchases a ticket to game 4 of the world series. He attempts to bring his Billy Goat, Murphy, into the stadium but is turned away by the ushers. Sanis is so angered that vows to place a curse on the team, ensuring they'd never win another World Series. This became part of Cubs fork lore, known as the curse of the Billy Goat.
*October 10 – The Detroit Tigers defeat the Chicago Cubs, 9–3, in Game 7 of the World Series to win their second World Series, four games to three. Chicago's next trip to the World Series occurred on 22 October 2016.
*October 23 – Jackie Robinson is signed by the Dodgers; he is later assigned to the Montreal Royals for the 1946 season.
*December 14 - The Cleveland Indians traded outfielder Jeff Heath, who'd led the team in home runs, to the Washington Senators for George Case.

Date unknown

*The Mexican Winter League is born with the name ''Liga Invernal de Sonora''

Births

January

*January 3 – Larry Barnett
*January 7 – Tony Conigliaro
*January 8 – Jesús Hernáiz
*January 12 – Paul Gilliford
*January 12 – Bob Reed
*January 18 – Tom Harrison
*January 18 – Rich Severson
*January 20 – Dave Boswell
*January 22 – Jophery Brown
*January 25 – Wally Bunker
*January 29 – Dick Mills

February

*February 9 – Jim Nash
*February 11 – John Paciorek
*February 12 – Don Wilson
*February 14 – Bob Terlecki
*February 15 – Ross Moschitto
*February 21 – Tom Shopay
*February 24 – Gary Moore
*February 26 – Steve Hertz

March

*March 1 – Jim Panther
*March 5 – Dave Bakenhaster
*March 11 – Dock Ellis
*March 12 – Don O'Riley
*March 12 – Horacio Piña
*March 25 – Jim Ellis
*March 30 – Dick Woodson

April

*April 2 – Mike Kekich
*April 2 – Reggie Smith
*April 2 – Don Sutton
*April 4 – Nick Bremigan
*April 9 – Jerry Hinsley
*April 11 – Mike Kilkenny
*April 15 – Ted Sizemore
*April 17 – Dennis Paepke
*April 18 – Mike Paul
*April 19 – Tommy Gramly
*April 23 – Jorge Rubio
*April 30 – Ray Miller

May

*May 3 – Davey Lopes
*May 4 – Rene Lachemann
*May 5 – Jimmy Rosario
*May 25 – Bill Dillman
*May 26 – Al Yates
*May 29 – Clyde Mashore
*May 29 – Blue Moon Odom

June

*June 5 – Chip Coulter
*June 6 – Larry Howard
*June 7 – George Mitterwald
*June 12 – Gary Jones
*June 20 – Ray Newman
*June 25 – Dick Drago
*June 30 – Jerry Kenney
*June 30 – Otis Thornton

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