1961 Season

18 teams competing in 2 leagues

The 1961 Major League Baseball season was played by 18 teams. The New York Yankees won the World Series, defeating the Cincinnati Reds. Roger Maris led with 61 home runs, Orlando Cepeda and Roger Maris led with 142 RBI, and Vada Pinson led with 208 hits. This page carries the 1961 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

1961 Bracket
World Series NYA def. CIN (4-1)

📂 Quick Links

📊 Full Leaders 📋 Standings ⚾ Batting 🎯 Pitching

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⚾ Batting Leaders

1961 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 — 489 plate appearances at 158 team games. Home runs, RBI, hits, runs and stolen bases are counting totals and list every player.

Batting Average qualified

1 Norm Cash .361 2 Roberto Clemente .351 3 Vada Pinson .343 4 Ken Boyer .329 5 Wally Moon .328

OPS qualified

1 Norm Cash 1.148 2 Mickey Mantle 1.135 3 Jim Gentile 1.069 4 Frank Robinson 1.015 5 Harmon Killebrew 1.012

Home Runs all players

1 Roger Maris 61 2 Mickey Mantle 54 3 Orlando Cepeda 46 4 Jim Gentile 46 5 Harmon Killebrew 46

RBI all players

1 Orlando Cepeda 142 2 Roger Maris 142 3 Jim Gentile 141 4 Rocky Colavito 140 5 Norm Cash 132

Hits all players

1 Vada Pinson 208 2 Roberto Clemente 201 3 Hank Aaron 197 4 Ken Boyer 194 5 Norm Cash 193

Runs all players

1 Mickey Mantle 132 2 Roger Maris 132 3 Rocky Colavito 129 4 Willie Mays 129 5 Norm Cash 119

Stolen Bases all players

1 Luis Aparicio 53 2 Dick Howser 37 3 Maury Wills 35 4 Jake Wood 30 5 Vada Pinson 23
View Complete Batting Stats →

🎯 Pitching Leaders

1961 Strikeout Leaders

Top 10 — click a bar to view the player.

ERA and WHIP list qualified pitchers only: 1 inning pitched per team game — 158 innings at 158 team games. Wins, strikeouts and saves are counting totals and list every pitcher.

ERA qualified

1 Dick Donovan 2.40 2 Bill Stafford 2.68 3 Don Mossi 2.96 4 Warren Spahn 3.02 5 Milt Pappas 3.04

WHIP qualified

1 Dick Donovan 1.03 2 Ralph Terry 1.08 3 Hal Brown 1.12 4 Jim Bunning 1.13 5 Warren Spahn 1.14

Wins all pitchers

1 Whitey Ford 25 2 Frank Lary 23 3 Joey Jay 21 4 Warren Spahn 21 5 Jim O'Toole 19

Strikeouts all pitchers

1 Sandy Koufax 269 2 Camilo Pascual 221 3 Whitey Ford 209 4 Stan Williams 205 5 Jim Bunning 194

Saves all pitchers

1 Luis Arroyo 29 2 Hoyt Wilhelm 18 3 Roy Face 17 4 Stu Miller 17 5 Jim Brosnan 16
View Complete Pitching Stats →

📋 Standings

American League

New York Yankees ★ 109-53 Detroit Tigers 101-61 Baltimore Orioles 95-67 Chicago White Sox 86-76 Cleveland Indians 78-83 Boston Red Sox 76-86 Minnesota Twins 70-90 Los Angeles Angels 70-91 Kansas City Athletics 61-100 Washington Senators 61-100

National League

Cincinnati Reds ★ 93-61 Los Angeles Dodgers 89-65 San Francisco Giants 85-69 Milwaukee Braves 83-71 St. Louis Cardinals 80-74 Pittsburgh Pirates 75-79 Chicago Cubs 64-90 Philadelphia Phillies 47-107

The 1961 season in brief

No 1961 club finished with a better record than the New York Yankees at 109-53. 47-107 left the Philadelphia Phillies with the lowest winning percentage of 1961. By season's end, the Cincinnati Reds topped the National League at 93-61, a few games clear of the Los Angeles Dodgers and the American League was not close, the New York Yankees finishing 109-53 to the Detroit Tigers's 101-61. The New York Yankees won the World Series over the Cincinnati Reds, 4 games to 1. Roger Maris led the majors with 61 home runs, ahead of Mickey Mantle with 54. Among qualified hitters, Norm Cash had the top batting average, .361, with Roberto Clemente next at .351. In 1961 the qualifying line sat at 489 plate appearances, from a 158-game club schedule. Among qualified pitchers, Dick Donovan had the lowest ERA, 2.40; Bill Stafford followed at 2.68. Elsewhere on the pitching side, the 1961 leaders were Whitey Ford in wins (25), Sandy Koufax in strikeouts (269), and Luis Arroyo in saves (29). Luis Aparicio had the most stolen bases, 53. The 1961 leaders page lists every qualified line, and each club links to its own 1961 page.

1961 MLB Season: Frequently Asked Questions

Who won the World Series in 1961?
The New York Yankees won the 1961 World Series, beating the Cincinnati Reds.
How many teams played in 1961?
18 teams played in the 1961 major league season.
Who led MLB in home runs in 1961?
Roger Maris led with 61 home runs in 1961.
Who led MLB in RBI in 1961?
Orlando Cepeda and Roger Maris tied for the lead with 142 RBI in 1961.
Who led MLB in hits in 1961?
Vada Pinson led with 208 hits in 1961.
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