1978 in baseball

The following are the baseball events of the year 1978 throughout the world.

Major League Baseball

 * World Series: New York Yankees over Los Angeles Dodgers (4-2); Bucky Dent, MVP
 * American League Championship Series: New York Yankees (East) over Kansas City Royals (West) (3-1)
 * National League Championship Series: Los Angeles Dodgers (West) over Philadelphia Phillies (East) (3-1); Steve Garvey, MVP
 * All-Star Game, July 11 at San Diego Stadium: National League, 7-3; Steve Garvey, MVP

Other champions

 * Caribbean World Series: Indios de Mayagüez (Puerto Rico)
 * College World Series: USC
 * Japan Series: Yakult Swallows over Hankyu Braves (4-3)
 * Little League World Series: Pin-Kuang, Pin-Tung, Taiwan

Awards and honors

 * Most Valuable Player
 * Jim Rice (AL)
 * Dave Parker (NL)
 * Cy Young Award
 * Ron Guidry (AL)
 * Gaylord Perry (NL)
 * Rookie of the Year
 * Lou Whitaker (AL)
 * Bob Horner (NL)

Major League Baseball final standings
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Events

 * January 19 - Eddie Mathews is elected to the Hall of Fame by the Baseball Writers Association of America on 301 of 379 ballots.


 * April 1 - Starting off with a bang, Japanese star Sadaharu Oh hits a grand slam home run on opening day. It is his 757th home run.


 * April 8 - After an opening-day loss to the St. Louis Cardinals, the Philadelphia Phillies began their quest for a 3rd staright National League East Title with a 7-0 victory over the Cardinals at Philadelphia's Veteran's Stadium.


 * April 13 - The New York Yankees defeat the Chicago White Sox 4-2 in their home opener on Reggie Candy Bar Day. Reggie Jackson slugs a 3-run home run in the first inning, and the field is showered with candy bars which were given out free to the fans at the game.


 * April 16 - The St. Louis Cardinals' Bob Forsch hurls a no-hitter in beating the Philadelphia Phillies 5-0. Forsch walks 2 and strikes out 3 in pitching the first home no-hitter by a Cardinal since Jesse Haines in 1924. Roger Freed's bases-loaded pinch double drives in 3 runs to help beat Randy Lerch.


 * May 5 - Pete Rose singles off Montreal's Steve Rogers for career hit 3,000 and gets a hug at first base from former teammate Tony Perez. The Montreal Expos beat the Cincinnati Reds 4-3.


 * May 16 - The Cincinnati Reds' Tom Seaver strikes out 13 in beating the Montreal Expos 7-1 in Montreal.


 * May 23 - With the Oakland Athletics leading the American League Western Division (24-15), manager Bobby Winkles walks off the job. Jack McKeon takes over.


 * June 14 - Pete Rose starts his 44-game hitting streak by collecting 2 hits in the Reds' 3-1 win over the Chicago Cubs.


 * June 16 - In his 12th major league season speckled with near-misses, Cincinnati's Tom Seaver finally hurls a no-hitter. The Cardinals are the 4-0 victims as Seaver strikes out 3 batters.


 * June 17 - The Yankees' Ron Guidry strikes out 18 batters - 15 in 6 innings - in a 4-0 shutout of the California Angels, setting an American League record for lefthanders. The victory raises the New York Yankee southpaw's record to 11-0.


 * June 30 - In the first game of a 10-9, 10-5 doubleheader loss to the Atlanta Braves, the San Francisco Giants' Willie McCovey hits his 500th career home run, off Braves pitcher Jamie Easterly. McCovet becomes the 12th member of the 500th home run club. Giant Mike Ivie adds his 2nd pinch grand slam of the year in the opener. Giant Jack Clark has 3 runs in the 2 games.


 * July 11 - At San Diego, the National League wins the All-Star Game over the American League, 7–3. Dodgers first baseman Steve Garvey earns the MVP trophy. Vida Blue starts for the NL, becoming the first pitcher to start for both leagues in the All-Star Game. Blue also started in 1971 and 1975 for the American League.


 * August 1 - The Braves trounce the Reds 16-4 and stop Pete Rose's record hitting streak at 44 games. Larry McWilliams and Gene Garber are the Atlanta pitchers. Rose goes 0-for-4, including striking out in the 9th inning to end the game. Rose's streak is the 2nd-longest in major league history. He goes 70-for-182 during the skein (an average of .385).


 * August 2 - A day after his streak ends, Pete Rose collects 2 singles, a double and home run in the Reds' 6-2 win over Atlanta.


 * September 5 - The Montreal Expos beat the Chicago Cubs 10-8 in a 9-inning game that sees a Major-League record 45 players participate.


 * September 30 - The Phillies overcame a first-inning grand slam by Willie Stargell to beat the Pirates 10-8 to clinch their 3rd straight National League East Title. Winning pitcher Randy Lerch contributes two home runs yo his cause. The loss snaps the Pittsburgh Pirates' streak of 24 straight wins at Pittsburgh's Three Rivers Stadium.


 * October 2 - Bucky Dent's crucial 7th-inning home run helps the New York Yankees beat the Boston Red Sox 5-4 in a 1-game playoff for the American League East title.


 * October 4 - Steve Garvey smashes two home runs and a triple to pace the Dodgers to a 9-5 win over the Phillies in the opener of the National League Championship Series. Davey Lopes and Steve Yeager also homer at Veterans Stadium.


 * October 5 - Tommy John notches a 4-hit shutout to beat the Philadelphia Phillies 4-0, as Davey Lopes drives in three runs. The Dodgers lead the series 2 games to 0.


 * October 6 - The Phillies stay alive with a 9-4 win in Game 3 of the National League Championship Series, led by the pitching and hitting (home run,single, 4 RBIs), of Steve Carlton.


 * October 7 - The Los Angeles Dodgers win the National League Championship Series 4-3 over the Philadelphia Phillies as Bill Russell's 10th-inning 2-out single scores Ron Cey. Dusty Baker collects four hits for Los Angeles. A walk to Cey and a routine liner that Garry Maddox muffs in centerfield sets up Russell's game-winner. The Dodgers won the series 3 games to 1.


 * October 17 - The New York Yankees win their fourth straight game, 7-2, to clinch their second consecutive World Series over the Los Angeles Dodgers. Yankees shortstop Bucky Dent is named Series MVP.

Movies

 * A Love Affair: The Eleanor and Lou Gehrig Story (TV)
 * The Bad News Bears Go to Japan
 * One in a Million: The Ron LeFlore Story (TV)

Deaths

 * January 7 - George H. Burns, 84, first baseman for five AL teams who batted .307 lifetime and won 1926 MVP award with the Cleveland Indians
 * January 13 - Joe McCarthy, 90, Hall of Fame manager who led the New York Yankees to eight pennants and record seven World Series titles; also won 1929 NL pennant with Chciago Cubs, and was first manager to capture titles in both leagues; 2125 career wins ranked 4th in major league history, and winning percentages of .615 (regular season) and .698 (postseason) were both records
 * January 27 - Monte Pearson, 69, All-Star pitcher who won 100 games, mainly with the Indians and Yankees
 * February 23 - Vic Harris, 72, outfielder and manager in the Negro Leagues who guided the Homestead Grays to seven Negro National League pennants, including five in a row from 1937 to 1941; played in six East-West All-Star games between 1933 and 1947
 * March 12 - Gene Moore, 68, All-Star right fielder known for his accurate arm
 * March 30 - Billy Cox, 58, third baseman, mainly with the Brooklyn Dodgers, known for spectacular defense
 * April 8 - Ford Frick, 83, Hall of Fame executive who served as commissioner from 1951 to 1965 and NL president from 1935 to 1951; served as ghostwriter for Babe Ruth while a sportswriter, and in 1961 ruled that home run records of Ruth and Roger Maris would be recorded separately based on season length
 * April 14 - Joe Gordon, 63, 9-time All-Star second baseman in 11 seasons for the New York Yankees and Cleveland Indians who won the 1942 MVP award; set AL record of 246 home runs at his position, later a manager and scout
 * April 20 - Jack Graney, 91, Canadian left fielder and leadoff hitter for the Cleveland Indians who led AL in walks twice and doubles once; was first batter ever to face Babe Ruth, and later became broadcaster
 * May 29 - Carl Reynolds, 75, outfielder for five teams who batted .302 lifetime
 * August 5 - Jesse Haines, 85, Hall of Fame pitcher who won 210 games, including a no-hitter, for the St. Louis Cardinals; had three 20-win seasons, and won twice in 1926 World Series
 * August 18 - George Harper, 86, outfielder for six teams who batted .300 three times
 * September 16 - Bill Foster, 74, star pitcher in the Negro Leagues where he was a dominant lefthander; later coached at Alcorn State University for two decades
 * September 23 - Lyman Bostock, 27, outfielder for the Minnesota Twins and California Angels who twice batted .300
 * October 8 - Jim Gilliam, 49, All-Star infielder for the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers, previously in the Negro Leagues, who was the 1953 Rookie of the Year; led NL in triples and walks once each
 * October 27 - Rube Walberg, 82, pitcher who won 155 games, primarily with the Philadelphia Athletics
 * November 20 - Warren Brown, 84, Chicago sportswriter
 * December 9 - Dick Siebert, 66, All-Star first baseman for the Philadelphia Athletics who twice batted .300; coach at the University of Minnesota for 31 years, winning three College World Series titles
 * December 20 - Willard Mullin, 76, cartoonist whose caricature of the "Brooklyn Bum" personified the Dodgers franchise
 * December 24 - George McQuinn, 68, 7-time All-Star first baseman for the Browns and Yankees who had 34-game hitting streak in 1938