The 1939 Brooklyn Dodgers started the year with a new manager, Leo Durocher, who became both the team's manager and starting shortstop. They also became the first New York NL team to have a regular radio broadcast, with Red Barber handling the announcers job, and the first team to have a television broadcast (during their August 26 home game doubleheaders against the Reds, both of which WNBT covered for the NBC network). The team finished in third place, showing some improvement over the previous seasons.
Offseason December 13, 1938: Fred Frankhouse was traded by the Dodgers to the Boston Bees for Joe Stripp.Fred Frankhouse at Baseball-Reference December 13, 1938: Lew Krausse and cash were traded by the Dodgers to the St. Louis Cardinals for Jimmy Outlaw.Jimmy Outlaw at Baseball-Reference December 13, 1938: Jimmy Outlaw and Buddy Hassett were traded by the Dodgers to the Boston Bees for Gene Moore and Ira Hutchinson. December 19, 1938: Luke Sewell was purchased by the Dodgers from the Chicago White Sox.Luke Sewell at Baseball-Reference February 2, 1939: Tom Lanning was purchased by the Dodgers from the Philadelphia Phillies.Tom Lanning at Baseball-Reference February 6, 1939: Kemp WickerKemp Wicker at Baseball-Reference and Chris HartjeChris Hartje at Baseball-Reference were purchased by the Dodgers from the New York Yankees. February 23, 1939: Woody English was purchased from the Dodgers by the Chicago Cubs.Woody English at Baseball-Reference March 31, 1939: Bill Posedel was traded by the Dodgers to the Boston Bees for Al Todd.Bill Posedel at Baseball-Reference
Regular season
Season standings
Record vs. opponents
Notable transactions May 3, 1939: Lyn Lary was purchased by the Dodgers from the Cleveland Indians.Lyn Lary at Baseball-Reference June 15, 1939: Mel Almada was purchased by the Dodgers from the St. Louis Browns.Mel Almada at Baseball-Reference July 18, 1939: Pee Wee Reese was purchased by the Dodgers from the Boston Red Sox.Pee Wee Reese at Baseball-Reference August 12, 1939: Herman Besse was purchased from the Dodgers by the Philadelphia Athletics.Herman Besse at Baseball-Reference August 12, 1939: Al Hollingsworth was purchased by the Dodgers from the New York Yankees.Al Hollingsworth at Baseball-Reference August 17, 1939: Rae Blaemire was purchased from the Dodgers by the New York Giants.Rae Blaemire at Baseball-Reference August 23, 1939: Ray Hayworth was traded by the Dodgers to the New York Giants for Jimmy RippleJimmy Ripple at Baseball-Reference
Roster 1939 Brooklyn Dodgers Roster Pitchers Catchers
Infielders Outfielders Manager
Coaches
Player stats
Batting
Starters by position Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in Pos Player G AB H Avg. HR RBI C 98 323 92 .285 6 42 1B 157 565 164 .290 26 104 2B 115 419 116 .277 4 43 3B 153 587 176 .300 10 87 SS 116 390 108 .277 1 34 OF 107 306 69 .225 3 39 OF 71 239 65 .272 1 19 OF 125 425 118 .278 8 67
Other batters Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in Player G AB H Avg. HR RBI 109 343 87 .254 2 32 86 245 68 .278 5 32 61 225 63 .280 2 38 68 201 54 .269 3 19 54 183 46 .251 1 12 39 112 24 .214 0 3 28 106 35 .330 0 22 32 84 23 .274 1 7 14 39 11 .282 3 6 29 31 5 .161 0 1 21 26 4 .154 0 1 9 16 5 .313 0 5 9 13 3 .231 0 1 4 7 0 .000 0 0 1 0 0 ---- 0 0
Pitching
Starting pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts Player G IP W L ERA SO 40 269.2 20 13 3.64 88 27 151.1 7 9 3.87 44 16 109.0 8 3 2.31 52 14 77.1 4 5 3.26 34
Other pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts Player G IP W L ERA SO 40 227.1 15 10 2.93 79 39 158.2 9 8 4.37 83 31 156.2 9 7 4.02 43 24 64.1 1 8 5.18 28 6 38.1 4 0 2.58 10 8 27.1 1 2 5.27 11 5 17.2 1 2 1.02 7 3 5.0 0 0 5.40 2
Relief pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts Player G W L SV ERA SO 41 5 2 1 4.34 46 1 0 0 0 0.00 1
Awards and honors 1939 Major League Baseball All-Star Game Dolph Camilli reserve Cookie Lavagetto reserve Babe Phelps reserve Whit Wyatt reserve TSN Manager of the Year Award Leo Durocher TSN Major League Executive of the Year Award Larry MacPhail
League top five finishers Dolph Camilli #3 in NL in home runs (26) #4 in NL in runs batted in (104) #4 in NL in runs scored (105) #4 in NL in on-base percentage (.409) #4 in NL in slugging percentage (.524)
Hugh Casey #4 in NL in earned run average (2.93)
Luke Hamlin #4 in NL in wins (20)
Cookie Lavagetto #4 in NL in stolen bases (14)
Farm system
LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: Greenwood, Pine Bluff
Notes
References Baseball-Reference season page Baseball Almanac season page
External links 1939 Brooklyn Dodgers uniform Brooklyn Dodgers reference site Acme Dodgers page Retrosheet