| 1957 MLB season | |
|---|---|
| League | American League (AL) National League (NL) |
| Sport | Baseball |
| Duration | Regular season:
|
| Games | 154 |
| Teams | 16 (8 per league) |
| TV partner(s) | NBC,CBS |
| Regular season | |
| SeasonMVP | AL:Mickey Mantle (NYY) NL:Hank Aaron (MIL) |
| AL champions | New York Yankees |
| AL runners-up | Chicago White Sox |
| NL champions | Milwaukee Braves |
| NL runners-up | St. Louis Cardinals |
| World Series | |
| Champions | Milwaukee Braves |
| Runners-up | New York Yankees |
| World SeriesMVP | Lew Burdette (MIL) |
| MLB seasons | |
The1957 major league baseball season began on April 15, 1957. The regular season ended on September 29, with theMilwaukee Braves andNew York Yankees as the regular season champions of theNational League andAmerican League, respectively. The postseason began with Game 1 of the54th World Series on October 2 and ended with Game 7 on October 10. The Braves defeated the Yankees, four games to three, capturing their second championship in franchise history, their first since1914, and first in Milwaukee. Going into the season, the defendingWorld Series champions were theNew York Yankees from the1956 season.
The24th Major League Baseball All-Star Game was held on July 9 atBusch Stadium inSt. Louis,Missouri, home of theSt. Louis Cardinals. TheAmerican League won, 6–5.
The National League'sBrooklyn Dodgers andNew York Giants played their final seasons asNew York City-based franchises before their moves toCalifornia for the1958 season, leaving New York City without aNational League team until the founding of theexpansionNew York Mets in 1962.
On April 22, thePhiladelphia Phillies became the 14th team in professional baseball tobreak the color line when they fieldedJohn Kennedy.[1]
The 1957 schedule consisted of 154 games for all teams in the American League and National League, each of which had eight teams. Each team was scheduled to play 22 games against the other seven teams of their respective league. This continued the format put in place since the1904 season (except for1919) and would be used until1961 in the American League and1962 in the National League.
American League Opening Day took place on April 15, featuring theBaltimore Orioles andWashington Senators, while National League Opening Day took place the following day, featuring all eight NL teams. This was the first season since1953 that both leagues opened on different days. The final day of the regular season was on September 29, which saw all sixteen teams play, continuing the trend from1955. TheWorld Series took place between October 2 and October 10.
The 1957 season saw the following rule changes:
An asterisk (*) denotes the ballpark a team played the minority of their home games at
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York Yankees | 98 | 56 | .636 | — | 48–29 | 50–27 |
| Chicago White Sox | 90 | 64 | .584 | 8 | 45–32 | 45–32 |
| Boston Red Sox | 82 | 72 | .532 | 16 | 44–33 | 38–39 |
| Detroit Tigers | 78 | 76 | .506 | 20 | 45–32 | 33–44 |
| Baltimore Orioles | 76 | 76 | .500 | 21 | 42–33 | 34–43 |
| Cleveland Indians | 76 | 77 | .497 | 21½ | 40–37 | 36–40 |
| Kansas City Athletics | 59 | 94 | .386 | 38½ | 37–40 | 22–54 |
| Washington Senators | 55 | 99 | .357 | 43 | 28–49 | 27–50 |
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Milwaukee Braves | 95 | 59 | .617 | — | 45–32 | 50–27 |
| St. Louis Cardinals | 87 | 67 | .565 | 8 | 42–35 | 45–32 |
| Brooklyn Dodgers | 84 | 70 | .545 | 11 | 43–34 | 41–36 |
| Cincinnati Redlegs | 80 | 74 | .519 | 15 | 45–32 | 35–42 |
| Philadelphia Phillies | 77 | 77 | .500 | 18 | 38–39 | 39–38 |
| New York Giants | 69 | 85 | .448 | 26 | 37–40 | 32–45 |
| Pittsburgh Pirates | 62 | 92 | .403 | 33 | 36–41 | 26–51 |
| Chicago Cubs | 62 | 92 | .403 | 33 | 31–46 | 31–46 |
5 tie games (2 in AL, 3 in NL), which are not factored intowinning percentage orgames behind (and were often replayed again) occurred throughout the season.
The Baltimore Orioles had two tie games. The Chicago White Sox and Kansas City Athletics had one each.
The Chicago Cubs and Philadelphia Phillies had two tie games each. The Milwaukee Braves and Pittsburgh Pirates had one each.
The postseason began on October 2 and ended on October 10 with theMilwaukee Braves defeating theNew York Yankees in the1957 World Series in seven games.
| World Series | ||||
| AL | New York Yankees | 3 | ||
| NL | Milwaukee Braves | 4 | ||
| Team | Former Manager | New Manager |
|---|---|---|
| Chicago Cubs | Stan Hack | Bob Scheffing |
| Cleveland Indians | Al López | Kerby Farrell |
| Detroit Tigers | Bucky Harris | Jack Tighe |
| Team | Former Manager | New Manager |
|---|---|---|
| Kansas City Athletics | Lou Boudreau | Harry Craft |
| Pittsburgh Pirates | Bobby Bragan | Danny Murtaugh |
| Washington Senators | Chuck Dressen | Cookie Lavagetto |
Any team shown insmall text indicates a previous team a player was on during the season.
| Stat | Player | Total |
|---|---|---|
| AVG | Ted Williams (BOS) | .388 |
| OPS | Ted Williams (BOS) | 1.257 |
| HR | Roy Sievers (WSH) | 42 |
| RBI | Roy Sievers (WSH) | 114 |
| R | Mickey Mantle (NYY) | 121 |
| H | Nellie Fox (CWS) | 196 |
| SB | Luis Aparicio (CWS) | 28 |
| Stat | Player | Total |
|---|---|---|
| W | Jim Bunning (DET) Billy Pierce (CWS) | 20 |
| L | Chuck Stobbs (WSH) | 20 |
| ERA | Bobby Shantz (NYY) | 2.45 |
| K | Early Wynn (CLE) | 184 |
| IP | Jim Bunning (DET) | 267.1 |
| SV | Bob Grim (NYY) | 19 |
| WHIP | Frank Sullivan (BOS) | 1.055 |
| Stat | Player | Total |
|---|---|---|
| AVG | Stan Musial (STL) | .351 |
| OPS | Stan Musial (STL) | 1.034 |
| HR | Hank Aaron (MIL) | 44 |
| RBI | Hank Aaron (MIL) | 132 |
| R | Hank Aaron (MIL) | 118 |
| H | Red Schoendienst (MIL/NYG) | 200 |
| SB | Willie Mays (NYG) | 38 |
| Stat | Player | Total |
|---|---|---|
| W | Warren Spahn (MIL) | 21 |
| L | Robin Roberts (PHI) | 22 |
| ERA | Johnny Podres (BRO) | 2.66 |
| K | Jack Sanford (PHI) | 188 |
| IP | Bob Friend (PIT) | 277.0 |
| SV | Clem Labine (BRO) | 17 |
| WHIP | Johnny Podres (BRO) | 1.082 |
| Baseball Writers' Association of America Awards | ||
|---|---|---|
| BBWAA Award | National League | American League |
| Rookie of the Year | Jack Sanford (PHI) | Tony Kubek (NYY) |
| Cy Young Award | Warren Spahn (MIL) | — |
| Most Valuable Player | Hank Aaron (MIL) | Mickey Mantle (NYY) |
| Babe Ruth Award (World Series MVP) | Lew Burdette (MIL) | — |
| Gold Glove Awards[a][15] | ||
| Position | National League | American League |
| Pitcher | — | Bobby Shantz (NYY) |
| Catcher | — | Sherm Lollar (CWS) |
| 1st Base | Gil Hodges (BRO) | — |
| 2nd Base | — | Nellie Fox (CWS) |
| 3rd Base | — | Frank Malzone (BOS) |
| Shortstop | Roy McMillan (CIN) | — |
| Left field | — | Minnie Miñoso (CWS) |
| Center field | Willie Mays (NYG) | — |
| Right field | — | Al Kaline (DET) |
| The Sporting NewsAwards | ||
|---|---|---|
| Award | National League | American League |
| Player of the Year[16] | — | Ted Williams (BOS) |
| Pitcher of the Year[17] | Warren Spahn (MIL) | Billy Pierce (CWS |
| Rookie of the Year[18] (Player) | Ed Bouchee (PHI) | Tony Kubek (NYY) |
| Rookie of the Year[18] (Pitcher) | Jack Sanford (PHI) | — |
| Manager of the Year[19] | Fred Hutchinson (STL) | — |
| Executive of the Year[20] | Frank Lane (STL) | — |
| Team name | Wins | %± | Home attendance | %± | Per game |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Milwaukee Braves[21] | 95 | 3.3% | 2,215,404 | 8.3% | 28,403 |
| New York Yankees[22] | 98 | 1.0% | 1,497,134 | 0.4% | 19,443 |
| Detroit Tigers[23] | 78 | −4.9% | 1,272,346 | 21.0% | 16,524 |
| St. Louis Cardinals[24] | 87 | 14.5% | 1,183,575 | 14.9% | 15,371 |
| Boston Red Sox[25] | 82 | −2.4% | 1,181,087 | 3.9% | 15,339 |
| Philadelphia Phillies[26] | 77 | 8.5% | 1,146,230 | 22.6% | 14,695 |
| Chicago White Sox[27] | 90 | 5.9% | 1,135,668 | 13.6% | 14,749 |
| Cincinnati Redlegs[28] | 80 | −12.1% | 1,070,850 | −4.9% | 13,907 |
| Baltimore Orioles[29] | 76 | 10.1% | 1,029,581 | 14.2% | 13,371 |
| Brooklyn Dodgers[30] | 84 | −9.7% | 1,028,258 | −15.3% | 13,354 |
| Kansas City Athletics[31] | 59 | 13.5% | 901,067 | −11.2% | 11,702 |
| Pittsburgh Pirates[32] | 62 | −6.1% | 850,732 | −10.4% | 11,048 |
| Cleveland Indians[33] | 76 | −13.6% | 722,256 | −16.5% | 9,380 |
| Chicago Cubs[34] | 62 | 3.3% | 670,629 | −6.9% | 8,598 |
| New York Giants[35] | 69 | 3.0% | 653,923 | 3.9% | 8,493 |
| Washington Senators[36] | 55 | −6.8% | 457,079 | 5.9% | 5,936 |
TheBrooklyn Dodgers would continue to play several home games inJersey City,New Jersey as they started doing so theprevious year, playing eight games.[37]
The Brooklyn Dodgers would play their final game atEbbets Field on September 24 against thePittsburgh Pirates, relocating toLos Angeles,California atLos Angeles Memorial Coliseum as theLos Angeles Dodgers for the start of the1958 season.
TheNew York Giants would play their final game at thePolo Grounds on September 29 against thePittsburgh Pirates, relocating toSan Francisco,California atSeals Stadium as theSan Francisco Giants for the start of the1958 season.
CBS aired theGame of the Week for the third consecutive year, and began to air games on Sunday as well as Saturday.[38][39][40]
NBC also started to air weekend games, purchasing the rights to broadcast 11Milwaukee Braves games, 11Pittsburgh Pirates games, twoWashington Senators games, and twoChicago Cubs games. TheAll-Star Game andWorld Series also aired on NBC.
