1989 in baseball

**This year in baseball**
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	1900s
	1909 • 1908 • 1907 • 1906 • 1905; 1904 • 1903 • 1902 • 1901 • 1900
	1890s
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	1880s
	1889 • 1888 • 1887 • 1886 • 1885; 1884 • 1883 • 1882 • 1881 • 1880
	1870s
	1879 • 1878 • 1877 • 1876 • 1875; 1874 • 1873 • 1872 • 1871 • 1870
	Early Years
	1869 • 1845-1868
	See also
	Major League Baseball; Minor league baseball; Negro league baseball; Japanese baseball;
	Sources
	Baseball Hall of Fame; Baseball Almanac; Baseball Library; Baseball Reference; National Pastime; Wikipedia; The Deadball Era;

The following are the baseball events of the year 1989 throughout the world.

Champions[]

Major League Baseball[]

World Series: Oakland Athletics over San Francisco Giants (4-0); Dave Stewart, MVP
- American League Championship Series: Oakland Athletics (West) over Toronto Blue Jays (East) (4-1); Rickey Henderson, MVP
- National League Championship Series: San Francisco Giants (West) over Chicago Cubs (East) (4-1); Will Clark, MVP
All-Star Game, July 11 at Anaheim Stadium: American League, 5-3; Bo Jackson, MVP

Other champions[]

Caribbean World Series: Águilas del Zulia (Venezuela)
College World Series: Wichita State
Japan Series: Yomiuri Giants over Kintetsu Buffaloes (4-3)
Little League World Series: Trumbull National, Trumbull, Connecticut

Awards and honors[]

Most Valuable Player
- Robin Yount (AL)
- Kevin Mitchell (NL)
Cy Young Award
- Bret Saberhagen (AL)
- Mark Davis (NL)
Rookie of the Year
- Gregg Olson (AL)
- Jerome Walton (NL)
Manager of the Year Award
- Frank Robinson (AL)
- Don Zimmer (NL)

MLB Statistical Leaders[]

	American League		National League
Type	Name	Stat	Name	Stat
AVG	Kirby Puckett	.339	Tony Gwynn	.336
HR	Fred McGriff	36	Kevin Mitchell	47
RBI	Ruben Sierra	119	Kevin Mitchell	125
Wins	Bret Saberhagen	23	Mike Scott	20
ERA	Bret Saberhagen	2.16	Scott Garrelts	2.28

Major League Baseball final standings[]

American League
Rank	Club	Wins	Losses	Win %	GB
East Division
1st	Toronto Blue Jays	89	73	.549	--
2nd	Baltimore Orioles	87	75	.537	2.0
3rd	Boston Red Sox	83	79	.512	6.0
4th	Milwaukee Brewers	81	81	.500	8.0
5th	New York Yankees	74	87	.460	14.5
6th	Cleveland Indians	73	89	.451	16.0
7th	Detroit Tigers	59	103	.364	30.0
West Division
1st	Oakland Athletics	99	63	.611	--
2nd	Kansas City Royals	92	70	.568	7.0
3rd	California Angels	91	71	.562	8.0
4th	Texas Rangers	83	79	.512	16.0
5th	Minnesota Twins	80	82	.494	19.0
6th	Seattle Mariners	73	89	.451	26.0
7th	Chicago White Sox	69	92	.429	29.5

National League
Rank	Club	Wins	Losses	Win %	GB
East Division
1st	Chicago Cubs	93	69	.574	--
2nd	New York Mets	87	75	.537	6.0
3rd	St. Louis Cardinals	86	76	.531	7.0
4th	Montréal Expos	81	81	.500	12.0
5th	Pittsburgh Pirates	74	88	.457	19.0
6th	Philadelphia Phillies	67	95	.414	26.0
West Division
1st	San Francisco Giants	92	70	.568	--
2nd	San Diego Padres	89	73	.549	3.0
3rd	Houston Astros	86	76	.531	6.0
4th	Los Angeles Dodgers	77	83	.481	14.0
5th	Cincinnati Reds	75	87	.463	17.0
6th	Atlanta Braves	63	97	.394	28.0

Events[]

January 9 - Johnny Bench and Carl Yastrzemski are elected to the Hall of Fame by the Baseball Writers Association of America in their first year of eligibility. Bench was named on 96.4 percent of the ballots, the third-highest figure in history behind Ty Cobb and Hank Aaron.

February 28 - Red Schoendienst, a former second baseman and manager of the St. Louis Cardinals, and Al Barlick, a National League umpire for 28 seasons, are elected to the Hall of Fame by the Special Veterans Committee.

June 5 - The Toronto Blue Jays begin play at the Skydome.

July 11 - At Anaheim Stadium, Bo Jackson and Wade Boggs lead off the bottom of the first inning with back-to-back home runs off Rick Reuschel to spark the American League to a 5–3 win over the National League in the All-Star Game. Jackson earns MVP honors.

September 4 - Fred Lynn hits his 300th career home run to help the Detroit Tigers to a 5–1 win over the Kansas City Royals.

October 28 - The Oakland Athletics complete a four-game sweep of the San Francisco Giants in the 1989 World Series. It's the first WS sweep since 1976. Oakland pitcher Dave Stewart, who won two games, is named MVP.

Movies[]

Major League
Field of Dreams

Deaths[]

January 9 - Bill Terry, 90, Hall of Fame first baseman for the New York Giants who batted .341 lifetime and was the last National Leaguer to hit .400 (.401 in 1930); also managed Giants to 1933 World Series title
January 21 - Carl Furillo, 66, All-Star right fielder for the Dodgers who batted .300 five times and won 1953 batting title
January 22 - Willie Wells, 83, All-Star shortstop of the Negro Leagues who combined batting power with excellent defense
January 23 - George Case, 73, All-Star outfielder for the Washington Senators who led the AL in stolen bases six times
February 17 - Lefty Gómez, 80, Hall of Fame pitcher for the New York Yankees who had four 20-win seasons and a .649 career winning percentage; led AL in strikeouts three times and in wins and ERA twice each, and was 6-0 in World Series
April 8 - Bus Saidt, 68, sportswriter who covered the Phillies, Mets and Yankees for the Trenton Times since 1967; previously a minor league broadcaster
April 16 - Jocko Conlan, 89, Hall of Fame umpire who worked in the National League from 1941 to 1964, including five World Series and six All-Star Games
May 17 - Specs Toporcer, 90, infielder for the Cardinals for eight seasons, and the first non-pitcher to wear eyeglasses; later a minor league manager
June 8 - Bibb Falk, 90, left fielder who batted .314 with White Sox and Indians; coached Texas to two College World Series titles
June 8 - Emil Verban, 73, All-Star second baseman for four NL teams who hit .412 in the 1944 World Series
June 15 - Judy Johnson, 89, Hall of Fame third baseman of the Negro Leagues who became the major leagues' first black coach, and later a scout
July 18 - Donnie Moore, 35, All-Star relief pitcher who never overcame the disappointment from giving up a pivotal home run in the 1986 ALCS
August 17 - Fred Frankhouse, 85, All-Star pitcher for the Cardinals, Braves and Dodgers who ended Carl Hubbell's 24-game winning streak in 1937
August 30 - Joe Collins, 66, first baseman for the New York Yankees who hit four World Series homers
September 1 - A. Bartlett Giamatti, 51, commissioner of baseball since April, previously NL president since 1986, known for numerous writings on the sport as well as his banishment of Pete Rose
September 3 - Rip Sewell, 82, All-Star pitcher who won 143 games for the Pirates, known for his "eephus" pitch
September 21 - Murry Dickson, 73, All-Star pitcher who won 20 games for the 1951 Pirates, but led NL in losses the next three years
September 29 - Gussie Busch, 90, owner of the St. Louis Cardinals since 1953 who oversaw three World Series titles
November 26 - Lew Fonseca, 90, infielder who batted .316 with four teams, winning 1929 batting title with Indians; later headed the major leagues' motion picture department
December 25 - Billy Martin, 61, manager of the Yankees on five occasions who won the 1977 World Series title but was also known for his tempestuous behavior off the field; managed Minnesota, Detroit and Oakland to playoff appearances as well, and was an All-Star second baseman with Yankees