1997 Season

28 teams competing across 6 divisions

The 1997 Major League Baseball season was played by 28 teams. The Florida Marlins won the World Series, defeating the Cleveland Indians. Mark McGwire led with 58 home runs, Ken Griffey led with 147 RBI, and Tony Gwynn led with 220 hits. This page carries the 1997 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

1997 Bracket
World Series FLO def. CLE (4-3)
AL Championship CLE def. BAL (4-2)
NL Championship FLO def. ATL (4-2)
AL Division Series CLE def. NYA (3-2)
AL Division Series BAL def. SEA (3-1)
NL Division Series FLO def. SFN (3-0)
NL Division Series ATL def. HOU (3-0)

📂 Quick Links

📊 Full Leaders 📋 Standings ⚾ Batting 🎯 Pitching

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⚾ Batting Leaders

1997 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 .372 2 Larry Walker .366 3 Mike Piazza .362 4 Frank Thomas .347 5 Kenny Lofton .333

OPS qualified

1 Larry Walker 1.172 2 Mike Piazza 1.070 3 Frank Thomas 1.067 4 Mark McGwire 1.039 5 Barry Bonds 1.031

Home Runs all players

1 Mark McGwire 58 2 Ken Griffey 56 3 Larry Walker 49 4 Tino Martinez 44 5 Jeff Bagwell 43

RBI all players

1 Ken Griffey 147 2 Tino Martinez 141 3 Andres Galarraga 140 4 Jeff Bagwell 135 5 Juan Gonzalez 131

Hits all players

1 Tony Gwynn 220 2 Nomar Garciaparra 209 3 Larry Walker 208 4 Mike Piazza 201 5 Rusty Greer 193

Runs all players

1 Craig Biggio 146 2 Larry Walker 143 3 Ken Griffey 125 4 Barry Bonds 123 5 Nomar Garciaparra 122

Stolen Bases all players

1 Brian Hunter 74 2 Chuck Knoblauch 62 3 Tony Womack 60 4 Otis Nixon 59 5 Deion Sanders 56
View Complete Batting Stats →

🎯 Pitching Leaders

1997 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 Pedro Martinez 1.90 2 Roger Clemens 2.05 3 Greg Maddux 2.20 4 Randy Johnson 2.28 5 Darryl Kile 2.57

WHIP qualified

1 Pedro Martinez 0.93 2 Greg Maddux 0.95 3 Roger Clemens 1.03 4 Rick Reed 1.04 5 Curt Schilling 1.05

Wins all pitchers

1 Roger Clemens 21 2 Randy Johnson 20 3 Denny Neagle 20 4 Brad Radke 20 5 Shawn Estes 19

Strikeouts all pitchers

1 Curt Schilling 319 2 Pedro Martinez 305 3 Roger Clemens 292 4 Randy Johnson 291 5 John Smoltz 241

Saves all pitchers

1 Randy Myers 45 2 Mariano Rivera 43 3 Jeff Shaw 42 4 Rod Beck 37 5 Trevor Hoffman 37
View Complete Pitching Stats →

📋 Standings

AL Central

Cleveland Indians ★ 86-75 Chicago White Sox 80-81 Milwaukee Brewers 78-83 Minnesota Twins 68-94 Kansas City Royals 67-94

AL East

Baltimore Orioles ★ 98-64 New York Yankees 96-66 Detroit Tigers 79-83 Boston Red Sox 78-84 Toronto Blue Jays 76-86

AL West

Seattle Mariners ★ 90-72 Anaheim Angels 84-78 Texas Rangers 77-85 Oakland Athletics 65-97

NL Central

Houston Astros ★ 84-78 Pittsburgh Pirates 79-83 Cincinnati Reds 76-86 St. Louis Cardinals 73-89 Chicago Cubs 68-94

NL East

Atlanta Braves ★ 101-61 Florida Marlins 92-70 New York Mets 88-74 Montreal Expos 78-84 Philadelphia Phillies 68-94

NL West

San Francisco Giants ★ 90-72 Los Angeles Dodgers 88-74 Colorado Rockies 83-79 San Diego Padres 76-86

The 1997 season in brief

The best record in the 1997 standings belonged to the Atlanta Braves, who finished 101-61. At the other end, the Oakland Athletics went 65-97. By season's end, the Baltimore Orioles (98-64) held off the New York Yankees (96-66) in the American League East, the Los Angeles Dodgers (88-74) chased the San Francisco Giants (90-72) to the end in the National League West, nobody in the National League Central came near the Houston Astros's 84-78, and the Cleveland Indians owned the American League Central with a 86-75 mark, the Chicago White Sox next at 80-81. The Florida Marlins won the World Series over the Cleveland Indians, 4 games to 3. The other series results were the Cleveland Indians over the Baltimore Orioles in the AL Championship Series (4-2), the Florida Marlins over the Atlanta Braves in the NL Championship Series (4-2), the Cleveland Indians over the New York Yankees in the AL Division Series (3-2), and the Baltimore Orioles over the Seattle Mariners in the AL Division Series (3-1). Mark McGwire led the majors with 58 home runs, ahead of Ken Griffey with 56. Tony Gwynn's .372 is the best average on the qualified board, with Larry Walker next at .366. Qualification for that 1997 board is 502 plate appearances at 162 team games. Every 1997 hitter and pitcher past the display floor is on the 1997 leaders page.

1997 MLB Season: Frequently Asked Questions

Who won the World Series in 1997?
The Florida Marlins won the 1997 World Series, beating the Cleveland Indians.
How many teams played in 1997?
28 teams played in the 1997 major league season.
Who led MLB in home runs in 1997?
Mark McGwire led with 58 home runs in 1997.
Who led MLB in RBI in 1997?
Ken Griffey led with 147 RBI in 1997.
Who led MLB in hits in 1997?
Tony Gwynn led with 220 hits in 1997.
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