1939 New York Yankees season

The 1939 New York Yankees season was the team's 37th season. The team finished with a record of 106–45, winning their 11th pennant, finishing 17 games ahead of the Boston Red Sox. New York was managed by Joe McCarthy. The Yankees played their home games at Yankee Stadium. In the World Series, they beat the Cincinnati Reds in four games. As the Yankees had won each World Series dating back to 1936, this marked the first time any team had won four consecutive World Series. This was the first season for the Yankee's radio gameday broadcasts.

1939 New York Yankees
World Series Champions
American League Champions
LeagueAmerican League
BallparkYankee Stadium
CityNew York City, New York
OwnersEstate of Jacob Ruppert
General managersEd Barrow
ManagersJoe McCarthy
RadioWABC (AM)
(Arch McDonald, Garnett Marks, Mel Allen)
← 1938 Seasons 1940 →

Regular season

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The 1939 New York Yankees are one of only three Yankees teams (the 1927 and 1998 Yankees being the others) to ever finish the regular season with over a .700 winning percentage, lead the league in runs scored and fewest runs allowed, and go on to sweep the World Series. The 1939 Yankees are the only team to ever outscore their regular season opponents by over 400 runs (967–556).

"The Luckiest Man on the Face of the Earth"

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The Yankee duo reunited – Lou Gehrig and Babe Ruth (r) on Lou Gehrig Day (July 4, 1939).
 
Lou Gehrig's number 4 was retired by the New York Yankees in 1939.

The 1939 season would be the final time Yankees fans saw the team's starting veteran first baseman Lou Gehrig in action and in the uniform of the team he played for many years, given his declining health. On June 21, the New York Yankees announced his official retirement and proclaimed July 4, 1939, "Lou Gehrig Appreciation Day" at Yankee Stadium. Between games of the Independence Day doubleheader against the Washington Senators, the poignant ceremonies were held on the diamond. In its coverage the following day, The New York Times said it was "Perhaps as colorful and dramatic a pageant as ever was enacted on a baseball field [as] 61,808 fans thundered a hail and farewell".[1] Dignitaries extolled the dying slugger and the members of the 1927 Yankees World Championship team, known as "Murderer's Row", attended the ceremonies. New York Mayor Fiorello La Guardia called Gehrig "the greatest prototype of good sportsmanship and citizenship" and Postmaster General James Farley concluded his speech by predicting, "For generations to come, boys who play baseball will point with pride to your record."[1]

Yankees manager Joe McCarthy, struggling to control his emotions, then spoke of Lou Gehrig, with whom there was a close, almost father and son-like bond. After describing Gehrig as "the finest example of a ballplayer, sportsman, and citizen that baseball has ever known", McCarthy could stand it no longer. Turning tearfully to Gehrig, the manager said, "Lou, what else can I say except that it was a sad day in the life of everybody who knew you when you came into my hotel room that day in Detroit and told me you were quitting as a ballplayer because you felt yourself a hindrance to the team. My God, man, you were never that."

The Yankees retired Gehrig's uniform number "4", making him the first player in history to be afforded that honor. Gehrig was given many gifts, commemorative plaques, and trophies. Some came from VIPs; others came from the stadium's groundskeepers and janitorial staff. Footage of the ceremonies shows Gehrig being handed various gifts, and immediately setting them down on the ground, because he no longer had the arm strength to hold them.

Season standings

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American League
Team W L Pct. GB Home Road
New York Yankees 106 45 .702 52‍–‍25 54‍–‍20
Boston Red Sox 89 62 .589 17 42‍–‍32 47‍–‍30
Cleveland Indians 87 67 .565 20½ 44‍–‍33 43‍–‍34
Chicago White Sox 86 69 .555 22 50‍–‍27 36‍–‍42
Detroit Tigers 81 73 .526 26½ 42‍–‍35 39‍–‍38
Washington Senators 65 87 .428 41½ 37‍–‍39 28‍–‍48
Philadelphia Athletics 55 97 .362 51½ 28‍–‍48 27‍–‍49
St. Louis Browns 43 111 .279 64½ 18‍–‍59 25‍–‍52

Game log

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1939 game log: 106–45 (Home: 52–25; Away: 54–20)
April: 5–3 (Home: 3–2; Away: 2–1)
# Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Stadium Attendance Record
1 April 20 Red Sox 2–0 Ruffing (1–0) Grove (0–1) Yankee Stadium 30,278 1–0
2 April 21 @ Senators 6–3 Gomez (1–0) Krakauskas (0–1) Griffith Stadium 32,000 2–0
3 April 22 @ Senators 1–3 Leonard (1–0) Hildebrand (0–1) Griffith Stadium 12,000 2–1
4 April 23 @ Senators 7–4 Sundra (1–0) Chase (0–1) Griffith Stadium 22,000 3–1
5 April 24 Athletics 2–1 Pearson (1–0) Dean (0–1) Yankee Stadium 5,820 4–1
6 April 25 Athletics 8–4 Ruffing (2–0) Thomas (0–1) Hadley (1) Yankee Stadium 7,268 5–1
7 April 29 Senators 1–3 Chase (1–1) Gomez (1–1) Yankee Stadium 11,473 5–2
8 April 30 Senators 2–3 Krakauskas (1–2) Hildebrand (0–2) Carrasquel (1) Yankee Stadium 23,712 5–3
May: 24–4 (Home: 12–1; Away: 12–3)
# Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Stadium Attendance Record
9 May 2 @ Tigers 22–2 Ruffing (3–0) Kennedy (0–2) Briggs Stadium 11,379 6–3
10 May 3 @ Tigers 10–6 Sundra (2–0) Benton (0–1) Murphy (1) Briggs Stadium 14,136 7–3
11 May 4 @ Indians 10–6 (10) Murphy (1–0) Feller (3–1) League Park 12,000 8–3
12 May 5 @ Indians 1–2 (11) Milnar (1–0) Gomez (1–2) League Park 9,000 8–4
13 May 6 @ Indians 5–1 Pearson (2–0) Sullivan (0–1) League Park 10,000 9–4
14 May 7 @ White Sox 15–4 Ruffing (4–0) Whitehead (0–2) Comiskey Park 35,000 10–4
15 May 8 @ White Sox 3–5 Smith (2–0) Ferrell (0–1) Comiskey Park 6,000 10–5
16 May 9 @ White Sox 8–6 Donald (1–0) Lee (3–2) Murphy (2) Comiskey Park 7,000 11–5
17 May 10 @ Browns 7–1 Hadley (1–0) Marcum (2–3) Sportsman's Park 3,782 12–5
18 May 11 @ Browns 10–8 Pearson (3–0) Pyle (0–2) Murphy (3) Sportsman's Park 3,167 13–5
19 May 14 @ Athletics 10–0 Ruffing (5–0) Caster (3–3) Shibe Park 15,509 14–5
20 May 15 @ Athletics 3–0 Ferrell (1–1) Ross (0–3) Murphy (4) Shibe Park 5,000 15–5
21 May 16 Browns 7–5 Hadley (2–0) Kramer (3–1) Donald (1) Yankee Stadium 6,503 16–5
22 May 17 Browns 4–3 Pearson (4–0) Kennedy (0–4) Yankee Stadium 7,576 17–5
23 May 18 Browns 8–1 Donald (2–0) Mills (0–2) Yankee Stadium 6,870 18–5
24 May 19 White Sox 4–2 Ruffing (6–0) Smith (2–2) Yankee Stadium 9,755 19–5
25 May 20 White Sox 5–2 Hildebrand (1–2) Lee (3–4) Murphy (5) Yankee Stadium 18,371 20–5
26 May 21 Indians 12–6 Hadley (3–0) Humphries (1–3) Yankee Stadium 37,531 21–5
27 May 23 Indians 7–3 Donald (3–0) Allen (0–2) Yankee Stadium 5,058 22–5
28 May 24 Tigers 1–6 Trout (1–2) Ferrell (1–2) Yankee Stadium 10,875 22–6
29 May 25 Tigers 5–2 Ruffing (7–0) McKain (1–1) Yankee Stadium 12,087 23–6
30 May 26 Athletics 1–0 Hildebrand (2–2) Pippen (0–2) Yankee Stadium 5,139 24–6
31 May 27 Athletics 8–2 Gomez (2–2) Parmelee (1–6) Yankee Stadium 25–6
32 May 27 Athletics 11–9 Sundra (3–0) Dean (1–2) Murphy (6) Yankee Stadium 30,358 26–6
33 May 28 Athletics 9–5 Donald (4–0) Nelson (2–1) Yankee Stadium 14,670 27–6
34 May 29 @ Red Sox 6–1 Hadley (4–0) Bagby (3–2) Murphy (7) Fenway Park 17,000 28–6
35 May 30 @ Red Sox 4–8 Weaver (1–0) Ruffing (7–1) Fenway Park 28–7
36 May 30 @ Red Sox 17–9 Pearson (5–0) Wilson (2–3) Murphy (8) Fenway Park 35,000 29–7
June: 21–7 (Home: 9–3; Away: 12–4)
# Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Stadium Attendance Record
37 June 1 @ Indians 8–3 Gomez (3–2) Milnar (3–1) League Park 3,500 30–7
38 June 2 @ Indians 17–5 Donald (5–0) Allen (1–3) League Park 8,000 31–7
39 June 3 @ Indians 3–2 Hadley (5–0) Harder (0–3) Murphy (9) League Park 6,000 32–7
40 June 4 @ Tigers 8–4 Ruffing (8–1) Trout (2–3) Murphy (10) Briggs Stadium 44,190 33–7
41 June 5 @ Tigers 0–3 Bridges (7–1) Pearson (5–1) Briggs Stadium 9,910 33–8
42 June 6 @ Tigers 2–6 Newsom (6–3) Hildebrand (2–3) Briggs Stadium 11,924 33–9
43 June 7 @ White Sox 5–2 Gomez (4–2) Lee (4–6) Murphy (11) Comiskey Park 8,000 34–9
44 June 8 @ White Sox 7–2 Donald (6–0) Smith (3–4) Comiskey Park 7,500 35–9
45 June 11 @ Browns 8–5 Ruffing (9–1) Whitehead (0–5) Sportsman's Park 36–9
46 June 11 @ Browns 5–1 Hadley (6–0) Mills (1–4) Sportsman's Park 7,810 37–9
47 June 14 Indians 2–4 Feller (10–2) Murphy (1–1) Milnar (1) Yankee Stadium 11,301 37–10
48 June 15 Indians 1–0 Gomez (5–2) Harder (1–4) Yankee Stadium 9,619 38–10
49 June 16 Indians 4–3 Donald (7–0) Milnar (4–3) Russo (1) Yankee Stadium 10,171 39–10
50 June 17 Tigers 1–0 Ruffing (10–1) Newsom (7–4) Yankee Stadium 18,599 40–10
51 June 18 Tigers 5–8 Rowe (2–5) Hadley (6–1) Yankee Stadium 32,679 40–11
52 June 19 Tigers 8–5 Hildebrand (3–3) Trout (4–4) Yankee Stadium 6,469 41–11
53 June 20 White Sox 13–3 Pearson (6–1) Knott (2–2) Yankee Stadium 5,892 42–11
54 June 21 White Sox 9–8 Sundra (4–0) Brown (4–1) Murphy (12) Yankee Stadium 10,045 43–11
55 June 22 White Sox 6–1 Donald (8–0) Smith (3–5) Yankee Stadium 8,337 44–11
56 June 24 Browns 2–1 Ruffing (11–1) Harris (1–2) Yankee Stadium 11,382 45–11
57 June 25 Browns 3–7 Kramer (6–6) Murphy (1–2) Mills (1) Yankee Stadium 45–12
58 June 25 Browns 11–2 Hildebrand (4–3) Kennedy (4–8) Yankee Stadium 40,861 46–12
59 June 26 @ Athletics 2–3 Pippen (1–5) Hadley (6–2) Shibe Park 33,074 46–13
60 June 28 @ Athletics 23–2 Pearson (7–1) Nelson (5–3) Shibe Park 47–13
61 June 28 @ Athletics 10–0 Gomez (6–2) Caster (5–8) Shibe Park 21,612 48–13
62 June 29 @ Senators 1–2 (12) Leonard (7–2) Ruffing (11–2) Griffith Stadium 48–14
63 June 29 @ Senators 7–0 (6) Donald (9–0) Chase (3–9) Griffith Stadium 6,500 49–14
64 June 30 @ Senators 10–2 (7) Hildebrand (5–3) Carrasquel (4–5) Griffith Stadium 6,000 50–14
July: 16–12 (Home: 6–7; Away: 10–5)
# Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Stadium Attendance Record
65 July 1 @ Red Sox 3–5 Ostermueller (4–1) Russo (0–1) Fenway Park 12,000 50–15
66 July 2 @ Red Sox 3–7 Grove (8–2) Gomez (6–3) Fenway Park 50–16
67 July 2 @ Red Sox 9–3 Hadley (7–2) Auker (6–4) Fenway Park 35,000 51–16
68 July 4 Senators 2–3 Leonard (8–2) Pearson (7–2) Yankee Stadium 51–17
69 July 4 Senators 11–1 Sundra (5–0) Carrasquel (4–6) Yankee Stadium 61,808 52–17
70 July 5 Senators 6–4 Donald (10–0) Chase (3–10) Yankee Stadium 3,874 53–17
71 July 7 Red Sox 3–4 Dickman (2–1) Ruffing (11–3) Yankee Stadium 6,588 53–18
72 July 8 Red Sox 1–3 Ostermueller (5–1) Hildebrand (5–4) Yankee Stadium 53–19
73 July 8 Red Sox 2–3 Galehouse (3–3) Russo (0–2) Yankee Stadium 27,539 53–20
74 July 9 Red Sox 3–4 Dickman (3–1) Pearson (7–3) Yankee Stadium 53–21
75 July 9 Red Sox 3–5 Wilson (5–5) Hadley (7–3) Heving (4) Yankee Stadium 47,652 53–22
7th All-Star Game in The Bronx, New York
76 July 13 @ Tigers 6–10 Thomas (5–1) Murphy (1–3) Benton (2) Briggs Stadium 25,764 53–23
77 July 14 @ Tigers 6–3 Ruffing (12–3) Rowe (2–8) Briggs Stadium 19,279 54–23
78 July 15 @ Tigers 10–7 Pearson (8–3) Bridges (11–3) Murphy (13) Briggs Stadium 31,253 55–23
79 July 16 @ Indians 5–2 Gomez (7–3) Eisenstat (4–4) Cleveland Stadium 56–23
80 July 16 @ Indians 8–3 Russo (1–2) Harder (3–7) Cleveland Stadium 63,064 57–23
81 July 17 @ Indians 3–0 Hadley (8–3) Feller (14–4) Cleveland Stadium 10,000 58–23
82 July 18 @ Browns 9–0 Donald (11–0) Mills (2–6) Sportsman's Park 59–23
83 July 18 @ Browns 4–3 Hildebrand (6–4) Kramer (6–9) Murphy (14) Sportsman's Park 4,853 60–23
84 July 20 @ Browns 2–1 Ruffing (13–3) Harris (2–5) Sportsman's Park 3,100 61–23
85 July 21 @ White Sox 1–4 Smith (6–5) Pearson (8–4) Comiskey Park 10,000 61–24
86 July 23 @ White Sox 5–8 Lyons (10–2) Gomez (7–4) Comiskey Park 61–25
87 July 23 @ White Sox 5–4 Hadley (9–3) Brown (7–4) Murphy (15) Comiskey Park 51,000 62–25
88 July 25 Browns 5–1 Donald (12–0) Harris (2–6) Yankee Stadium 6,076 63–25
89 July 26 Browns 14–1 Ruffing (14–3) Gill (1–9) Yankee Stadium 4,843 64–25
90 July 28 White Sox 2–1 Hildebrand (7–4) Smith (6–6) Yankee Stadium 7,946 65–25
91 July 30 White Sox 4–3 Gomez (8–4) Lyons (10–3) Murphy (16) Yankee Stadium 66–25
92 July 30 White Sox 1–5 Lee (9–8) Hadley (9–4) Yankee Stadium 35,256 66–26
August: 21–10 (Home: 8–5; Away: 13–5)
# Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Stadium Attendance Record
93 August 1 Tigers 2–5 Trout (6–7) Ruffing (14–4) McKain (3) Yankee Stadium 10,382 66–27
94 August 2 Tigers 2–7 Rowe (4–9) Donald (12–1) Yankee Stadium 12,341 66–28
95 August 3 Tigers 12–3 Pearson (9–4) Newsom (12–8) Yankee Stadium 9,010 67–28
96 August 4 Indians 5–4 Hildebrand (8–4) Milnar (6–8) Russo (2) Yankee Stadium 6,263 68–28
97 August 5 Indians 6–1 Ruffing (15–4) Eisenstat (5–5) Yankee Stadium 13,207 69–28
98 August 6 Indians 4–5 Feller (16–6) Gomez (8–5) Yankee Stadium 69–29
99 August 6 Indians 1–7 Harder (7–7) Hadley (9–5) Yankee Stadium 76,753 69–30
100 August 8 @ Senators 4–7 Krakauskas (9–11) Donald (12–2) Appleton (5) Griffith Stadium 12,000 69–31
101 August 9 @ Senators 13–8 Ruffing (16–4) Chase (7–14) Hildebrand (1) Griffith Stadium 14,000 70–31
102 August 10 @ Senators 5–7 Leonard (13–4) Pearson (9–5) Appleton (6) Griffith Stadium 14,000 70–32
103 August 11 @ Athletics 9–5 Gomez (9–5) Potter (6–8) Hadley (2) Shibe Park 14,116 71–32
104 August 12 @ Athletics 18–4 Sundra (6–0) Joyce (3–5) Shibe Park 4,000 72–32
105 August 13 @ Athletics 9–12 Nelson (7–7) Russo (1–3) Shibe Park 72–33
106 August 13 @ Athletics 21–0 (8) Ruffing (17–4) Pippen (2–9) Shibe Park 34,570 73–33
107 August 15 Senators 3–2 (10) Gomez (10–5) Chase (7–15) Yankee Stadium 8,049 74–33
108 August 16 Senators 4–0 Russo (2–3) Leonard (13–5) Yankee Stadium 6,607 75–33
109 August 17 Senators 9–8 (10) Murphy (2–3) Appleton (3–8) Yankee Stadium 6,704 76–33
110 August 18 Athletics 5–0 Ruffing (18–4) Pippen (2–10) Yankee Stadium 6,041 77–33
111 August 20 Athletics 4–5 Ross (5–11) Gomez (10–6) Yankee Stadium 77–34
112 August 20 Athletics 5–1 Sundra (7–0) Nelson (8–8) Yankee Stadium 33,562 78–34
113 August 22 @ White Sox 14–5 Russo (3–3) Marcum (5–7) Comiskey Park 50,000 79–34
114 August 23 @ White Sox 7–2 Donald (13–2) Smith (8–8) Comiskey Park 80–34
115 August 23 @ White Sox 16–4 Ruffing (19–4) Lee (11–9) Comiskey Park 27,000 81–34
116 August 24 @ Browns 11–5 Pearson (10–5) Mills (3–9) Murphy (17) Sportsman's Park 1,225 82–34
117 August 25 @ Browns 11–0 Sundra (8–0) Kennedy (8–16) Sportsman's Park 83–34
118 August 25 @ Browns 8–2 Gomez (11–6) Gill (1–11) Sportsman's Park 2,182 84–34
119 August 26 @ Browns 6–1 Hadley (10–5) Harris (2–10) Sportsman's Park 2,967 85–34
120 August 27 @ Tigers 13–3 Ruffing (20–4) Rowe (7–10) Briggs Stadium 47,966 86–34
121 August 28 @ Tigers 18–2 Russo (4–3) Bridges (16–5) Briggs Stadium 14,281 87–34
122 August 29 @ Tigers 6–7 McKain (3–4) Murphy (2–4) Briggs Stadium 11,397 87–35
123 August 30 @ Indians 3–4 (10) Eisenstat (7–6) Murphy (2–5) Cleveland Stadium 35,336 87–36
September: 19–9 (Home: 14–7; Away: 5–2)
# Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Stadium Attendance Record
124 September 1 @ Indians 11–8 Chandler (1–0) Eisenstat (7–7) Russo (3) Cleveland Stadium 20,000 88–36
125 September 2 @ Red Sox 7–12 Ostermueller (11–3) Ruffing (20–5) Heving (7) Fenway Park 12,500 88–37
126 September 3 @ Red Sox 11–12 Auker (9–8) Murphy (2–6) Heving (8) Fenway Park 88–38
127 September 3 @ Red Sox 5–5 (7) Fenway Park 27,000 88–38
128 September 4 @ Athletics 7–6 Chandler (2–0) Potter (7–10) Murphy (18) Shibe Park 89–38
129 September 4 @ Athletics 2–0 Russo (5–3) Nelson (9–10) Shibe Park 24,126 90–38
130 September 6 Red Sox 2–1 Gomez (12–6) Grove (13–4) Yankee Stadium 11,715 91–38
131 September 7 Red Sox 5–2 Pearson (11–5) Ostermueller (11–4) Hildebrand (2) Yankee Stadium 9,379 92–38
132 September 8 Red Sox 4–1 (7) Ruffing (21–5) Galehouse (7–9) Yankee Stadium 8,457 93–38
133 September 9 Senators 5–2 Sundra (9–0) Haynes (6–12) Yankee Stadium 7,401 94–38
134 September 10 Senators 4–3 Russo (6–3) Appleton (4–10) Yankee Stadium 95–38
135 September 10 Senators 6–2 Hadley (11–5) Leonard (17–7) Murphy (19) Yankee Stadium 12,088 96–38
136 September 12 Indians 3–4 (10) Harder (12–8) Gomez (12–7) Yankee Stadium 4,638 96–39
137 September 13 Indians 4–9 Feller (21–8) Ruffing (21–6) Yankee Stadium 9,898 96–40
138 September 14 Tigers 1–6 Newsom (17–11) Donald (13–3) Yankee Stadium 10,938 96–41
139 September 15 Tigers 10–3 Sundra (10–0) Rowe (8–11) Yankee Stadium 10,538 97–41
140 September 16 Tigers 8–5 Russo (7–3) Pippen (4–12) Yankee Stadium 10,626 98–41
141 September 17 Browns 4–8 Kramer (9–14) Ruffing (21–7) Yankee Stadium 98–42
142 September 17 Browns 1–3 Mills (4–11) Gomez (12–8) Yankee Stadium 21,027 98–43
143 September 18 Browns 6–2 Hadley (12–5) Wade (1–5) Yankee Stadium 1,678 99–43
144 September 19 White Sox 6–2 Hildebrand (9–4) Smith (9–10) Yankee Stadium 3,608 100–43
145 September 20 White Sox 8–4 Sundra (11–0) Lyons (13–6) Yankee Stadium 2,977 101–43
146 September 21 White Sox 5–2 Russo (8–3) Dietrich (7–8) Yankee Stadium 2,150 102–43
147 September 23 @ Senators 7–1 Pearson (12–5) Leonard (19–8) Griffith Stadium 8,000 103–43
148 September 24 @ Senators 3–2 Chandler (3–0) Chase (10–19) Griffith Stadium 12,000 104–43
149 September 28 Athletics 8–4 Hildebrand (10–4) McCrabb (1–2) Yankee Stadium 105–43
150 September 28 Athletics 4–5 Caster (9–9) Hadley (12–6) Yankee Stadium 4,187 105–44
151 September 30 Red Sox 5–4 Murphy (3–6) Bagby (5–5) Yankee Stadium 106–44
152 September 30 Red Sox 2–4 (7) Wilson (11–11) Sundra (11–1) Yankee Stadium 7,501 106–45

Record vs. opponents

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Sources: [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8]
Team BOS CWS CLE DET NYY PHA SLB WSH
Boston 8–14 11–11 10–12 11–8–1 18–4 16–6 15–7
Chicago 14–8 12–10 12–10 4–18 11–11 18–4 14–8–1
Cleveland 11–11 10–12 11–11 7–15 18–4 16–6 14–8
Detroit 12–10 10–12 11–11 9–13 11–11 14–8–1 14–8
New York 8–11–1 18–4 15–7 13–9 18–4 19–3 15–7
Philadelphia 4–18 11–11 4–18 11–11 4–18 13–9–1 8–12
St. Louis 6–16 4–18 6–16 8–14–1 3–19 9–13–1 7–15
Washington 7–15 8–14–1 8–14 8–14 7–15 12–8 15–7


Notable transactions

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Roster

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1939 New York Yankees
Roster
Pitchers Catchers

Infielders

Outfielders Manager

Coaches

Player stats

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= Indicates team leader

Batting

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Starters by position

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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 Bill Dickey 128 480 145 .302 24 105
1B Babe Dahlgren 144 531 125 .235 15 89
2B Joe Gordon 151 567 161 .284 28 111
3B Red Rolfe 152 648 213 .329 14 80
SS Frankie Crosetti 152 656 154 .233 10 56
OF Joe DiMaggio 120 462 176 .381 30 126
OF George Selkirk 128 418 128 .306 21 101
OF Charlie Keller 111 398 133 .334 11 83

Other batters

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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
Tommy Henrich 99 347 96 .277 9 57
Buddy Rosar 43 105 29 .276 0 12
Jake Powell 31 86 21 .244 1 9
Joe Gallagher 14 41 10 .244 2 9
Lou Gehrig 8 28 4 .143 0 1
Bill Knickerbocker 6 13 2 .154 0 1
Arndt Jorgens 3 0 0 ---- 0 0

Pitching

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Starting pitchers

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Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player G IP W L ERA SO
Red Ruffing 28 233.1 21 7 2.93 95
Lefty Gomez 26 198.0 12 8 3.41 102
Bump Hadley 26 154.0 12 6 2.98 65
Atley Donald 24 153.0 13 3 3.71 55
Monte Pearson 22 146.1 12 5 4.49 76
Oral Hildebrand 21 126.2 10 4 3.06 50
Wes Ferrell 3 19.1 1 2 4.66 6

Other pitchers

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Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player G IP W L ERA SO
Steve Sundra 24 121.2 11 1 2.76 27
Marius Russo 21 116.0 8 3 2.41 55

Relief pitchers

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Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player G W L SV ERA SO
Johnny Murphy 38 3 6 19 4.40 30
Spud Chandler 11 3 0 0 2.84 4
Marv Breuer 1 1 0 0 9.00 0

1939 World Series

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AL New York Yankees (4) vs. NL Cincinnati Reds (0)

Game Score Date Location Attendance
1 Reds – 1, Yankees – 2 October 4 Yankee Stadium 58,541
2 Reds – 0, Yankees – 4 October 5 Yankee Stadium 59,791
3 Yankees – 7, Reds – 3 October 7 Crosley Field 32,723
4 Yankees – 7, Reds – 4 (10 innings) October 8 Crosley Field 32,794

Awards and honors

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Team

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The book Baseball Dynasties: The Greatest Teams of All Time ranked the 1939 Yankees the greatest MLB team of all time. In 2017, website FiveThirtyEight ranked the 1939 Yankees as the greatest team of all time (across major North American sports leagues), based on Elo rating.[3]

In the MLB modern era (since 1900), the 1939 Yankees have recorded the best run differential, +411, having scored 967 runs while allowing 556.[4]

Individuals

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The Yankees, in hosting the 1939 All-Star Game at Yankee Stadium, were represented by Red Ruffing, Joe DiMaggio, Joe Gordon, Bill Dickey, Lefty Gomez, Frankie Crosetti, George Selkirk and Johnny Murphy.[5] Lou Gehrig attended the game as part of the AL reserves and did not play.

Joe DiMaggio won his first of three Most Valuable Player (MVP) Awards, though he only played 120 games due to injury. He batted .381 and averaged over one RBI per game.

Farm system

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Level Team League Manager
AA Kansas City Blues American Association Billy Meyer
AA Newark Bears International League Johnny Neun
A Binghamton Triplets Eastern League Bruno Betzel
B Norfolk Tars Piedmont League Ray White
B Augusta Tigers Sally League Lefty Jenkins
B Wenatchee Chiefs Western International League Glenn Wright
C Amsterdam Rugmakers Canadian–American League Eddie Sawyer
C Akron Yankees Middle Atlantic League Pip Koehler
C Joplin Miners Western Association Claude Jonnard
D Newport Canners Appalachian League Pete Doyle, Clarence Harris, Bob O'Brien,
Ken Mackes and Art Ruble
D El Paso Texans Arizona–Texas League Ted Mayer
D Neosho Yankees Arkansas–Missouri League Dennis Burns
D Easton Yankees Eastern Shore League Ray Powell
D Butler Yankees Pennsylvania State Association Tom Kain
D Big Spring Barons West Texas–New Mexico League Tony Rego
D Norfolk Elks Western League Doc Bennett

LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: Augusta[6]

Notes

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  1. ^ a b John Drebinger, "61,808 Fans Roar Tribute to Gehrig", The New York Times, July 5, 1939.
  2. ^ Len Gabrielson page at Baseball Reference
  3. ^ Paine, Neil (June 14, 2017). "The Warriors Are Great, But Are They Better Than The 1939 Yankees?". FiveThirtyEight. Retrieved September 26, 2022.
  4. ^ "which mlb team had the best run differential season". statmuse.com. Retrieved September 26, 2022.
  5. ^ "1939 MLB All-Star Game Roster - Major League Baseball - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved February 7, 2019.
  6. ^ Johnson, Lloyd, and Wolff, Miles, ed., The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball, 2nd and 3rd editions. Durham, North Carolina: Baseball America, 1997 and 2007

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