1949 Season

16 teams competing in 2 leagues

The 1949 Major League Baseball season was played by 16 teams. The New York Yankees won the World Series, defeating the Brooklyn Dodgers. Ralph Kiner led with 54 home runs, Vern Stephens and Ted Williams led with 159 RBI, and Stan Musial led with 207 hits. This page carries the 1949 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

1949 Bracket
World Series NYA def. BRO (4-1)

📂 Quick Links

📊 Full Leaders 📋 Standings ⚾ Batting 🎯 Pitching

⏳ Browse Seasons

1939 1944 1948 1949 1950 1954 1959

⚾ Batting Leaders

1949 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 George Kell .343 2 Ted Williams .343 3 Jackie Robinson .342 4 Stan Musial .338 5 Enos Slaughter .336

OPS qualified

1 Ted Williams 1.141 2 Ralph Kiner 1.089 3 Stan Musial 1.062 4 Jackie Robinson .960 5 Tommy Henrich .942

Home Runs all players

1 Ralph Kiner 54 2 Ted Williams 43 3 Vern Stephens 39 4 Stan Musial 36 5 Hank Sauer 31

RBI all players

1 Vern Stephens 159 2 Ted Williams 159 3 Vic Wertz 133 4 Ralph Kiner 127 5 Jackie Robinson 124

Hits all players

1 Stan Musial 207 2 Dale Mitchell 203 3 Jackie Robinson 203 4 Bobby Thomson 198 5 Ted Williams 194

Runs all players

1 Ted Williams 150 2 Pee Wee Reese 132 3 Eddie Joost 128 4 Stan Musial 128 5 Dom DiMaggio 126

Stolen Bases all players

1 Jackie Robinson 37 2 Pee Wee Reese 26 3 Bob Dillinger 20 4 Phil Rizzuto 18 5 Elmer Valo 14
View Complete Batting Stats →

🎯 Pitching Leaders

1949 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 Mike Garcia 2.36 2 Dave Koslo 2.50 3 Gerry Staley 2.73 4 Howie Pollet 2.77 5 Mel Parnell 2.77

WHIP qualified

1 Dave Koslo 1.11 2 Gerry Staley 1.14 3 Preacher Roe 1.15 4 Fred Hutchinson 1.16 5 Virgil Trucks 1.21

Wins all pitchers

1 Mel Parnell 25 2 Ellis Kinder 23 3 Bob Lemon 22 4 Vic Raschi 21 5 Warren Spahn 21

Strikeouts all pitchers

1 Virgil Trucks 153 2 Warren Spahn 151 3 Don Newcombe 149 4 Hal Newhouser 144 5 Ellis Kinder 138

Saves all pitchers

1 Joe Page 27 2 Al Benton 10 3 Ted Wilks 9 4 Jim Konstanty 7 5 Nels Potter 7
View Complete Pitching Stats →

📋 Standings

American League

New York Yankees ★ 97-57 Boston Red Sox 96-58 Cleveland Indians 89-65 Detroit Tigers 87-67 Philadelphia Athletics 81-73 Chicago White Sox 63-91 St. Louis Browns 53-101 Washington Senators 50-104

National League

Brooklyn Dodgers ★ 97-57 St. Louis Cardinals 96-58 Philadelphia Phillies 81-73 Boston Braves 75-79 New York Giants 73-81 Pittsburgh Pirates 71-83 Cincinnati Reds 62-92 Chicago Cubs 61-93

The 1949 season in brief

No 1949 club finished with a better record than the New York Yankees at 97-57. At the other end, the Washington Senators went 50-104. By season's end, the New York Yankees (97-57) edged the Boston Red Sox (96-58) in the American League and the National League went to the Brooklyn Dodgers by the narrowest of margins over the St. Louis Cardinals, 97-57 to 96-58. The 1949 title went to the New York Yankees, who defeated the Brooklyn Dodgers in the World Series, 4 games to 1. On the home run tile, Ralph Kiner sat first with 54, ahead of Ted Williams with 43. The qualified batting-average board starts with George Kell at .343, with Ted Williams next at .343. The board counts only hitters with 480 or more plate appearances, which is what 155 team games require. Among qualified pitchers, Mike Garcia had the lowest ERA, 2.36; Dave Koslo followed at 2.50. Elsewhere on the pitching side, the 1949 leaders were Mel Parnell in wins (25), Virgil Trucks in strikeouts (153), and Joe Page in saves (27). The stolen-base tile is headed by Jackie Robinson with 37. Full batting and pitching tables are on the 1949 leaders page.

1949 MLB Season: Frequently Asked Questions

Who won the World Series in 1949?
The New York Yankees won the 1949 World Series, beating the Brooklyn Dodgers.
How many teams played in 1949?
16 teams played in the 1949 major league season.
Who led MLB in home runs in 1949?
Ralph Kiner led with 54 home runs in 1949.
Who led MLB in RBI in 1949?
Vern Stephens and Ted Williams tied for the lead with 159 RBI in 1949.
Who led MLB in hits in 1949?
Stan Musial led with 207 hits in 1949.
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