1903 Major League Baseball season

The 1903 Major League Baseball season was contested from April 16 through October 13, 1903. The Pittsburgh Pirates and the Boston Americans were the regular season champions of the National League and American League, respectively. The Americans then defeated the Pirates in the first modern World Series, five games to three.[1]

1903 MLB season
League	Major League Baseball
Sport	Baseball
Duration	April 16 – October 13, 1903
Number of games	140
Number of teams	16
Pennant Winners
AL champions	Boston Americans
AL runners-up	Philadelphia Athletics
NL champions	Pittsburgh Pirates
NL runners-up	New York Giants
World Series
Champions	Boston Americans
Runners-up	Pittsburgh Pirates

The original Baltimore Orioles relocated to New York City and became the New York Highlanders; it was the last relocation of a major league franchise until 1953. The Chicago Orphans were renamed as the Chicago Cubs.

1903 Boston vs Chicago at Huntington Avenue Grounds

Standings

American League American League W L Pct. GB Home Road Boston Americans 91 47 0.659 — 49–20 42–27 Philadelphia Athletics 75 60 0.556 14½ 44–21 31–39 Cleveland Naps 77 63 0.550 15 49–25 28–38 New York Highlanders 72 62 0.537 17 41–26 31–36 Detroit Tigers 65 71 0.478 25 37–28 28–43 St. Louis Browns 65 74 0.468 26½ 38–32 27–42 Chicago White Stockings 60 77 0.438 30½ 41–28 19–49 Washington Senators 43 94 0.314 47½ 29–40 14–54

National League National League W L Pct. GB Home Road Pittsburgh Pirates 91 49 0.650 — 46–24 45–25 New York Giants 84 55 0.604 6½ 41–27 43–28 Chicago Cubs 82 56 0.594 8 45–28 37–28 Cincinnati Reds 74 65 0.532 16½ 41–35 33–30 Brooklyn Superbas 70 66 0.515 19 40–33 30–33 Boston Beaneaters 58 80 0.420 32 31–35 27–45 Philadelphia Phillies 49 86 0.363 39½ 25–33 24–53 St. Louis Cardinals 43 94 0.314 46½ 22–45 21–49

Postseason

Bracket

	World Series
	AL	Boston Americans	5
	NL	Pittsburgh Pirates	3

"Battle of Ohio"

The Cincinnati Reds and Cleveland Naps played an unofficial best of 11-game exhibition series after the regular season, with Cleveland winning the series six games to three.[2]

League Leaders

[3]

Note: AB = At bats; R = Runs scored; H = Hits; 2B = Doubles; 3B = Triples; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; BB = Walks; SO = Strike outs; SB = Stolen bases; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; CG = Complete games; SH = Shutouts; IP = Innings pitched; K = Strike outs

Batting

Stat	Player	Team
AB – 579	Patsy Dougherty	Americans
R – 101	Patsy Dougherty	Americans
H – 184	Patsy Dougherty	Americans
2B – 45	Socks Seybold	Athletics
3B – 25	Sam Crawford	Tigers
HR – 13	Buck Freeman	Americans
RBI – 104	Buck Freeman	Americans
BB – 70	Jimmy Barrett	Tigers
SO – 0	Buck Freeman	Americans
SB – 40	Harry Bay	Naps

Pitching

Stat	Player	Team
W – 28	Cy Young	Americans
L – 22	Patsy Flaherty	White Sox
ERA – 1.74	Earl Moore	Naps
CG – 34	William Edward Donovan, Cy Young, Rube Waddell	Tigers, Americans, Athletics
SH – 7	Cy Young	Americans
IP – 341.2	Cy Young	Americans
K – 187	Rube Waddell	Athletics

Managers

American League Team Manager Boston Americans Jimmy Collins Chicago White Stockings Clark Griffith Cleveland Bluebirds Bill Armour Detroit Tigers Frank Dwyer New York Highlanders John McGraw Wilbert Robinson Philadelphia Athletics Connie Mack St. Louis Browns Jimmy McAleer Washington Senators Tom Loftus

National League Team Manager Boston Beaneaters Al Buckenberger Brooklyn Superbas Ned Hanlon Chicago Cubs Frank Selee Cincinnati Reds Joe Kelley New York Giants John McGraw Philadelphia Phillies Chief Zimmer Pittsburgh Pirates Fred Clarke St. Louis Cardinals Patsy Donovan

Events

• August 1 – Joe McGinnity becomes the first pitcher to win two complete games on one day, with 4–1 and 5–2 victories for the New York Giants over the Boston Beaneaters in a doubleheader.[4]

References

1. "History of the World Series – 1903". SportingNews.com. Archived from the original on August 13, 2006. Retrieved September 3, 2006.
2. Rhodes, Greg (2007). Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame Highlights: Memorable Moments in Team History As Heard on the Reds Radio Network. United States: Clerisy Press. p. 251. ISBN 9781578603008.
3. http://thebaseballcube.com/leagues/1903/MLB-AL.shtml
4. Mackin, Bob (2004). The Unofficial Guide to Baseball's Most Unusual Records. Canada: Greystone Books. p. 240. ISBN 9781553650386..

External links

• 1903 in baseball history from ThisGreatGame.com
• 1903 Major League Baseball season schedule at Baseball Reference