1987 Season

26 teams competing across 6 divisions

The 1987 Major League Baseball season was played by 26 teams. The Minnesota Twins won the World Series, defeating the St. Louis Cardinals. Andre Dawson and Mark McGwire led with 49 home runs, Andre Dawson led with 137 RBI, and Tony Gwynn led with 218 hits. This page carries the 1987 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

1987 Bracket
World Series MIN def. SLN (4-3)
AL Championship MIN def. DET (4-1)
NL Championship SLN def. SFN (4-3)

📂 Quick Links

📊 Full Leaders 📋 Standings ⚾ Batting 🎯 Pitching

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⚾ Batting Leaders

1987 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 Tony Gwynn .370 2 Wade Boggs .363 3 Paul Molitor .353 4 Alan Trammell .343 5 Pedro Guerrero .338

OPS qualified

1 Jack Clark 1.055 2 Wade Boggs 1.049 3 Paul Molitor 1.003 4 Dale Murphy .997 5 Eric Davis .991

Home Runs all players

1 Andre Dawson 49 2 Mark McGwire 49 3 George Bell 47 4 Dale Murphy 44 5 Darryl Strawberry 39

RBI all players

1 Andre Dawson 137 2 George Bell 134 3 Dwight Evans 123 4 Tim Wallach 123 5 Mark McGwire 118

Hits all players

1 Tony Gwynn 218 2 Kirby Puckett 207 3 Kevin Seitzer 207 4 Alan Trammell 205 5 Wade Boggs 200

Runs all players

1 Tim Raines 123 2 Vince Coleman 121 3 Eric Davis 120 4 Tony Gwynn 119 5 Dale Murphy 115

Stolen Bases all players

1 Vince Coleman 109 2 Harold Reynolds 60 3 Willie Wilson 59 4 Tony Gwynn 56 5 Billy Hatcher 53
View Complete Batting Stats →

🎯 Pitching Leaders

1987 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 Jimmy Key 2.76 2 Nolan Ryan 2.76 3 Frank Viola 2.90 4 Roger Clemens 2.97 5 Doyle Alexander 3.01

WHIP qualified

1 Jimmy Key 1.06 2 Rick Reuschel 1.10 3 Doyle Alexander 1.12 4 Mike Scott 1.12 5 Nolan Ryan 1.14

Wins all pitchers

1 Roger Clemens 20 2 Dave Stewart 20 3 Mark Langston 19 4 Teddy Higuera 18 5 Charlie Hough 18

Strikeouts all pitchers

1 Nolan Ryan 270 2 Mark Langston 262 3 Roger Clemens 256 4 Teddy Higuera 240 5 Mike Scott 233

Saves all pitchers

1 Steve Bedrosian 40 2 Lee Smith 36 3 Tom Henke 34 4 Todd Worrell 33 5 John Franco 32
View Complete Pitching Stats →

📋 Standings

AL East

Detroit Tigers ★ 98-64 Toronto Blue Jays 96-66 Milwaukee Brewers 91-71 New York Yankees 89-73 Boston Red Sox 78-84 Baltimore Orioles 67-95 Cleveland Indians 61-101

AL West

Minnesota Twins ★ 85-77 Kansas City Royals 83-79 Oakland Athletics 81-81 Seattle Mariners 78-84 Chicago White Sox 77-85 California Angels 75-87 Texas Rangers 75-87

NL East

St. Louis Cardinals ★ 95-67 New York Mets 92-70 Montreal Expos 91-71 Philadelphia Phillies 80-82 Pittsburgh Pirates 80-82 Chicago Cubs 76-85

NL West

San Francisco Giants ★ 90-72 Cincinnati Reds 84-78 Houston Astros 76-86 Los Angeles Dodgers 73-89 Atlanta Braves 69-92 San Diego Padres 65-97

The 1987 season in brief

No 1987 club finished with a better record than the Detroit Tigers at 98-64. At the other end, the Cleveland Indians went 61-101. Race by race in 1987, the Detroit Tigers (98-64) held off the Toronto Blue Jays (96-66) in the American League East, the Minnesota Twins (85-77) held off the Kansas City Royals (83-79) in the American League West, National League East honors went to the St. Louis Cardinals, whose 95-67 beat the New York Mets's 92-70, and the Cincinnati Reds (84-78) finished a distant second to the San Francisco Giants (90-72) in the National League West. The 1987 title went to the Minnesota Twins, who defeated the St. Louis Cardinals in the World Series, 4 games to 3. The other series results were the Minnesota Twins over the Detroit Tigers in the AL Championship Series (4-1) and the St. Louis Cardinals over the San Francisco Giants in the NL Championship Series (4-3). Andre Dawson and Mark McGwire shared the home run lead at 49. Tony Gwynn's .370 is the best average on the qualified board, with Wade Boggs next at .363. That 1987 rate board needs 502 plate appearances (162 team games times the per-game rule). The ERA board, limited to qualified pitchers, starts with Jimmy Key at 2.76; Nolan Ryan followed at 2.76. Beyond the top five in each tile, the 1987 leaders page ranks the whole 1987 field.

1987 MLB Season: Frequently Asked Questions

Who won the World Series in 1987?
The Minnesota Twins won the 1987 World Series, beating the St. Louis Cardinals.
How many teams played in 1987?
26 teams played in the 1987 major league season.
Who led MLB in home runs in 1987?
Andre Dawson and Mark McGwire tied for the lead with 49 home runs in 1987.
Who led MLB in RBI in 1987?
Andre Dawson led with 137 RBI in 1987.
Who led MLB in hits in 1987?
Tony Gwynn led with 218 hits in 1987.
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