1920
Changes- Change stolen base success (lower) - Steals are now even more likely to fail than before. I haven't covered this too much in the story, but a lot of guys have been getting thrown out more often than they successfully steal, which I think has made the real life high SB guys less valuable than in real life, because they erase a lot of their hits by making outs on the bases.
- 3 more fan loyalty - St. Louis's fan loyalty was increased from 8 to 10. New Jersey's fan loyalty was increased from 4 to 5.
- Change hits (larger) - base hits will now be 1.2x as common as in real life.
Off-Season
- Brooklyn traded starter Earl Yingling to the Red Sox for Tillie Shafer and a pitching prospect.
- New Jersey traded ace Dixie Walker to Louisville for second baseman Bill Rodgers and a minor leaguer.
- All-time saves leader Ralph Caldwell moved from Louisville to Baltimore.
- Ty Cobb signed with the White Sox, leaving Brooklyn behind.
- Starter Tom Hughes moved from the Cubs to the Phillies.
- Veteran Jimmy Sheckard signed with the Yankees.
American League
Cleveland Indians (86-55)
Baltimore Orioles (85-56)
Chicago White Sox (81-59)
Minnesota Twins (78-62)
Kansas City Athletics (75-65)
Milwaukee Brewers (74-66)
New York Yankees (68-72)
Boston Red Sox (67-73)
Providence Angels (62-78)
Detroit Tigers (60-80)
Philadelphia Quakers (56-84)
Washington Senators (49-91)
AL MVP: Rogers Hornsby (Milwaukee) (3rd award)
AL CYA: Harry Krause (Boston) (5th award)
AL ROY: Bob Meusel (Boston)
National League
Boston Braves (97-43)
Louisville Colonels (80-60)
New York Giants (79-61)
Kansas City Packers (78-62)
New Jersey Nationals (72-68)
Philadelphia Phillies (70-70)
Chicago Cubs (65-75)
Buffalo Bisons (64-76)
St. Louis Cardinals (61-79)
Brooklyn Dodgers (58-82)
Cincinnati Reds (58-82)
Pittsburgh Pirates (58-82)
NL MVP: Babe Ruth (Boston) (4th award)
NL MOP: George Ruth (New Jersey)
NL ROY: Joe Sewell (Buffalo)
Statistical Leaders
Batting Average: Rogers Hornsby (Milwaukee) .467, George Sisler (New York) .492
Home Runs: Bob Meusel (Boston) 24, Babe Ruth (Boston) 37
Runs Batted In: Bubbles Hargrave (Baltimore) 152, Zack Wheat (Boston) 144
Stolen Bases: Max Carey (New York) 25, Donie Bush (Louisville) 24
WAR: Rogers Hornsby (Milwaukee) 7.2, Babe Ruth (Boston) 9.4
Wins: Herb Pennock (Chicago) 23, Rube Marquard (Boston) 23
ERA: Harry Krause (Boston) 2.87, George Ruth (New Jersey) 3.03
Strikeouts: Harry Krause (Boston) 1.62, Joe Wood (New York) 130
Saves: Fred Link (Kansas City) 22, Ben Van Dyke (Boston) 27
WAR: Harry Krause (Boston) 6.6, Ray Fisher (Philadelphia) 6.2
Notes
- The Orioles swept the Brewers in the last series of the year to force a one-game playoff for the AL pennant with Cleveland. The Indians scored four runs in the seventh inning and six in the eighth to win 14-4.
- The Braves won their final ten games in a row, winning the pennant by seventeen games, their third NL crown on the bounce, as they led the league in almost every offensive category.
- Offense exploded across the big leagues, with many .400 hitters and many records broken. The AL ERA jumped from 3.27 to 5.28, while the NL went from 2.94 to 4.56.
- Hornsby hit .467/.530/.762, a record for slugging percentage.
- Bubbles Hargrave became the first man to break 150 RBI in a single season.
- Charlie Deal (Washington) set a record with 29 triples.
- Sisler was six hits shy of .500.
- Ruth hit .430/.540/.703, and scored a record 176 runs.
Achievements & Milestones
- Dave Bancroft (KC Packers), Fred Luderus (Cleveland), Bill Lamar (Baltimore), Wally Pipp (Cubs), Frank O'Rourke (New Jersey), Charlie Hollocher (Red Sox), Jimmy Johnston (Braves), Jack Tobin (Baltimore), and Babe Pinelli (Providence) all had six hits in a game. Lamar set a record by being the first player to have a 7-7 day.
- George Sisler and Happy Felsch (both NY Giants) hit for the cycle.
- Jimmy Johnston (Braves) had a record-breaking 50-game hit streak.
- Fred Nicholson (St.Louis) hit in 48 straight games, while Bobby Veach (KC Athletics) had one in 47 consecutively.
- Tris Speaker (Milwaukee), Zack Wheat (Braves), Frank Baker (Quakers), Joe Jackson (Pittsburgh), and Heinie Zimmerman (Phillies) all reached 2000 hits.
- Red Ames (Milwaukee) and Ed Walsh (White Sox) won their 200th games.
- Bill Bradley (Detroit) and Jimmy Sheckard (NY Yankees) both passed Ginger Beaumont's all-time hits record.
World Series
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Boston defeated Cleveland, 5 games to 4.
- Steve O'Neill was the MVP, going 21-38 with 6 RBI.
- Game Nine ended in walk-off fashion, as after Maranville and Ruth walked, and Zack Wheat bunted them across to 2nd and 3rd, O'Neill singled into left field, giving the Braves a 5-4 victory. Ruth had already hit two solo home runs earlier in the game.
- Ruth went 14-37 with six homers and 11 RBI.
- First baseman George Burns (Boston) was 14-34 with 6 RBI.
- Rube Marquard (Boston) picked up two wins.
- Pat O'Farrell (Cleveland) had a strong series, batting 18-40.
- Boston's second title.
Retirements
- Bobby Byrne. Strong third baseman for the Brewers and Reds. 1145 career hits, and led the AL in runs and doubles in excellent 1912 season.
Draft
- The Senators chose Riggs Stevenson first overall.
- Goose Goslin was the Quakers' choice at #2.
- Kiki Cuyler went third to the Reds.
George Ruth was the NL MOP.
George Sisler took advantage of the live ball, batting .492.