1970 Season

24 teams competing across 6 divisions

The 1970 Major League Baseball season was played by 24 teams. The Baltimore Orioles won the World Series, defeating the Cincinnati Reds. Johnny Bench led with 45 home runs, Johnny Bench led with 148 RBI, and Pete Rose and Billy Williams led with 205 hits. This page carries the 1970 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

1970 Bracket
World Series BAL def. CIN (4-1)
AL Championship BAL def. MIN (3-0)
NL Championship CIN def. PIT (3-0)

📂 Quick Links

📊 Full Leaders 📋 Standings ⚾ Batting 🎯 Pitching

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1960 1965 1969 1970 1971 1975 1980

⚾ Batting Leaders

1970 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 — 502 plate appearances at 162 team games. Home runs, RBI, hits, runs and stolen bases are counting totals and list every player.

Batting Average qualified

1 Rico Carty .366 2 Alex Johnson .329 3 Carl Yastrzemski .329 4 Joe Torre .325 5 Manny Sanguillen .325

OPS qualified

1 Willie McCovey 1.056 2 Carl Yastrzemski 1.044 3 Rico Carty 1.037 4 Jim Hickman 1.001 5 Tony Perez .990

Home Runs all players

1 Johnny Bench 45 2 Frank Howard 44 3 Billy Williams 42 4 Harmon Killebrew 41 5 Tony Perez 40

RBI all players

1 Johnny Bench 148 2 Tony Perez 129 3 Billy Williams 129 4 Frank Howard 126 5 Willie McCovey 126

Hits all players

1 Pete Rose 205 2 Billy Williams 205 3 Tony Oliva 204 4 Joe Torre 203 5 Lou Brock 202

Runs all players

1 Billy Williams 137 2 Bobby Bonds 134 3 Carl Yastrzemski 125 4 Pete Rose 120 5 Cesar Tovar 120

Stolen Bases all players

1 Bobby Tolan 57 2 Lou Brock 51 3 Bobby Bonds 48 4 Bert Campaneris 42 5 Joe Morgan 42
View Complete Batting Stats →

🎯 Pitching Leaders

1970 Strikeout Leaders

Top 10 — click a bar to view the player.

ERA and WHIP list qualified pitchers only: 1 inning pitched per team game — 162 innings at 162 team games. Wins, strikeouts and saves are counting totals and list every pitcher.

ERA qualified

1 Diego Segui 2.56 2 Jim Palmer 2.71 3 Tom Seaver 2.82 4 Clyde Wright 2.83 5 Fritz Peterson 2.90

WHIP qualified

1 Fergie Jenkins 1.04 2 Tom Seaver 1.08 3 Fritz Peterson 1.10 4 Jim McAndrew 1.11 5 Jim Perry 1.13

Wins all pitchers

1 Mike Cuellar 24 2 Dave McNally 24 3 Jim Perry 24 4 Bob Gibson 23 5 Gaylord Perry 23

Strikeouts all pitchers

1 Sam McDowell 304 2 Tom Seaver 283 3 Bob Gibson 274 4 Fergie Jenkins 274 5 Mickey Lolich 230

Saves all pitchers

1 Wayne Granger 35 2 Ron Perranoski 34 3 Lindy McDaniel 29 4 Darold Knowles 27 5 Tom Timmermann 27
View Complete Pitching Stats →

📋 Standings

AL East

Baltimore Orioles ★ 108-54 New York Yankees 93-69 Boston Red Sox 87-75 Detroit Tigers 79-83 Cleveland Indians 76-86 Washington Senators 70-92

AL West

Minnesota Twins ★ 98-64 Oakland Athletics 89-73 California Angels 86-76 Kansas City Royals 65-97 Milwaukee Brewers 65-97 Chicago White Sox 56-106

NL East

Pittsburgh Pirates ★ 89-73 Chicago Cubs 84-78 New York Mets 83-79 St. Louis Cardinals 76-86 Philadelphia Phillies 73-88 Montreal Expos 73-89

NL West

Cincinnati Reds ★ 102-60 Los Angeles Dodgers 87-74 San Francisco Giants 86-76 Houston Astros 79-83 Atlanta Braves 76-86 San Diego Padres 63-99

The 1970 season in brief

1970 belonged, by record, to the Baltimore Orioles: 108-54. The weakest record belonged to the Chicago White Sox, 56-106. By season's end, nobody in the National League East came near the Pittsburgh Pirates's 89-73, the American League West was not close, the Minnesota Twins finishing 98-64 to the Oakland Athletics's 89-73, the Los Angeles Dodgers (87-74) finished a distant second to the Cincinnati Reds (102-60) in the National League West, and nobody in the American League East came near the Baltimore Orioles's 108-54. The Baltimore Orioles won the World Series over the Cincinnati Reds, 4 games to 1. The other series results were the Baltimore Orioles over the Minnesota Twins in the AL Championship Series (3-0) and the Cincinnati Reds over the Pittsburgh Pirates in the NL Championship Series (3-0). The home run board is topped by Johnny Bench at 45, ahead of Frank Howard with 44. The qualified batting-average board starts with Rico Carty at .366, with Alex Johnson next at .329. Qualification for that 1970 board is 502 plate appearances at 162 team games. Among qualified pitchers, Diego Segui had the lowest ERA, 2.56; Jim Palmer followed at 2.71. The other 1970 pitching tiles are led by Mike Cuellar in wins (24), Sam McDowell in strikeouts (304), and Wayne Granger in saves (35). Every 1970 hitter and pitcher past the display floor is on the 1970 leaders page.

1970 MLB Season: Frequently Asked Questions

Who won the World Series in 1970?
The Baltimore Orioles won the 1970 World Series, beating the Cincinnati Reds.
How many teams played in 1970?
24 teams played in the 1970 major league season.
Who led MLB in home runs in 1970?
Johnny Bench led with 45 home runs in 1970.
Who led MLB in RBI in 1970?
Johnny Bench led with 148 RBI in 1970.
Who led MLB in hits in 1970?
Pete Rose and Billy Williams tied for the lead with 205 hits in 1970.
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