1945 in baseball

The following are the baseball events of the year 1945 throughout the world.

Champions

Major League Baseball

• World Series: Detroit Tigers over Chicago Cubs (4-3)
• All-Star Game cancelled due to flight restrictions. However, inter-league games were played during the All-Star break.

Other champions

• Negro League World Series: Cleveland Buckeyes over Homestead Grays (4-0)
• Negro League Baseball All-Star Game: West, 9-6
• All-American Girls Professional Baseball League: Rockford Peaches

Awards and honors

• Most Valuable Player
  • Hal Newhouser (AL) – P, Detroit Tigers
  • Phil Cavarretta (NL) – 1B, Chicago Cubs
• The Sporting News Player of the Year Award
  • Hal Newhouser – P, Detroit Tigers
• The Sporting News Most Valuable Player Award
  • Eddie Mayo (AL) – 2B, Detroit Tigers
  • Tommy Holmes (NL) – OF, Boston Braves
• The Sporting News Pitcher of the Year Award
  • Hal Newhouser (AL) – Detroit Tigers
  • Hank Borowy (NL) – Chicago Cubs
• The Sporting News Manager of the Year Award
  • Ossie Bluege – Washington Senators

MLB statistical leaders

Major league baseball final standings

American League final standings

National League final standings

Negro league baseball final standings

Negro American League final standings

Negro National League final standings

Events

January–July

• April 17 – Amputee Pete Gray makes his major league debut with the St. Louis Browns.
• May 17 – For the fourth time in four days, every American League game was postponed due to rain.
• July 21 – The Detroit Tigers and Philadelphia A's battle for 24 innings, ending the game tied at one. Tigers starter Les Mueller pitches 19.2 innings, while his A's counterpart, Russ Christopher, lasts thirteen.

August–September

• August 1 – Mel Ott hits the 500th home run of his major league career.
• August 4
  • World War II amputee Bert Shepard pitches in a game for the Washington Senators.
  • Tom McBride of the Boston Red Sox ties a major league record with 6 RBI in the 4th inning of a game with the Washington Senators.
  • Senators pitcher Joe Cleary becomes the last native of Ireland to appear in a major league game.
• September 9 – Cleveland Indians first baseman Mickey Rocco leads the way to a doubleheader sweep of the New York Yankees with two home runs, two doubles, and two singles. A crowd of 72,252 is on hand at Yankee Stadium to see their team lose 10-3 and 4-3.
• September 9 – In the second game of a doubleheader, Dick Fowler pitches a no-hitter as the Philadelphia Athletics defeat the St. Louis Browns, 1-0.
• September 29 – Chicago Cubs catcher Paul Gillespie homers in his final major league at bat. In 1942 he homered in his first major league at bat. He was the first player in MLB history to do both. John Miller was the second, in 1966 and 1969.

October–December

• October 10 – The Detroit Tigers defeat the Chicago Cubs, 9-3, in Game 7 of the World Series to win their second World Series, four games to three. Their next trip to the World Series occurred on 22 October 2016.
• October 23 – Jackie Robinson is signed by the Dodgers; he is later assigned to the Montreal Royals for the 1946 season.

Date unknown

• The Mexican Winter League is born with the name Liga Invernal de Sonora

Births

January

• January 3 – Larry Barnett
• January 7 – Tony Conigliaro
• January 8 – Jesús Hernáiz
• January 12 – Paul Gilliford
• January 12 – Bob Reed
• January 18 – Tom Harrison
• January 18 – Rich Severson
• January 20 – Dave Boswell
• January 22 – Jophery Brown
• January 25 – Wally Bunker
• January 29 – Dick Mills

February

• February 9 – Jim Nash
• February 11 – John Paciorek
• February 12 – Don Wilson
• February 14 – Bob Terlecki
• February 15 – Ross Moschitto
• February 21 – Tom Shopay
• February 24 – Gary Moore
• February 26 – Steve Hertz

March

• March 1 – Jim Panther
• March 5 – Dave Bakenhaster
• March 11 – Dock Ellis
• March 12 – Don O'Riley
• March 12 – Horacio Piña
• March 25 – Jim Ellis
• March 30 – Dick Woodson

April

• April 2 – Mike Kekich
• April 2 – Reggie Smith
• April 2 – Don Sutton
• April 4 – Nick Bremigan
• April 9 – Jerry Hinsley
• April 11 – Mike Kilkenny
• April 15 – Ted Sizemore
• April 17 – Dennis Paepke
• April 18 – Mike Paul
• April 19 – Tommy Gramly
• April 23 – Jorge Rubio

May

• May 3 – Davey Lopes
• May 4- Rene Lachemann
• May 5 – Jimmy Rosario
• May 25 – Bill Dillman
• May 26 – Al Yates
• May 29 – Blue Moon Odom
• May 29 – Clyde Mashore

June

• June 5 – Chip Coulter
• June 6 – Larry Howard
• June 7 – George Mitterwald
• June 12 – Gary Jones
• June 20 – Ray Newman
• June 25 – Dick Drago
• June 30 – Jerry Kenney
• June 30 – Otis Thornton

July

• July 1 – Billy Rohr
• July 2 – Ron Slocum
• July 7 – Chuck Goggin
• July 7 – Bill Melton
• July 7 – Jim Ollom
• July 10 – Hal McRae
• July 27 – Larry Biittner
• July 29 – Roy Foster

August

• August 4 – Mike Davison
• August 6 – Andy Messersmith
• August 15 – Duffy Dyer
• August 15 – Bobby Treviño
• August 16 – Jan Dukes
• August 21 – Jerry DaVanon
• August 30 – Tommy Dean

September

• September 8 – Ossie Blanco
• September 13 – Rick Wise
• September 14 – Curtis Brown
• September 16 – Bob Chlupsa
• September 16 – Ed Sprague
• September 16 – Héctor Torres
• September 25 – Steve Arlin
• September 25 – Bill Hepler
• September 26 – Dave Duncan
• September 28 – Gene Ratliff
• September 29 – Mike Jurewicz

October

• October 1 – Rod Carew
• October 4 – John Duffie
• October 7 – Dick Bates
• October 11 – Bob Stinson
• October 12 – Herman Hill
• October 14 – Tom Silverio
• October 15 – Jim Palmer
• October 17 – Bob Christian
• October 18 – Don Young
• October 19 – Gary Taylor
• October 19 – Al Gallagher
• October 27 – Mike Lum
• October 30 – Roe Skidmore

November

• November 1 – Bobby Brooks
• November 3 – Ken Holtzman
• November 3 – Jim Johnson
• November 7 – Dave Bennett
• November 10 – Bill Southworth
• November 12 – Rafael Batista
• November 17 – Bill Harrelson
• November 19 – Bobby Tolan
• November 20 – Jay Johnstone
• November 20 – Rick Monday
• November 20 – John Sanders
• November 22 – Denny Riddleberger
• November 25 – Wayne Redmond

December

• December 3 – Lou Marone
• December 3 – Steve Huntz
• December 6 – Larry Bowa
• December 6 – Jay Dahl
• December 12 – Ralph Garr
• December 14 – Greg Goossen
• December 15 – Gil Blanco
• December 19 – Art Kusnyer
• December 19 – Geoff Zahn
• December 20 – Vince Colbert
• December 20 – Keith Lampard
• December 30 – Tom Murphy

Deaths

January

• January 3 – George Stone, 68, left fielder for the Boston Americans and St. Louis Browns during seven seasons spanning 1903–1910, who led the American League in his 1905 rookie season with 187 hits, and topped the league in 1906 with a .358 batting average, total bases (291), on-base percentage (.417) and slugging percentage (.501), while finishing second in hits (208) and triples (20), third in RBI (71), and seventh in home runs (6).
• January 5 – Bill Hobbs, shortstop who played with the Cincinnati Reds in the 1913 and 1916 seasons.
• January 11 – Harry McNeal, 67, pitcher for the 1901 Cleveland Bluebirds of the American League.
• January 14 – Ted Blankenship, 43, a hard throwing pitcher who played from 1922 through 1930 for the Chicago White Sox.
• January 17 – Roy Radebaugh, 63, pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals in the 1911 season.
• January 17 – Rube Ward, 65, backup outfielder for the 1902 Brooklyn Superbas of the National League.
• January 18 – Mike Fitzgerald, 53, outfielder who played for the New York Highlanders in 1911 and the Philadelphia Phillies in 1918.
• January 18 – Gene Lansing, 47, pitcher who played briefly for the 1922 Boston Braves of the National League.

February

• February 1 – Tubby Spencer
• February 11 – Ham Iburg
• February 13 – Jocko Halligan
• February 14 – Jim Curtiss
• February 15 – Steve Behel
• February 18 – John Munyan
• February 20 – Charlie Heard
• February 21 – Paul Radford, 83, outfielder and shortstop for nine different teams in a 12-season career from 1883–1894, who collected 1206 hits and 346 stolen bases in 1361 games, while being a member of the 1884 World Champion Providence Grays and three pennant-winning teams.

March

• March 6 – Harry O'Neill, 27, catcher for the 1939 Philadelphia Athletics, whose name is linked forever to that of Elmer Gedeon as the only two major leaguers that were killed during World War II.
• March 11 – Sam Mertes, 72, left fielder for five clubs in 10 seasons spanning 1896–1906, who was a member of the 1905 World Champions New York Giants and led the National League with 32 doubles and 104 RBI in 1903.
• March 29 – Ray Tift, 60, pitcher for the 1907 New York Highlanders of the American League.
• March 29 – Jim Hughey, 76, pitcher who played for the Milwaukee Brewers, Chicago Colts, St. Louis Browns, Cleveland Spiders and St. Louis Cardinals in a span of seven seasons from 1891–1900.

April

• April 4 – Dick Cotter
• April 9 – Ted Cather
• April 13 – Joe Kutina
• April 16 – Chick Fewster
• April 25 – Jim Murray

May

• May 2 – Joe Corbett
• May 3 – Bill Stemmyer
• May 6 – Eddie Zimmerman
• May 18 – Pete Cregan
• May 22 – John Atz
• May 25 – Charlie Frye, 30, pitcher for the 1940 Philadelphia Phillies.
• May 27 – Walter Carlisle, 63, English left fielder for the 1908 Boston Red Sox, who entered the records books as the only outfielder ever to make an unassisted triple play in organized baseball, while playing for the 1911 Vernon Tigers of the Pacific Coast League.

June

• June 5 – Fred Lewis
• June 8 – Bill Kemmer
• June 17 – Joe Visner
• June 18 – Sid Mercer, 64, Hall of Fame sportswriter who covered mostly boxing and baseball in St. Louis, Missouri and in New York City, and also served as an official with the St. Louis Browns from 1903 through 1905.
• June 19 – Bob Gandy
• June 25 – Jack Mercer
• June 29 – Clarence Winters, 45, pitcher for the 1924 Boston Red Sox.

July

• July 2 – Frank Grube
• July 7 – Cal Crum
• July 10 – Bill Barnes
• July 16 – Tuck Turner
• July 18 – Frank Butler
• July 31 – Snapper Kennedy

August

• August 7 – Bobby Veach, 57, left fielder for the Detroit Tigers who batted .310 lifetime, while leading the American League in RBI three times and in doubles twice.
• August 9 – Art Nichols, 74, catcher, first baseman and outfielder who played from 1898 through 1903 for the Chicago Orphans and the St. Louis Cardinals.
• August 14 – Tommy Clarke, 57, a fine defensive catcher who spent ten years from 1909 to 1918 for the Cincinnati Reds and Chicago Cubs, and also served as a coach on the 1933 World Championship Giants team.

September

• September 4 – William Fischer, 54, catcher for the Brooklyn Dodgers/Robins, Chicago Whales, Chicago Cubs and Pittsburgh Pirates during five seasons from 1913–1917, who led the Whales to the 1915 Federal League pennant.
• September 12 – Cy Pieh, 58, pitcher who played from 1913 to 1915 with the New York Yankees.
• September 12 – Dave Zearfoss, 77, backup catcher for the New York Giants and St. Louis Cardinals in parts of five seasons spanning 1896–1905.
• September 13 – Cy Blanton, 37, All-Star pitcher and one of the mainstays of the Pittsburgh Pirates rotation, who won 18 games and led the National League in earned run average (2.58) and shutouts (4) in his 1935 rookie season, while leading again the league in shutouts in 1936 (4) and starts in 1937 (34).
• September 18 – Ducky Holmes, 63, fine outfielder and smart base runner for seven different teams from 1895 through 1905, who posted a .281 career average and stole 236 bases in 933 games, and also managed 13 seasons in the Minor Leagues.
• September 21 – Bert Humphries, 64, pitcher who played from 1910 through 1915 for the Cincinnati Reds, Chicago Cubs and Philadelphia Phillies.
• September 27 – Lou Nordyke, 69, first baseman who played for the St. Louis Browns of the American League in 1906.
• September 29 – George Van Haltren, 79, center fielder, primarily with the New York Giants, who hit a .316 lifetime average and ranked sixth all-time in both hits (2500+) and runs upon retirement; led the National League in triples and stolen bases once each, and also won 40 games as pitcher, including a six-inning no-hitter.

October

• October 9 – Bob Ganley
• October 12 – Henry Oxley
• October 14 – Fred Tyler
• October 16 – Hack Eibel
• October 18 – Monty Pfyl
• October 25 – Ernie Baker
• October 26 – Ernie Gust
• October 27 – Jack Hannifin
• October 27 – Taylor Shafer

November

• November 1 – George Hale, 51, backup catcher for the St. Louis Browns in four seasons from 1914–1918.
• November 3 – Mike Smith, 77, left fielder and pitcher who posted a .310 career batting average and a 75-57 pitching record with six teams from 1886 through 1901, while leading the American Association pitchers with a 2.94 ERA in 1887.
• November 16 – Jake Northrop, pitcher for the Boston Braves from 1918 to 1919.
• November 18 – Morrie Rath, 58, speedy and skilled second baseman for four teams in a span of six years from 1909–1920, who led both the American and National Leagues in fielding percentage, putouts, assists and double plays, and also was a member of the 1919 World Champion Cincinnati Reds.
• November 22 – Dick Carroll, 61, pitcher for the 1909 New York Highlanders of the American League.
• November 25 – Ham Patterson, 68, first baseman and outfielder who played for the St. Louis Browns and the Chicago White Sox during the 1909 season.

December

• December 3 – Bill Kay
• December 8 – Henry Fournier
• December 14 – Connie Murphy
• December 15 – Tom Hess
• December 22 – Bill Crouch
• December 24 – Hughie Miller
• December 26 – Frank Lange
• December 27 – Gene Cocreham
• December 27 – Hugh Fullerton, 72, Chicago sportswriter who helped break the story of the Black Sox Scandal and, as an early advocate of the value of baseball statistics, gained wide attention for correctly predicting the White Sox' upset of the Cubs in the 1906 World Series, even getting right the winner of each game and the day of a rainout.
• December 27 – Cy Swaim

External links

• Baseball Almanac – Major League Baseball Players Who Died in 1945