1981 Season

26 teams competing across 6 divisions

The 1981 Major League Baseball season was played by 26 teams. The Los Angeles Dodgers won the World Series, defeating the New York Yankees. Mike Schmidt led with 31 home runs, Mike Schmidt led with 91 RBI, and Pete Rose led with 140 hits. This page carries the 1981 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

1981 Bracket
World Series LAN def. NYA (4-2)
AL Championship NYA def. OAK (3-0)
NL Championship LAN def. MON (3-2)
AEDIV NYA def. ML4 (3-2)
AWDIV OAK def. KCA (3-0)
NEDIV MON def. PHI (3-2)
NWDIV LAN def. HOU (3-2)

📂 Quick Links

📊 Full Leaders 📋 Standings ⚾ Batting 🎯 Pitching

⏳ Browse Seasons

1971 1976 1980 1981 1982 1986 1991

⚾ Batting Leaders

1981 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 — 334 plate appearances at 108 team games. Home runs, RBI, hits, runs and stolen bases are counting totals and list every player.

Batting Average qualified

1 Carney Lansford .336 2 Tom Paciorek .326 3 Pete Rose .325 4 Dusty Baker .320 5 Cecil Cooper .320

OPS qualified

1 Mike Schmidt 1.080 2 Dwight Evans .937 3 Bobby Grich .921 4 Andre Dawson .918 5 Eddie Murray .895

Home Runs all players

1 Mike Schmidt 31 2 Andre Dawson 24 3 Tony Armas 22 4 Dwight Evans 22 5 George Foster 22

RBI all players

1 Mike Schmidt 91 2 George Foster 90 3 Eddie Murray 78 4 Tony Armas 76 5 Bill Buckner 75

Hits all players

1 Pete Rose 140 2 Rickey Henderson 135 3 Carney Lansford 134 4 Cecil Cooper 133 5 Willie Wilson 133

Runs all players

1 Rickey Henderson 89 2 Dwight Evans 84 3 Mike Schmidt 78 4 Pete Rose 73 5 Andre Dawson 71

Stolen Bases all players

1 Tim Raines 71 2 Rickey Henderson 56 3 Julio Cruz 43 4 Omar Moreno 39 5 Ron LeFlore 36
View Complete Batting Stats →

🎯 Pitching Leaders

1981 Strikeout Leaders

Top 10 — click a bar to view the player.

ERA and WHIP list qualified pitchers only: 1 inning pitched per team game — 108 innings at 108 team games. Wins, strikeouts and saves are counting totals and list every pitcher.

ERA qualified

1 Nolan Ryan 1.69 2 Bob Knepper 2.18 3 Burt Hooton 2.28 4 Jerry Reuss 2.30 5 Sammy Stewart 2.32

WHIP qualified

1 Ron Guidry 0.99 2 Larry Gura 1.01 3 Don Sutton 1.01 4 Fernando Valenzuela 1.05 5 Bob Knepper 1.06

Wins all pitchers

1 Dennis Martinez 14 2 Steve McCatty 14 3 Jack Morris 14 4 Tom Seaver 14 5 Pete Vuckovich 14

Strikeouts all pitchers

1 Fernando Valenzuela 180 2 Steve Carlton 179 3 Mario Soto 151 4 Nolan Ryan 140 5 Len Barker 127

Saves all pitchers

1 Rollie Fingers 28 2 Bruce Sutter 25 3 Greg Minton 21 4 Rich Gossage 20 5 Neil Allen 18
View Complete Pitching Stats →

📋 Standings

AL East

Milwaukee Brewers ★ 62-47 Baltimore Orioles 59-46 Detroit Tigers 60-49 New York Yankees 59-48 Boston Red Sox 59-49 Cleveland Indians 52-51 Toronto Blue Jays 37-69

AL West

Oakland Athletics ★ 64-45 Texas Rangers 57-48 Chicago White Sox 54-52 Kansas City Royals 50-53 California Angels 51-59 Seattle Mariners 44-65 Minnesota Twins 41-68

NL East

St. Louis Cardinals ★ 59-43 Montreal Expos 60-48 Philadelphia Phillies 59-48 Pittsburgh Pirates 46-56 New York Mets 41-62 Chicago Cubs 38-65

NL West

Cincinnati Reds ★ 66-42 Los Angeles Dodgers 63-47 Houston Astros 61-49 San Francisco Giants 56-55 Atlanta Braves 50-56 San Diego Padres 41-69

The 1981 season in brief

Of every club in the 1981 standings, the Cincinnati Reds won most often, going 66-42. At the other end, the Toronto Blue Jays went 37-69. Across the races, the American League East went to the Milwaukee Brewers by the narrowest of margins over the Baltimore Orioles, 62-47 to 59-46, National League East honors went to the St. Louis Cardinals, whose 59-43 beat the Montreal Expos's 60-48, the Los Angeles Dodgers (63-47) chased the Cincinnati Reds (66-42) to the end in the National League West, and nobody in the American League West came near the Oakland Athletics's 64-45. The 1981 title went to the Los Angeles Dodgers, who defeated the New York Yankees in the World Series, 4 games to 2. Before that, the bracket shows the New York Yankees over the Oakland Athletics in the AL Championship Series (3-0), the Los Angeles Dodgers over the Montreal Expos in the NL Championship Series (3-2), the New York Yankees over the Milwaukee Brewers in the AL East playoff (3-2), and the Oakland Athletics over the Kansas City Royals in the AL West playoff (3-0). Mike Schmidt led the majors with 31 home runs, ahead of Andre Dawson with 24. The qualified batting-average board starts with Carney Lansford at .336, with Tom Paciorek next at .326. Every 1981 hitter and pitcher past the display floor is on the 1981 leaders page.

1981 MLB Season: Frequently Asked Questions

Who won the World Series in 1981?
The Los Angeles Dodgers won the 1981 World Series, beating the New York Yankees.
How many teams played in 1981?
26 teams played in the 1981 major league season.
Who led MLB in home runs in 1981?
Mike Schmidt led with 31 home runs in 1981.
Who led MLB in RBI in 1981?
Mike Schmidt led with 91 RBI in 1981.
Who led MLB in hits in 1981?
Pete Rose led with 140 hits in 1981.
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