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2002 in baseball

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This year in baseball

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Early Years

1869 • 1845-1868

See also
Sources

The following are the baseball events of the year 2002 throughout the world.  


Champions[]

Major League Baseball[]

Other champions[]

  • Caribbean World Series: Tomateros de Culiacán (Mexico)
  • College World Series: Texas
  • European Cup (baseball): Neptunus (Netherlands) over HCAW Bussum (Netherlands)
  • Japan Series: Yomiuri Giants over Seibu Lions (4-0)
  • Little League World Series: Valley Sports American, Louisville, Kentucky

Awards and honors[]

MLB Statistical Leaders[]

  American League National League
Type Name Stat Name Stat
AVG Manny Ramirez .349 Barry Bonds .370
HR Alex Rodriguez 57 Sammy Sosa 49
RBI Alex Rodriguez 142 Lance Berkman 128
Wins Barry Zito 23 Randy Johnson 24
ERA Pedro Martinez 2.26 Randy Johnson 2.32

Major League Baseball final standings[]

American League
Rank Club Wins Losses Win % GB
EAST
1st New York Yankees 103   58 .640    --
2nd Boston Red Sox   93   69 .574 10.5
3rd Toronto Blue Jays   78   84 .481 25.5
4th Baltimore Orioles   67   95 .414 36.5
5th Tampa Bay Devil Rays   55 106 .342 48.0
CENTRAL
1st Minnesota Twins   94   67 .584    --
2nd Chicago White Sox   81   81 .500 13.5
3rd Cleveland Indians   74   88 .457 20.5
4th Kansas City Royals   62 100 .383 32.5
5th Detroit Tigers   55 106 .342 39.0
WEST
1st Oakland Athletics 103   59 .636    --
2nd Anaheim Angels *   99   63 .611   4.0
3rd Seattle Mariners   93   69 .574 10.0
4th Texas Rangers   72   90 .444 31.0


National League
Rank Club Wins Losses Win % GB
EAST
1st Atlanta Braves 101   59 .631    --
2nd Montréal Expos   83   79 .512 19.0
3rd Philadelphia Phillies   80   81 .497 21.5
4th Florida Marlins   79   83 .488 23.0
5th New York Mets   75   86 .466 26.5
CENTRAL
1st St. Louis Cardinals   97   65 .599    --
2nd Houston Astros   84   78 .519 13.0
3rd Cincinnati Reds   78   84 .481 19.0
4th Pittsburgh Pirates   72   89 .447 24.5
5th Chicago Cubs   67   95 .414 30.0
6th Milwaukee Brewers   56 106 .346 41.0
WEST
1st Arizona Diamondbacks   98   64 .605    --
2nd San Francisco Giants *   95   66 .590   2.5
3rd Los Angeles Dodgers   92   70 .568   6.0
4th Colorado Rockies   73   89 .451 25.0
5th San Diego Padres   66   96 .407 32.0

 

  • The asterisk denotes the club that won the wild card for its respective league.

Events[]

January–March[]

  • January 8 - Ozzie Smith is elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility. Smith, named on 91.7 percent of the ballots, is the 37th player to be elected in his first year.
  • February 11 - Major league owners approve the sales of the Florida Marlins and Montréal Expos. Florida owner John Henry is selling the Marlins to Jeffrey Loria for $158.5 million, while Loria is selling the Expos to "Baseball Expos LP", a limited partnership owned by the other 29 teams, for $120 million.
  • February 12 - Mets assistant general manager Omar Minaya becomes the first Hispanic GM by accepting the position with the Montreal Expos. Frank Robinson is also announced as the manager of the team, which will be run by Major League Baseball for the 2002 season.
  • February 27 - The sale of the Boston Red Sox to a group headed by John Henry becomes official.
  • March 1 - The Red Sox fire GM Dan Duquette and hire Mike Port on an interim basis.
  • March 11 - The Red Sox hire Grady Little as their new manager.

April–June[]

  • April 2 - In beating the San Diego Padres 9–0, the Arizona Diamondbacks become the first defending World Champions to open the season with back-to-back shutouts since the 1918-19 Red Sox; the Red Sox shutouts were thrown by Carl Mays and Sad Sam Jones. The last team to start the year with consecutive shutouts was the 1994 San Francisco Giants. Curt Schilling is the winner today, following Randy Johnson's 2–0 two–hitter yesterday over the Padres.
  • April 3 - At home, the Oakland Athletics lose to the Texas Rangers 9–6, as the Rangers score three in the 8th. The loss snaps the A's string of 20 straight wins at home stretching back to August 24. The A's move past the 1974–75 Cincinnati Reds for most consecutive home wins over two seasons; the Reds' mark was 17.
  • April 5 - The Giants defeat the Padres 3–1 in 10 innings on Barry Bonds' 5th home run of the year. In doing so, Bonds ties the mark for most home runs in the first four games of the season, set by Lou Brock in 1967.
  • April 7 - Arizona defeats the Milwaukee Brewers 2–0, as Curt Schilling strikes out 17 batters in hurling a one–hitter. Raul Casanova's 2nd–inning single is the only Milwaukee hit.
  • April 16 - The Detroit Tigers win for the first time this season, defeating Tampa Bay 9–3. The Tigers had lost its first 11 games for the 5th-worst start by a major league team.
  • April 21 - The Diamondbacks trounce the Rockies 7–1, as Randy Johnson strikes out 17 batters in becoming the first pitcher this year to win five games. It is the 6th time he has fanned 17 or more in a game.
  • April 21 - Making his first start in almost seven years, the Cincinnati Reds' José Rijo allows one unearned run in five innings as the Reds defeat the Cubs 5–3. It is Rijo's first win since July 13, 1995.
  • April 27 - Boston pitcher Derek Lowe hurls Fenway Park's first no-hitter since 1965, shutting out Tampa Bay 10–0. It is the first career complete game for Lowe, who began last season as the Red Sox closer. In his first start this year, he hurled seven hitless innings against the Orioles.
  • April 29 - Former major league outfielder Darryl Strawberry is sentenced to 18 months in prison for violating the terms of his probation six times.
  • May 2 - The Seattle Mariners rout the White Sox by a score of 15–4, as outfielder Mike Cameron becomes the 13th player in major league history to slug four home runs in a single game, all solo shots. Cameron is also hit by a pitch and flies out to deep right field in a bid for a 5th homer. Cameron and second baseman Bret Boone also become the first teammates in history to hit back–to–back home runs twice in the same inning, performing the feat in Seattle's 10–run 1st inning. The Mariners also tie a team record with seven homers in the game. James Baldwin is the easy winner, with seven innings pitched. There had only been 39 previous occasions of a player hitting two home runs in an inning, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. Eric Karros was last to do it, on August 22, 2000, for the Dodgers. Mark McGwire was the previous AL player to do it, on September 22, 1996 for Oakland.
  • May 4 - Barry Bonds hits his 400th home run as a Giant, leading his team to a 3–0 win over Cincinnati. Bonds is the first player to hit 400 homers for one team and 100 with another.
  • May 10 - The Anaheim Angels crush the White Sox 19–0. The Angels join the 1923 Indians, 1939 Yankees and 1950 Red Sox as the only teams to beat two opponents by 19 or more runs in the same season. Earlier this year, the Angels beat the Indians 21–2. The Anaheim calcimine of Chicago is just the 11th since 1901 in which a team scored 19 or more runs while shutting out its opponent, and the first such shutout in the AL since 1955 when Cleveland beat Boston 19–0.
  • May 23 - At Miller Park, Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Shawn Green becomes the 14th man in major league history to hit four home runs in a game and sets a big league record with 19 total bases. He goes 6-for-6, scores six runs (both Dodgers records), and gets seven RBI in a 16-3 win over the Milwaukee Brewers. Green is the second player this year to hit four home runs in a game. He also surpasses Joe Adcock's former mark of 18 total bases, set in 1954. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, six players have produced 17 or more total bases in a game, with the last being Mike Schmidt in 1976. Green also is the first major league player to collect six hits while hitting four homers, and his four homers plus a double ties the NL mark for extra base hits. The Dodgers hit eight homers in the game, another franchise record. Before today's power display, Green had gone 0-for-15, and had been benched May 18.
  • May 23 - Jeremi González earns his first major league victory in nearly five years as the Tampa Bay Devil Rays beat the Anaheim Angels 3-1. González wins for the first time since June 28, 1998, while with the Chicago Cubs. He had elbow surgery in 1998 and '99 before the Cubs released him in 2001.
  • May 24 - The Dodgers lose to the Diamondbacks 14–3, despite Shawn Green's 5th home run in two games, tying a major league record. Green also hits two singles to tie another mark with 25 total bases in the two games.
  • May 25 - The Colorado Rockies beat the Giants 6–3, as Barry Bonds takes over sole possession of 5th place on the all-time home run list with the 584th four-bagger of his career.
  • May 25 - The Dodgers top Arizona 10–5, as Shawn Green hits two more home runs and drives home six runs. The seven home runs in three games is a new major league record.
  • May 29 - In an article in Sports Illustrated, former National League MVP Ken Caminiti says that about 50 percent of current major league players use some form of steroids.
  • June 4 - The Twins score 10 runs in the 7th inning to close out the scoring in a 23–2 win over the Indians, the most runs in franchise history, stroke a franchise-record 25 hits (the team hit 24 five times while playing as the Washington Senators) in the contest, and tie the AL record as four players have four or more hits - Jacque Jones, Dustin Mohr, A.J. Pierzynski and Luis Rivas. The Twins are the 5th team to do it on the flip side; the Indians tie their team record for biggest loss, tying the mark set in a 21-0 loss to the Tigers on September 15, 1901. Cleveland also becomes the first team since the 1969 San Diego Padres to lose two games in the same season by 19 or more runs.
  • June 5 - The Giants batter the Padres 12–2, as Barry Bonds hits his 587th home run to move him into 4th place on the all-time list, ahead of Frank Robinson.
  • June 20 - Florida beats Cleveland 3–0, as the Marlins' Luis Castillo extends his hitting streak to 34 games, the longest ever by a second baseman.
  • June 28 - The Devil Rays whip their cross-state rival Marlins 4–0 behind Wilson Alvarez and two relievers. Kevin Millar of the Marlins hits a towering fly that lands on one of the catwalks that hang from the stadium's dome. It never comes down and is ruled a double. It's the second time a ball has gotten stuck in a catwalk at Tropicana Field. In 1999, José Canseco hit a home run drive that lodged there. Millar joins Ruppert Jones, Ricky Nelson, Dave Kingman, Alvaro Espinoza and Canseco as the only players in major league history to hit a fair ball that got stuck in a stadium obstruction; Jones and Nelson both had hits get caught in the overhead speakers at the old Kingdome, while the balls hit by Kingman and Espinoza were at the Metrodome, with Kingman's getting stuck in a drainage valve and Espinoza's lodging in an overhead speaker.

July[]

  • July 2 - A combined total of 62 home runs are hit in today's games, breaking the old major league mark set on April 7, 2000. A record nine players have multiple home run games, breaking the previous mark of eight.
  • July 9 - In a controversial finish, the 2002 All-Star Game held at Miller Park ends in a 7–7 tie after 11 innings as both the National and American leagues run out of pitchers. Both managers discuss it with commissioner Bud Selig, who calls the game.

August[]

  • August 7 - In a historic movement, major league players end their long-held opposition to mandatory drug testing by agreeing to be tested for illegal steroids beginning in 2003.
  • August 8 - Braves pitcher John Smoltz reaches 40 saves in a season faster than any pitcher in major league history.
  • August 9 - The Giants' Barry Bonds hits the 600th home run of his career, but his team still falls to the Pirates by a score of 4–3. Bonds joins Hank Aaron, Babe Ruth and Willie Mays in the exclusive 600-HR club.
  • August 17 - The Yankees defeat the Mariners 8–3, as Alfonso Soriano hits a home run to become the first second baseman ever to hit 30 home runs and steal 30 bases in a season.
  • August 29 - First baseman Mark Bellhorn becomes the first player in NL history to homer from both sides of the plate in the same inning, doing so in the Cubs' 10–run 4th inning at Wrigley Field. Chicago wins 13–10 over the Brewers. Bellhorn also ties a team record with five RBI in the inning.
  • August 30 - Major league players and owners agree to a historic contract that prevents the players from going out on strike.
  • August 31 - The New York Mets are shut out by the Philadelphia Phillies 1–0, to mark their 13th consecutive home defeat. In doing so, they become the first NL team to lose all their home games over the course of a month.

September[]

  • September 1 - Miguel Tejada of the Oakland Athletics hits his 30th home run of the season as Oakland beats the Minnesota Twins 7–5. Tejada is only the third shortstop in history with at least three seasons with 30 or more home runs and with 30 HR in three consecutive seasons. Alex Rodriguez leads in both categories with six such seasons, five in a row.
  • September 1 - Jim Thome of the Cleveland Indians becomes the only player in team history to earn 100 walks in consecutive seasons, doing so for the second time. This is his fourth consecutive season and sixth overall with at least 100 free passes.
  • September 3 - The Mets lose the first game of their doubleheader against the Marlins 3–2, but bounce back to take the nightcap 11–5. The loss in the opener sets a new NL record for consecutive home losses with 15.
  • September 4 - Aaron Myette, ejected yesterday for two pitches behind Melvin Mora, starts today's game. According to The New York Times, it is the first back-to-back start by a pitcher since Steve McCatty in 1980, though five pitchers – Dennis Martínez, Bert Blyleven, Pete Vuckovich, Rick Langford and Juan Eichelberger – made their last start before the 1981 strike and their first start after.
  • September 5 - In a Texas 11-2 victory over Baltimore, shortstop Alex Rodriguez becomes the fifth player in major league history to record successive 50–home run seasons.
  • September 6 - The St. Louis Cardinals defeat the Chicago Cubs 11–2, as brothers Andy Benes and Alan Benes oppose each other in the seventh matchup of brothers in major league history. Andy gets the win while Alan takes the loss. The Cardinals score all 11 of their runs in the third inning.
  • September 8 - The Texas Rangers set a major league record by homering in their 26th consecutive game as Texas falls to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays 6–3. Rafael Palmeiro's solo shot in the sixth inning is the record–breaker. The streak will be ended at 27 games two days later.
  • September 9 - Pitcher Randy Johnson reaches 300 strikeouts for the fitth consecutive season, extending his major league record.
  • September 14 - Pitcher Derek Lowe gets his 20th victory as the Red Sox beat the Orioles 6–4. Lowe becomes the first pitcher in major league history to win 20 games the season after saving 20. He is also the first pitcher to record at least 40 saves and later win 20. Dennis Eckersley and John Smoltz did it the other way around.
  • September 14 - Chin-Feng Chen becomes the first Taiwan-born player to appear in the major leagues as he walks and scores as a pinch-hitter for the Los Angeles Dodgers against the Colorado Rockies. The 24-year-old first baseman-outfielder played for the 1990 Taiwan team which won the Little League World Series.
  • September 18 - Arizona defeats San Diego 10-3,, as Greg Colbrunn is the first player to hit two home runs in a game while hitting for the cycle since George Brett (May 28, 1979).
  • September 20 - Shortstop Mike Bordick sets a major league record with his 102nd consecutive errorless game at shortstop. He also extends his major league mark of errorless chances at SS to 504.
  • September 22 - Fred McGriff becomes the first major league player to hit 30 homers for five different teams, and the first to homer in 42 different ballparks.
  • September 29 - Albert Pujols becomes the fourth hitter in the major leagues, and the first batter since Ted Williams in 1939–40, to collect more than 250 runs batted in in his first two seasons in the majors. Pujols has driven in 257 runs in his first two campaigns. Joe DiMaggio holds the record with 292 RBI, Dale Alexander is second with 272, and Williams is third with 258.

October[]

  • October 2 - Seibu Lions first baseman Alex Cabrera hits his 55th home run of the season, off Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes pitcher Akira Okamoto, to tie the Japanese League record set by Sadaharu Oh in 1964 and matched by Tuffy Rhodes last year. Like Rhodes, Cabrera will see few good pitches for the remaining games.

November–December[]

  • November 22 - Houston Astros right fielder Richard Hidalgo is shot in the left forearm during a carjacking in Venezuela. He is released from the hospital and is expected to go to Houston for more tests.
  • November 25 - The Boston Red Sox sign 28-year–old Theo Epstein as their new general manager. He becomes the youngest GM in major league history.
  • December 2 - In support of a national strike, the Venezuelan professional league suspends its games. Many of the eight teams in the league belong to news media owners opposed to President Hugo Chávez. When the strike continues, the league will cancel its season on January 13, 2004.

Books[]

  • Win Shares, by Bill James, presenting the sabermetrician's new system for evaluating player performance.

Movies[]

  • The Rookie
  • Bleacher Bums (TV)

Deaths[]

January–March[]

  • January 2 - Bob Stevens, 85, sportswriter for the San Francisco Chronicle for over 40 years
  • January 31 - Harry Chiti, 69, catcher for the Cubs and Kansas City Athletics who was adept at handling the knuckleball
  • February 11 - Frankie Crosetti, 91, All-Star shortstop and later a longtime coach for the New York Yankees, who spent a record 37 seasons with the team; scored 100 runs four times and led AL in steals in 1938
  • March 9 - Jack Baer, 87, coach who led Oklahoma to the 1951 College World Series title
  • March 11 - Al Cowens, 50, right fielder for four AL teams who batted .312 and won a Gold Glove for the 1977 Royals, and was MVP runnerup
  • March 12 - Steve Gromek, 82, All-Star pitcher who won 19 games for the 1945 Indians and hurled 2-1 victory in 1948 World Series
  • March 23 - Minnie Rojas, 68, Cuban relief pitcher for the Angels who led AL in saves in 1967, was paralyzed in spring 1970 accident

April–June[]

  • April 3 - Karl Swanson, 101, reserve second baseman for the 1928-29 White Sox who at the time of his death was the oldest living major leaguer
  • April 26 - John Davis, 86, reserve third baseman for the 1941 New York Giants; minor league manager for 27 years
  • May 17 - Joe Black, 78, pitcher who was NL Rookie of the Year in 1952, and became first black pitcher to win a World Series game
  • May 28 - Wes Westrum, 79, All-Star catcher for the New York Giants who later managed the Mets and San Francisco Giants
  • June 18 - Jack Buck, 77, broadcaster for the St. Louis Cardinals for nearly 50 years
  • June 22 - Darryl Kile, 33, All-Star pitcher, with the Cardinals since 2000 when he won 20 games; also threw a no-hitter for the Astros
  • June 22 - Ron Kline, 70, pitcher for nine teams, primarily the Pirates, who led AL in saves with 1965 Senators
  • June 27 - Ralph Erickson, 100, relief pitcher with the 1929-30 Pirates who upon the April 3 death of Karl Swanson became baseball's oldest living player; died two days after 100th birthday
  • June 30 - Pete Gray, 87, outfielder who played in the major leagues for the St. Louis Browns despite having lost his right arm in a childhood accident

July–September[]

  • July 5 - Ted Williams, 83, Hall of Fame left fielder for the Boston Red Sox widely regarded as the greatest hitter in the sport's history, who won two Triple Crowns (1942, 1947), two MVP awards (1946, 1949) and six batting titles, including a .406 season in 1941, the last .400 mark in the major leagues; 17-time All-Star had .344 lifetime average (7th highest ever) and .634 slugging mark (2nd to Babe Ruth); 521 home runs were 3rd highest total upon retirement, with four AL titles; .482 on-base percentage is all-time record
  • July 26 - Ed Runge, 87, American League umpire from 1954 to 1970 who worked in three World Series; son Paul and grandson Brian also became umpires
  • August 5 - Darrell Porter, 50, All-Star catcher who had 100 runs and 100 RBI with 1979 Royals, and was MVP of the 1982 NLCS and World Series with the Cardinals
  • August 12 - Enos Slaughter, 86, Hall of Fame right fielder for the Cardinals who batted .300 lifetime; led NL in triples twice and in doubles, hits and RBI once each, and was 1942 MVP runnerup; famed for his "mad dash" to score from first base to win the 1946 World Series
  • August 16 - Johnny Roseboro, 69, All-Star catcher who won two Gold Gloves, and was noted for his 1965 scuffle with Juan Marichal
  • August 23 - Hoyt Wilhelm, 80, Hall of Fame pitcher who became the first reliever so honored (1985); knuckleballer set records for career games (1,070) and saves (227) over 21 seasons, despite ending rookie year at age 30; pitched no-hitter in rare 1958 start, led NL in ERA and games in rookie season with New York Giants, and led AL in ERA in 1959; career 2.52 ERA was lowest of any modern pitcher with 2000 innings
  • September 25 - Ray Hayworth, 98, catcher for the Tigers who hit .301 as a backup for the 1934-35 pennant winners; at the time of his death, was the oldest living major league player

October–December[]

  • October 4 - Edgar Munzel, 95, sportswriter for the Chicago Herald-Examiner and Sun-Times from 1929 to 1973
  • October 20 - Mel Harder, 93, All-Star pitcher who won 223 games for the Cleveland Indians and led AL in ERA in 1933, later a highly regarded pitching coach for five teams
  • November 10 - Ken Raffensberger, 85, All-Star pitcher for four NL teams, noted for his control, who threw four one-hitters and led league in shutouts twice
  • December 1 - Dave McNally, 60, All-Star pitcher for the Orioles who had four consecutive 20-win seasons (1968–71) and won 1-0 shutout in 1966 World Series clincher; refused to sign a 1975 contract for 1975, paving the way for free agency
  • December 15 - Dick Stuart, 70, All-Star first baseman for Pirates noted for his poor defense; first player with 30 HRs and 100 RBI in both leagues, led AL in RBI with 1963 Red Sox
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