1918 Major League Baseball season

The 1918 Major League Baseball season featured a reduced schedule due to American participation in World War I.[1] The American League and National League champions, the Boston Red Sox and Chicago Cubs, respectively, met in the World Series, which was won by Boston in six games.

This article is about the 1918 Major League Baseball season only. For information on all of baseball, see 1918 in baseball.
1918 MLB season
LeagueMajor League Baseball
SportBaseball
DurationApril 15 – September 11, 1918
Number of games154 (scheduled)
123–131 (actual)
Number of teams16
Pennant Winners
AL championsBoston Red Sox
  AL runners-upCleveland Indians
NL championsChicago Cubs
  NL runners-upNew York Giants
World Series
ChampionsBoston Red Sox
  Runners-upChicago Cubs

Shortened season

With World War I ongoing, a "work or fight" mandate was issued by the government, requiring men with non-essential jobs to enlist or take war-related jobs by July 1, or else risk being drafted.[2] Secretary of War Newton D. Baker granted an extension to MLB players through Labor Day, September 2.[3] In early August, MLB clubs decided that the regular season would end at that time.[4] As a result, the number of regular-season games that each team played varied—123 to 130 for AL teams and 124 to 131 for NL teams, including ties[5]—reduced from their original 154-game schedules. Later in August, Baker granted a further extension to allow for the World Series to be contested;[3] it began on September 5 and ended on September 11.[6] World War I would end two months later, with the Armistice of 11 November 1918.

Statistical leaders
 American LeagueNational League
TypeNameStatNameStat
AVGTy Cobb DET.382Zack Wheat BKN.335
HRBabe Ruth BSR
Tillie Walker PHA		11Gavvy Cravath PHP8
RBIBobby Veach DET78Sherry Magee CIN76
WinsWalter Johnson WSH23Claude Hendrix CHC20
ERAWalter Johnson WSH1.27Hippo Vaughn CHC1.74
SOWalter Johnson WSH162Hippo Vaughn CHC148
SVGeorge Mogridge NYY7Joe Oeschger PHP
Wilbur Cooper PIT
Fred Anderson NYG
Fred Toney CIN/NYG		3
SBGeorge Sisler SLB45Max Carey PIT58

Standings

Postseason

Bracket

World Series
   
AL Boston Red Sox 4
NL Chicago Cubs 2

Managers

American League
Team Manager Comments
Boston Red Sox Ed Barrow Won 5th World Series
Chicago White Sox Pants Rowland
Cleveland Indians Lee Fohl Finished 2nd
Detroit Tigers Hughie Jennings
New York Yankees Miller Huggins
Philadelphia Athletics Connie Mack
St. Louis Browns Fielder Jones, Jimmy Austin, and Jimmy Burke
Washington Senators Clark Griffith Finished 3rd

National League
Team Manager Comments
Boston Braves George Stallings
Brooklyn Robins Wilbert Robinson
Chicago Cubs Fred Mitchell Won 5th NL pennant
Cincinnati Reds Christy Mathewson Finished 3rd
New York Giants John McGraw Finished 2nd
Philadelphia Phillies Pat Moran
Pittsburgh Pirates Hugo Bezdek
St. Louis Cardinals Jack Hendricks

Notable events
  • September 2 – In the last game of the season, against the Chicago White Sox, Detroit Tigers centerfielder Ty Cobb fields at third base and also pitches, yielding three hits and one run in two innings.[7]

References
  1. "1918 All Work or Fight and No Play," This Great Game: The Online Book of Baseball. Retrieved June 8, 2020.
  2. Baker, Kendall; Tracy, Jeff (April 6, 2020). "Special report: War, fever and baseball in 1918". axios.com. Retrieved October 8, 2020.
  3. Verducci, Tom (June 22, 2020). "Love, Loss and Baseball: Letters From the Hub, Chapters VI - IX". SI.com. Retrieved October 8, 2020.
  4. "Cutting Down Baseball Season Favors Present Club Leaders for Final Honors". Star-Gazette. Elmira, New York. August 5, 1918. p. 8. Retrieved October 8, 2020 – via newspapers.com.
  5. "The 1918 Season". Retrosheet. Retrieved October 8, 2020.
  6. "The 1918 Post-Season Games". Retrosheet. Retrieved October 8, 2020.
  7. Paschal, John (January 29, 2019). "Once Upon A Time: When Hall of Famers Go One-And-Done". tht.fangraphs.com. Retrieved April 2, 2019.


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