1921
Changes- 4-team expansion - For 1922, the Toronto Blue Jays and the St. Louis Browns will be added to the American League. The Indianapolis Hoosiers and the Columbus Clippers will join the National League.
- Suspend random 4*+ - Rogers Hornsby (Milwaukee), the reigning AL MVP, was suspended for the entirety of the 1921 season.
- Fire manager - The Quakers' skipper was relieved of his duties.
Off-Season
- Washington traded veteran Pete Alexander to the Giants for catching prospect Johnny Walker.
- The Tigers traded ace Walter Johnson to Baltimore for three prospects.
- Free agent Ty Cobb moved from the White Sox back to Brooklyn.
- Eddie Collins signed with the Kansas City Athletics, having previously manned the second bag for the Yankees.
- Starter Bill Donovan moved from the Dodgers to the Red Sox.
American League
Baltimore Orioles (92-48)
Kansas City Athletics (80-60)
Chicago White Sox (79-61)
Cleveland Indians (74-66)
Minnesota Twins (72-68)
Washington Senators (69-71)
Boston Red Sox (68-72)
New York Yankees (67-73)
Detroit Tigers (66-74)
Providence Angels (65-75)
Philadelphia Quakers (62-78)
Milwaukee Brewers (46-94)
AL MVP: Bubbles Hargrave (Baltimore)
AL CYA: Dutch Leonard (Cleveland) (2nd award)
AL ROY: Lu Blue (Providence)
National League
Boston Braves (91-49)
St. Louis Cardinals (90-50)
Louisville Colonels (87-53)
New York Giants (78-62)
Buffalo Bisons (72-68)
Kansas City Packers (65-75)
Cincinnati Reds (63-77)
Brooklyn Dodgers (62-78)
Chicago Cubs (61-79)
Pittsburgh Pirates (60-80)
Philadelphia Phillies (59-81)
New Jersey Nationals (52-88)
NL MVP: Babe Ruth (Boston) (5th award)
NL MOP: Duster Mails (St. Louis)
NL ROY: Lew Fonseca (Brooklyn)
Statistical Leaders
Batting Average: Eddie Collins (Kansas City) .486, Joe Sewell (Buffalo) .480
Home Runs: High Pockets Kelly (Chicago) 33, Babe Ruth (Boston) 70
Runs Batted In: Bill Lamar (Baltimore) 164, Babe Ruth (Boston) 201
Stolen Bases: Cliff Heathcote (Kansas City) 29, George Sisler (New York) 31
WAR: Johnny Bassler (New York) 7.8, Babe Ruth (Boston) 10.9
Wins: Harry Suter (Kansas City) 22, Tom Seaton (Boston) 22
ERA: Dutch Leonard (Cleveland) 3.75, Vean Gregg (Louisville) 3.18
Strikeouts: Harry Krause (Boston) 156, Pete Schneider (Boston) 130
Saves: Red Causey (Philadelphia) 19, Jesse Baker (St. Louis) / Buddy Napier (Louisville) 32
WAR: Dutch Leonard (Cleveland) 6.3, Tom Seaton (Boston) 6.6
Notes
- The Orioles batted .402 as a team, and had the strongest offense in the majors.
- Game 140 was a de facto one-game playoff between the Braves and the Cardinals. The game was tied at 2-2 with two outs in the top of the ninth, before a crucial error by rookie Frank Parkinson allowed Jimmy Johnston to reach base. Rabbit Maranville walked, and then Ruth, Zack Wheat and Steve O'Neill hit back-to-back-to-back singles, bringing home three runs, and taking the Braves to their fourth straight pennant.
- Dutch Leonard was the only AL pitcher with an ERA under four, as run scoring continued to explode.
- The Brewers collapsed to the worst record in baseball, as Rogers Hornsby was absent for the entire year.
- Ruth hit .476/.562/.951, and broke countless records.
- The Indians traded Urban Shocker to the Athletics for third baseman Earl Smith and a minor league pitcher.
- Sam Rice was traded from the Cubs to the White Sox. Veteran Red Ames and a pitching prospect went the other way across town.
- The Nationals traded veteran Ed Konetchy to Minnesota for three prospects.
Achievements & Milestones
- Babe Ruth (Braves) and Whitey Witt (Cleveland) each had three home runs in a game. Ruth had previously been the only person to do so, in 1917.
- Twelve players had six hits in a game. Wally Gerber (Cleveland) had seven, while Bubbles Hargrave (Baltimore) and High Pockets Kelly (White Sox) both totaled nine hits during their efforts.
- Kelly's six hit day saw him hit for the cycle. Babe Ruth hit for the cycle twice in 1921, while Marty Krug (Detroit), Frank Gilhooley (Milwaukee), Ben Paschal (Milwaukee), Elmer Smith (NY Yankees) and Austin McHenry (Washington) also collected all four base hits.
- Bernie Friberg (Minnesota) had a 60-game hitting streak. Austin McHenry (Washington) and Bob Meusel (Red Sox) also tallied hits in at least 50 consecutive games.
- Al Bridwell (Milwaukee), Frank Schulte (NY Yankees), Jake Daubert (KC Athletics), Ed Konetchy (Minnesota), Amos Strunk (Baltimore), and Fred Merkle (Milwaukee) all reached 2000 hits.
- Eddie Collins (KC Athletics) passed 2500 hits.
- Joe Wood (NY Giants) and Ray Collins (Minnesota) won their 200th games.
- Walter Johnson (Baltimore), Tom Hughes (Phillies), and Harry Krause (Red Sox) joined the 250 win club.
- Red Ames (Cubs) and Harry Krause (Red Sox) became the first two men to strike out 2500 batters.
World Series
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Baltimore defeated Boston, 5 games to 0.
- Bill Cunningham was the MVP. He went 10-15 with four homers, and drove in ten.
- Babe Ruth and Hack Miller both homered in Game One, but the Braves still lost, 9-5.
- Harry Coveleski (Baltimore) was huge in Game Two, allowing just one run as he went the distance in a 9-1 win.
- Rookie Cunningham had two doubles and two homers in Game Four, as the Orioles won 21-10, and won the four first games of the series in Charm City.
- Walter Johnson (Baltimore) sealed the sweep by allowing just a single run in Game Five.
- Joe Judge (Baltimore) was 11-18. Jack Tobin (Baltimore) had fourteen hits.
- Babe Ruth (Boston) went 7-9 with two homers against his hometown club.
Retirements
- Bill Bradley. Outstanding two-way third baseman who retired as the all-time leader in doubles and total bases, and third in hits with 2754. A career .283 hitter, with fourteen Gold Gloves. 1916 World Champion with Cleveland.
- Bill Carrigan. Catcher made three All-Star teams for the White Sox in the early 1910s. Won a Gold Glove and a Silver Slugger. Also played significantly for the Reds and Packers, finishing with 1509 career hits.
- Frank Corridon. Journeyman starter who broke out as a 37-year-old to win the AL Cy Young Award in 1918. Pitched for seven teams, never for more than five years in one place. Career 217-216 record, with an above average ERA.
- Pete Hill. Five-time AL MVP. Arguably the greatest player of his generation. 11-time Gold Glover in center field, five world titles and two WS MVPs with Boston in the 1900s. Extremely effective hitter, fielder and baserunner in the heart of the deadball era. Retires as career leader in steals and WAR.
- Tom Hughes. 253-game winner as a workhorse starter for the Cubs. Reliable moundsman with career 2.89 ERA, but also most career losses.
- Jimmy Sheckard. All-time leader in games, at bats, runs, hits, and walks. 2808 hits and seven All-Star bids, mostly for Brooklyn and Detroit. .287 career hitter.
- Ed Walsh. 1916 AL Cy Young award winner and world champion with Cleveland. Five All-Star appearances, five Gold Gloves, 258-213 career record with a 2.76 ERA. Minnesota's decision to trade him to Cleveland in 1912 is considered a blunder.
Draft
- Teams were allowed to protect 12 players in the expansion draft.
- St. Louis chose outfielder Amos Strunk (Baltimore) first.
- Tony Boeckel (Louisville) went to Indianapolis at #2.
- NL wins leader Tom Seaton (Braves) was sent to Toronto with the third pick.
- Columbus opted for 1919 NL MOP Vean Gregg (Louisville) with their first pick.
- In the regular draft, the Clippers picked catcher Gabby Hartnett first overall.
- George Grantham was picked second by Toronto.
- Travis Jackson was #3 for Indianapolis.
- The Browns picked Topper Rigney fourth.
- The Phillies picked up Jim Bottomley at seven.
Bubbles Hargrave was American League MVP.
Jimmy Sheckard retired as the all-time leader in hits.