The New York Yankees started a run of four straight pennants with an offensive juggernaut that also kept opposition runs off the board better than any other team in the AL. The Babe Ruth era was over, but Lou Gehrig was still around, new star Joe DiMaggio arrived, Bill Dickey came into his prime, and Red Ruffing and Lefty Gomez anchored the pitching staff. The Yankees won 102 games, defeating Detroit by 19.5 games, Washington and Chicago by 20, and Cleveland by 22.5. Boston was close to .500, while St. Louis and Philadelphia were the doormats. The Yankees also won the World Series in six games.
Chicago's Luke Appling led the league with a .388 average, with Earl Averill second at .378. Gehrig led in on-base, slugging, and OPS. He also led in runs with 167 and homers with 49. Averill led with 232 hits, and tied for the triples lead with DiMaggio, each having 15. Charlie Gehringer had 60 doubles. Hal Trosky had 162 RBI and also led in total bases. Lyn Lary had 38 steals.
For pitchers, Tommy Bridges had 23 wins; Vern Kennedy was second with 21, Wes Ferrell, Johnny Allen, and Red Ruffing won 20 each. Lefty Grove led with a 2.81 ERA, trailed by Allen at 3.44 and Pete Appleton at 3.53. Bridges led with 175 strikeouts with Allen next at 165 and Bobo Newsom at 156.
Win Shares leaders, players; Lou Gehrig (New York) 38, Charlie Gehringer (Detroit) 34, Luke Appling (Chicago) 29, Earl Averill (Cleveland) 27, Jimmie Foxx (Boston) 26, Bill Dickey and Joe DiMaggio (New York) 25, Zeke Bonura (Chicago), Frankie Crosetti and Red Rolfe (New York) 24, Goose Goslin (Detroit) and Harlond Clift (St. Louis) 23.
Win Shares leaders, pitchers; Lefty Grove (Boston) 29, Wes Ferrell (Boston) 27, Tommy Bridges (Detroit) 26, Johnny Allen (Cleveland) 25, Red Ruffing (New York) 23, Schoolboy Rowe (Detroit) 21, Vern Kennedy (Chicago), Monte Pearson (New York) and Harry Kelley (Philadelphia) 20.
WARP3 scores: Gehrig 8.1, Gehringer 7.9, Rolfe 6.0, Dickey 5.7, Appling 5.5, John Stone (Washington) 5.1, Averill and Odell Hale (Cleveland) 4.7, DiMaggio 4.4 (rookie), Crosetti 4.3, Foxx 4.0 (first year in Boston), Bob Johnson (Philadelphia) 3.9, Clift 3.6. RBI leader Hal Trosky had 21 Win Shares and a WARP3 of 2.4.
Pitchers: Grove 7.3, Allen 6.2 (first year in Cleveland), Ferrell (last good year), and Kelley (his only good year) 5.4, Bridges 5.2 in his best season, Ruffing 4.4, Pearson (best season) and Ivy Andrews (St. Louis) 4.1, Rowe 3.9.
WAR leaders, position players: Gehrig 10.8, Gehringer 8.6, Appling 8.1, Averill 7.9, Foxx 7.8, Clift 6.4, DiMaggio 6.2, Rolfe 6.1, Dickey and Hale 6.0, Bonura 5.8, Trosky 5.7. Pitchers: Grove 8.9, Allen 6.4, Bridges 6.3, Ferrell 6.2, Kelley 5.5, Pearson 4.7, Ruffing 4.5, Appleton 4.1, Andrews 3.9, Rowe 3.8.
Actual award voting: MVP Top 10 | Season Results
Rk Name Team 1st Place Points Max Points Share| AB H HR BA OPS SB| W-L IP ERA WHIP SO SV
+--+----------------+----+-----+------+------+------+---+-----+-----+---+--+
1 Lou Gehrig NYY 0 73 80 0.91 | 579 205 49 .354 1.174 3
2 Luke Appling CHW 0 65 80 0.81 | 526 204 6 .388 .981 10
3 Earl Averill CLE 0 48 80 0.60 | 614 232 28 .378 1.065 3
4 Charlie Gehringer DET 0 39 80 0.49 | 641 227 15 .354 .987 4
5 Bill Dickey NYY 0 29 80 0.36 | 423 153 22 .362 1.045 0
6 Vern Kennedy CHW 0 27 80 0.34 | 113 32 0 .283 .643 0| 21-9 274 4.63 1.564 99
6 Joe Kuhel WSH 0 27 80 0.34 | 588 189 16 .321 .893 15
8 Joe DiMaggio NYY 0 26 80 0.32 | 637 206 29 .323 .928 4
9 Tommy Bridges DET 0 25 80 0.31 | 118 25 0 .212 .494 0| 23-11 295 3.60 1.371 175
10 Hal Trosky CLE 0 19 80 0.24 | 629 216 42 .343 1.026 6
Top player: Lou Gehrig was the easy leader in OPS+ and posted a .354-49-152 line that included the leading home run total. He is a solid #1 for the pennant-winners. 2nd to Charlie Gehringer for a season where he hit .354 and scored 144 runs. #3 to Luke Appling, winning the batting title at .388. Earl Averill #4 with a .378 average, leading the league in hits. Bill Dickey, Yankee catcher in his breakthrough year, gets #5.
Top pitcher: Lefty Grove led in ERA by a wide margin, posting a 17-12 record with that 2.81 mark. Johnny Allen ranks #2 with a 20-10 record and 3.44 ERA. Tommy Bridges ranks #3 with a 23-11 record and 3.60 ERA. Wes Ferrell #4 at 20-15, 4.19. Red Ruffing #5 at 20-12, 3.85.
Top rookie: Joe DiMaggio in one of the easiest decisions in history. The 21-year-old Californian had a .323-29-125 line and stellar defense that gave the Yankees a spark and started a new version of the Yankee dynasty.
Top manager: Joe McCarthy began his string as the "Push-Button Manager" by pushing all the right buttons.
