1946 Season

28 teams competing in 2 leagues

The 1946 Major League Baseball season was played by 28 teams. The St. Louis Cardinals won the World Series, defeating the Boston Red Sox. Hank Greenberg led with 44 home runs, Enos Slaughter led with 130 RBI, and Stan Musial led with 228 hits. This page carries the 1946 standings, league leaders, postseason results, and a link to every team's season.

W (Wins):
Games credited to a pitcher whose team took a lead it never surrendered while he was the pitcher of record.
L (Losses):
Games charged to the pitcher of record when the opposing team took a lead it never surrendered.
Win% (Winning Percentage):
Wins divided by games decided.
GB (Games Back):
How far a team trailed the division or league leader.

Data updated

🏆 Postseason

1946 Bracket
World Series SLN def. BOS (4-3)
NWS NE def. KCM (4-3)

📂 Quick Links

📊 Full Leaders 📋 Standings ⚾ Batting 🎯 Pitching

⏳ Browse Seasons

1936 1941 1945 1946 1947 1951 1956

⚾ Batting Leaders

1946 Home Run Leaders

Top 10 — click a bar to view the player.

Batting average and OPS list qualified hitters only: 3.1 plate appearances per team game — 480 plate appearances at 155 team games. Home runs, RBI, hits, runs and stolen bases are counting totals and list every player.

Batting Average qualified

1 Stan Musial .365 2 Mickey Vernon .353 3 Ted Williams .342 4 Johnny Pesky .335 5 Johnny Hopp .333

OPS qualified

1 Ted Williams 1.164 2 Stan Musial 1.021 3 Hank Greenberg .977 4 Charlie Keller .938 5 Mickey Vernon .910

Home Runs all players

1 Hank Greenberg 44 2 Ted Williams 38 3 Charlie Keller 30 4 Pat Seerey 26 5 Joe DiMaggio 25

RBI all players

1 Enos Slaughter 130 2 Hank Greenberg 127 3 Ted Williams 123 4 Rudy York 119 5 Bobby Doerr 116

Hits all players

1 Stan Musial 228 2 Johnny Pesky 208 3 Mickey Vernon 207 4 Dixie Walker 184 5 Enos Slaughter 183

Runs all players

1 Ted Williams 142 2 Stan Musial 124 3 Johnny Pesky 115 4 Eddie Lake 105 5 Enos Slaughter 100

Stolen Bases all players

1 Pete Reiser 34 2 George Case 28 3 Bert Haas 22 4 Johnny Hopp 21 5 Lennie Pearson 18
View Complete Batting Stats →

🎯 Pitching Leaders

1946 Strikeout Leaders

Top 10 — click a bar to view the player.

ERA and WHIP list qualified pitchers only: 1 inning pitched per team game — 155 innings at 155 team games. Wins, strikeouts and saves are counting totals and list every pitcher.

ERA qualified

1 Hal Newhouser 1.94 2 Howie Pollet 2.10 3 Spud Chandler 2.10 4 Bob Feller 2.18 5 Johnny Sain 2.21

WHIP qualified

1 Hal Newhouser 1.07 2 Tex Hughson 1.09 3 Mort Cooper 1.11 4 Joe Beggs 1.13 5 Spud Chandler 1.13

Wins all pitchers

1 Bob Feller 26 2 Hal Newhouser 26 3 Dave Ferriss 25 4 Howie Pollet 21 5 Spud Chandler 20

Strikeouts all pitchers

1 Bob Feller 348 2 Hal Newhouser 275 3 Tex Hughson 172 4 Virgil Trucks 161 5 Dizzy Trout 151

Saves all pitchers

1 Bob Klinger 9 2 Earl Caldwell 8 3 Johnny Murphy 7 4 Tom Ferrick 6 5 Ken Raffensberger 6
View Complete Pitching Stats →

📋 Standings

NAL

Kansas City Monarchs ★ 48-17 Birmingham Black Barons 34-31 Cleveland Buckeyes 33-32 Cincinnati-Indianapolis Clowns 31-37 Memphis Red Sox 32-42 Chicago American Giants 30-49

NN2

Newark Eagles ★ 46-16 New York Cubans 28-21 Philadelphia Stars 27-28 Baltimore Elite Giants 27-29 Homestead Grays 26-30 New York Black Yankees 8-38

American League

Boston Red Sox ★ 104-50 Detroit Tigers 92-62 New York Yankees 87-67 Washington Senators 76-78 Chicago White Sox 74-80 Cleveland Indians 68-86 St. Louis Browns 66-88 Philadelphia Athletics 49-105

National League

St. Louis Cardinals ★ 98-58 Brooklyn Dodgers 96-60 Chicago Cubs 82-71 Boston Braves 81-72 Philadelphia Phillies 69-85 Cincinnati Reds 67-87 Pittsburgh Pirates 63-91 New York Giants 61-93

The 1946 season in brief

At 46-16, the Newark Eagles had the top winning percentage of the 1946 season. The New York Black Yankees finished at the bottom of the 1946 table at 8-38. By season's end, the St. Louis Cardinals (98-58) held off the Brooklyn Dodgers (96-60) in the National League, nobody in the Negro National League came near the Newark Eagles's 46-16, the Boston Red Sox won the American League going away, 104-50 against 92-62 for the Detroit Tigers, and the Birmingham Black Barons (34-31) finished a distant second to the Kansas City Monarchs (48-17) in the Negro American League. Alongside the American and National Leagues, the 1946 page carries standings for the Negro American League and Negro National League, whose seasons MLB now treats as major league. The St. Louis Cardinals won the World Series over the Boston Red Sox, 4 games to 3. The other series results were the Newark Eagles over the Kansas City Monarchs in the series the bracket labels NWS (4-3). On the home run tile, Hank Greenberg sat first with 44, ahead of Ted Williams with 38. Among qualified hitters, Stan Musial had the top batting average, .365, with Mickey Vernon next at .353. Stan Musial cleared the 480-plate-appearance line that 1946's 155 team games set. Among qualified pitchers, Hal Newhouser had the lowest ERA, 1.94; Howie Pollet followed at 2.10. For the complete tables behind these tiles, see the 1946 leaders page.

1946 MLB Season: Frequently Asked Questions

Who won the World Series in 1946?
The St. Louis Cardinals won the 1946 World Series, beating the Boston Red Sox.
How many teams played in 1946?
28 teams played in the 1946 major league season.
Who led MLB in home runs in 1946?
Hank Greenberg led with 44 home runs in 1946.
Who led MLB in RBI in 1946?
Enos Slaughter led with 130 RBI in 1946.
Who led MLB in hits in 1946?
Stan Musial led with 228 hits in 1946.
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