Champions World Series: Boston Red Sox over Chicago Cubs (4–2)

Statistical leaders American League National League Stat Player Total Player Total AVG Ty Cobb (DET) .382 Zack Wheat (BRO) .335 HR Babe Ruth (BOS)Tillie Walker (PHA) 11 Gavvy Cravath (PHI) 8 RBI Bobby Veach (DET) 84 Sherry Magee (CIN) 76 W Walter Johnson1 (WSH) 23 Hippo Vaughn2 (CHC) 22 ERA Walter Johnson1 (WSH) 1.27 Hippo Vaughn2 (CHC) 1.74 K Walter Johnson1 (WSH) 162 Hippo Vaughn2 (CHC) 148 1 American League Triple Crown pitching winner

2 National League Triple Crown pitching winner

Major league baseball final standings American League final standings

National League final standings

Events January

February

March March 23 – The Boston Red Sox played an exhibition game against the Brooklyn Dodgers at the Army cantonment at Camp Pike in Arkansas featuring Babe Ruth hitting five home runs and spawning the Boston American headline: "Babe Ruth Puts Five Over Fence, Heretofore Unknown to Baseball Fans."War Fever: Boston, Baseball, and America in the Shadow of the Great War by Randy Roberts and Johnny Smith

April April 15 – The American League season opened with Boston Red Sox ace Babe Ruth pitching a four-hit, 7–1 victory over the Philadelphia Athletics. Shortly after, Boston manager Ed Barrow started Ruth's conversion to slugger by working him into seventy-two games as an outfielder–first baseman. April 18 – Cleveland Indians center fielder Tris Speaker turned an unassisted double play against the Detroit Tigers. Eleven days later, Speaker duplicated the feat against the Chicago White Sox for the fourth unassisted double play of his career to set a franchise record for an outfielder that he would later share with teammate Elmer Smith.

May May 14 – Sunday baseball was officially legalized in Washington, D.C. after district commissioners finally rescinded the ban in response to the large increase in the city's wartime population and the need for more recreational activities. May 19 – Babe Ruth fell ill. His temperature climbed to 104 degrees, his body ached, he shivered with chills, and his throat throbbed. He had all the symptoms of the Spanish Flu, but was treated with silver nitrate for tonsillitis which worsened his condition to the point where he was admitted to Massachusetts General Hospital. After a significant scare, he recovered about a week later.War Fever: Boston, Baseball, and America in the Shadow of the Great War by Randy Roberts and Johnny Smith May 23 – General Enoch Crowder, provost marshal of the Army who constructed the Selective Service Act, commonly known as "the draft", issued an order that stated young men should get into essential work by July 1 or face induction into the armed services. The "Work or Fight" rule exempted theatrical performers such as actors, singers and musicians because they provided "essential recreation" but baseball players got no such exemption.Baseball: The Presidents' Game By William B. Mead, Paul Dickson

June June 3 – Dutch Leonard tosses the second no-hitter of his career, leading the Boston Red Sox to a 5–0 victory over the Detroit Tigers. June 5 – Lieutenant Leon Cadore, on leave from his military duties, throws a four hitter for Brooklyn as the Dodgers beat the Cardinals, 2–0 at Ebbets Field. While on furlough, Cadore appeared in two games for the Dodgers this season. June 13 – St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Cliff Heathcote hits for the cycle against the Philadelphia Phillies. The game would be called for darkness with the score tied 8–8.

July July 19 – Newton Baker, Secretary of War, re-affirmed the position that baseball was not essential following an appeal by Washington Senators catcher Eddie Ainsmith and that players must take an essential job or be drafted.Baseball: The Presidents' Game By William B. Mead, Paul Dickson July 27 – Appearing in his first and only game in the majors, relief pitcher Harry Heitmann gives up four hits to each of the four batters he faces in Brooklyn's 22–7 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals. Heitmann is pulled from the game and never appears again, making him the only known major league pitcher whose E.R.A. is infinity.

August August 1 – The Pittsburgh Pirates and the Boston Braves went head-to-head for a major-league record twenty scoreless innings. Marathon man Art Nehf went the distance for Boston, but was eventually beaten 2–0 in the twenty-first inning. August 9 – Cincinnati Reds manager Christy Mathewson suspended Hal Chase indefinitely after suspecting him of taking bribes to fix games. Chase was eventually reinstated and returned to play for the New York Giants in 1919. August 30 – Carl Mays pitched two nine-inning complete game victories on the same day, as the Boston Red Sox bested the Philadelphia Athletics 12–0 and 4–1 at Fenway Park. Mays finished with a 21–13 record, as the season is abbreviated because of World War I. Those wins put the Red Sox one step from clinching the American League championship, as they led the Cleveland Indians by 3½ games with four remaining to play en route to the 1918 World Series title.

September September 1 – During the regular season, Washington Senators ace Walter Johnson completed fifteen extra inning games, including two of eighteen innings, one of sixteen innings, and another of fifteen innings. September 2: In the last game of the season, against the Chicago White Sox, Detroit Tigers centerfielder Ty Cobb fields at third base and also pitches, yielding three hits and one run in two innings. The date upon which the regular season ended early following a compromise between Presidents Ban Johnson of the American League and John K. Tener of the National League with Secretary of War Newton Baker and General Enoch Crowder Baseball: The Presidents' Game By William B. Mead, Paul Dickson September 5 – During the 7th inning stretch in Game 1 of the World Series, a military band played the "Star Spangled Banner" as a tribute to all servicemen on leave and in attendance. From then on, the song was played at every World Series outing and every season opener, though it was not yet adopted as the national anthem. The custom of playing it before every game began during World War II, after the installation of stadium speaker systems made it more feasible. September 11 – Against the backdrop of World War I, which forced the premature ending to the regular season on September 2, the Boston Red Sox defeated the Chicago Cubs, 2–1, in Game 6 of the World Series to win their fifth world championship, and third in four years, four games to two. The Red Sox would not win another championship for the next 86 years.

October October 5 – National League infielder Eddie Grant became the first major league player killed in wartime action while leading a mission in the Meuse–Argonne Offensive to rescue the Lost Battalion, which was trapped behind German lines. Other players killed in World War I included Alex Burr, Larry Chappell, Ralph Sharman, and Bun Troy.

November

December

Births January January 5 – Jack Kramer January 6 – John Corriden January 6 – Bill Zinser January 8 – Alma Ziegler January 9 – Ferrell Anderson January 10 – Bill Lillard January 11 – Ernie Andres January 11 – Al Gardella January 13 – Everett Fagan January 13 – Steve Mesner January 13 – Emmett O'Neill January 23 – Randy Gumpert January 23 – Sam Jethroe January 23 – Chris Pelekoudas January 25 – Ernie Harwell January 25 – Ed Head January 25 – Steve Roser January 29 – Bill Rigney January 31 – Sid Peterson

February February 3 – Sid Schacht February 3 – Quincy Smith February 5 – Cy Buker February 6 – Ernie Kish February 8 – Cookie Cuccurullo February 8 – Butch Nieman February 12 – Monk Dubiel February 13 – Norm Wallen February 14 – Benny Zientara February 16 – Creepy Crespi February 18 – José Antonio Casanova February 22 – Charles O. Finley February 22 – Jackie Sullivan February 23 – Jim Carlin February 23 – Hillis Layne February 25 – George Diehl

March March 1 – Hank Wyse March 2 – Frank Colman March 3 – Bill Hoffman March 3 – Forrest Thompson March 4 – Mel Queen March 9 – Dale Alderson March 11 – Lyman Bostock March 11 – Ed Fernandes March 13 – Eddie Pellagrini March 14 – Arnold Carter March 16 – Vern Olsen March 18 – Ruby Knezovich March 18 – Dick Mulligan March 21 – Ed Klieman March 22 – Bill Butland March 22 – Carl Miles March 23 – Lou Lucier March 31 – Marv Grissom

April April 4 – Carlos Ascanio April 7 – Bobby Doerr April 8 – Bob Mavis April 12 – Chucho Ramos April 19 – Whitey Kurowski April 19 – Vidal López April 21 – Jack Brewer April 22 – Marshall Riddle April 22 – Mickey Vernon April 25 – Tex Shirley April 26 – Jack Kraus April 27 – John Rice April 30 – Louella Daetweiler

May May 2 – Berith Melin May 5 – John Leovich May 7 – Al Epperly May 11 – Dewey Adkins May 12 – Ed Runge May 13 – Carden Gillenwater May 13 – Lonnie Goldstein May 14 – Wimpy Quinn May 18 – Dewey Adkins May 18 – Rufe Gentry May 21 – Stan Goletz May 21 – Neb Stewart May 23 – Frank Mancuso May 25 – Johnny Beazley May 28 – Bob Malloy May 29 – Bill Burich

June June 5 – Al Javery June 5 – Dave Odom June 12 – Bitsy Mott June 17 – Pete Elko June 21 – Eddie Lopat June 26 – Elmer Singleton

July July 1 – Al Tate July 6 – Hal Marnie July 10 – Chuck Stevens July 18 – Al Lyons July 21 – Chet Hajduk July 23 – Pee Wee Reese July 23 – Walter Sessi July 28 – Ross Davis July 30 – Jack Conway

August August 4 – Don Kolloway August 4 – Frank McElyea August 8 – Red Roberts August 8 – Marlin Stuart August 12 – Charlie Gassaway August 13 – Elmer Weingartner August 23 – Ken Holcombe August 23 – Ed Murphy August 23 – Rocky Stone August 25 – Paul Busby August 28 – Jeff Cross August 28 – Ronny Miller August 29 – Garland Lawing August 29 – Joe Schultz August 30 – Billy Johnson August 30 – Ted Williams

September September 1 – Joe L. Brown September 1 – Jim Mallory September 2 – Len Rice September 4 – Bill Endicott September 4 – George Pfister September 9 – Woody Crowson September 11 – Randy Heflin September 11 – Marjorie Peters September 12 – Al Libke September 17 – Bob Dillinger September 26 – Walt Chipple September 30 – Jim Castiglia

October October 1 – Jim Russell October 4 – Red Munger October 6 – Jimmy Grant October 7 – Frank Baumholtz October 7 – Irv Hall October 11 – Bob Chipman October 15 – Austin Knickerbocker October 17 – Howie Moss October 18 – Fred Vaughn October 21 – Ralph McCabe October 22 – Fred Caligiuri October 22 – Lou Klein October 25 – Nanny Fernandez October 26 – Snuffy Stirnweiss October 27 – Ed Albosta October 30 – Tony Ordeñana

November November 1 – Héctor Benítez November 1 – Lefty Sloat November 3 – Joe Cleary November 3 – Bob Feller November 5 – Rogelio Martínez November 10 – John Henry Moss November 21 – Dorothy Maguire November 27 – Pat Capri November 28 – Russ Meers November 30 – Janice O'Hara

December December 1 – Lefty Sloat December 3 – Joe Cleary December 4 – William Metzig December 8 – Sam Zoldak December 9 – Clarence Beers December 17 – Johanna Hageman December 17 – Dale Jones December 19 – Bill DeKoning December 19 – Tommy O'Brien December 22 – Bill Kennedy December 31 – Fats Dantonio December 31 – Al Lakeman

Deaths January January 9 – George Ulrich, 48, National League outfielder who played between 1892 and 1896 for the Washington Senators, Cincinnati Reds and New York Giants. January 24 – Mike Gaule, 48, outfielder for the 1889 Louisville Colonels of the American Association.

February February 2 – Jack Crooks, 52, second baseman who played with four different teams between 1889 and 1896, and also managed the 1892 St. Louis Browns of the National League. February 5 – Carl Druhot, 35, pitcher who played from 1906 to 1907 for the Cincinnati Reds and St. Louis Cardinals. February 21 – John Fogarty, 53, outfielder for the 1885 St. Louis Maroons of the National League.

March March 2 – George Kaiserling, 24, pitcher who played from 1914 through 1915 with the Indianapolis Hoosiers and the Newark Pepper of the Federal League.