2008 Season

30 teams competing across 6 divisions

The 2008 Major League Baseball season was played by 30 teams. The Philadelphia Phillies won the World Series, defeating the Tampa Bay Rays. Ryan Howard led with 48 home runs, Ryan Howard led with 146 RBI, and Dustin Pedroia and Ichiro Suzuki led with 213 hits. This page carries the 2008 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

2008 Bracket
World Series PHI def. TBA (4-1)
AL Championship TBA def. BOS (4-3)
NL Championship PHI def. LAN (4-1)
AL Division Series BOS def. LAA (3-1)
AL Division Series TBA def. CHA (3-1)
NL Division Series LAN def. CHN (3-0)
NL Division Series PHI def. MIL (3-1)

📂 Quick Links

📊 Full Leaders 📋 Standings ⚾ Batting 🎯 Pitching

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⚾ Batting Leaders

2008 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 Chipper Jones .364 2 Albert Pujols .357 3 Manny Ramirez .332 4 Joe Mauer .328 5 Dustin Pedroia .326

OPS qualified

1 Albert Pujols 1.114 2 Chipper Jones 1.044 3 Manny Ramirez 1.031 4 Milton Bradley .999 5 Lance Berkman .986

Home Runs all players

1 Ryan Howard 48 2 Adam Dunn 40 3 Carlos Delgado 38 4 Ryan Braun 37 5 Miguel Cabrera 37

RBI all players

1 Ryan Howard 146 2 Josh Hamilton 130 3 Justin Morneau 129 4 Miguel Cabrera 127 5 David Wright 124

Hits all players

1 Dustin Pedroia 213 2 Ichiro Suzuki 213 3 Jose Reyes 204 4 Jose Lopez 191 5 Josh Hamilton 190

Runs all players

1 Hanley Ramirez 125 2 Dustin Pedroia 118 3 Carlos Beltran 116 4 David Wright 115 5 Lance Berkman 114

Stolen Bases all players

1 Willy Taveras 68 2 Jose Reyes 56 3 Jacoby Ellsbury 50 4 Jimmy Rollins 47 5 B. J. Upton 44
View Complete Batting Stats →

🎯 Pitching Leaders

2008 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 Johan Santana 2.53 2 Cliff Lee 2.54 3 Tim Lincecum 2.62 4 CC Sabathia 2.70 5 Roy Halladay 2.78

WHIP qualified

1 Roy Halladay 1.05 2 Cole Hamels 1.08 3 Ricky Nolasco 1.10 4 Cliff Lee 1.11 5 CC Sabathia 1.11

Wins all pitchers

1 Cliff Lee 22 2 Brandon Webb 22 3 Roy Halladay 20 4 Mike Mussina 20 5 A. J. Burnett 18

Strikeouts all pitchers

1 Tim Lincecum 265 2 CC Sabathia 251 3 A. J. Burnett 231 4 Ervin Santana 214 5 Roy Halladay 206

Saves all pitchers

1 Francisco Rodriguez 62 2 Jose Valverde 44 3 Joakim Soria 42 4 Brad Lidge 41 5 Jonathan Papelbon 41
View Complete Pitching Stats →

📋 Standings

AL Central

Chicago White Sox ★ 89-74 Minnesota Twins 88-75 Cleveland Indians 81-81 Kansas City Royals 75-87 Detroit Tigers 74-88

AL East

Tampa Bay Rays ★ 97-65 Boston Red Sox 95-67 New York Yankees 89-73 Toronto Blue Jays 86-76 Baltimore Orioles 68-93

AL West

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim ★ 100-62 Texas Rangers 79-83 Oakland Athletics 75-86 Seattle Mariners 61-101

NL Central

Chicago Cubs ★ 97-64 Milwaukee Brewers 90-72 Houston Astros 86-75 St. Louis Cardinals 86-76 Cincinnati Reds 74-88 Pittsburgh Pirates 67-95

NL East

Philadelphia Phillies ★ 92-70 New York Mets 89-73 Florida Marlins 84-77 Atlanta Braves 72-90 Washington Nationals 59-102

NL West

Los Angeles Dodgers ★ 84-78 Arizona Diamondbacks 82-80 Colorado Rockies 74-88 San Francisco Giants 72-90 San Diego Padres 63-99

The 2008 season in brief

The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim set the pace in 2008 with a 100-62 record. The weakest record belonged to the Washington Nationals, 59-102. Across the races, the American League Central went to the Chicago White Sox by the narrowest of margins over the Minnesota Twins, 89-74 to 88-75, the Tampa Bay Rays topped the American League East at 97-65, a few games clear of the Boston Red Sox, National League West honors went to the Los Angeles Dodgers, whose 84-78 beat the Arizona Diamondbacks's 82-80, and the Philadelphia Phillies (92-70) held off the New York Mets (89-73) in the National League East. 2008's champions were the Philadelphia Phillies, World Series winners against the Tampa Bay Rays, 4 games to 1. Earlier rounds sent through the Tampa Bay Rays over the Boston Red Sox in the AL Championship Series (4-3), the Philadelphia Phillies over the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NL Championship Series (4-1), the Boston Red Sox over the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in the AL Division Series (3-1), and the Tampa Bay Rays over the Chicago White Sox in the AL Division Series (3-1). Ryan Howard led the majors with 48 home runs, ahead of Adam Dunn with 40. Among qualified hitters, Chipper Jones had the top batting average, .364, with Albert Pujols next at .357. Full batting and pitching tables are on the 2008 leaders page.

2008 MLB Season: Frequently Asked Questions

Who won the World Series in 2008?
The Philadelphia Phillies won the 2008 World Series, beating the Tampa Bay Rays.
How many teams played in 2008?
30 teams played in the 2008 major league season.
Who led MLB in home runs in 2008?
Ryan Howard led with 48 home runs in 2008.
Who led MLB in RBI in 2008?
Ryan Howard led with 146 RBI in 2008.
Who led MLB in hits in 2008?
Dustin Pedroia and Ichiro Suzuki tied for the lead with 213 hits in 2008.
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