March 9 – Major League Baseball goes ahead with choosing the cities for the 1998 expansion: Phoenix, Arizona, and St. Petersburg, Florida. Phoenix gets the National League Arizona Diamondbacks, and St. Petersburg gets the American LeagueTampa Bay Devil Rays. To keep the leagues even-numbered, the Milwaukee Brewers switch to the National League after the 1997 season, giving the NL 16 teams and the AL 14 teams.
April 8 – The Colorado Rockies sign free agent outfielder Larry Walker.
April 25 – Major League Baseball begins its strike-shortened 144-game season. Opening day games in New York, Cincinnati, and Pittsburgh among other cities see fan protests regarding the strike spill onto the field.
April 26 – The Colorado Rockies open Coors Field with an 11-9 victory over the New York Mets in 14 innings.
May 28 – The Chicago White Sox and Detroit Tigers combine for a record 12 home runs in one game at Tiger Stadium.
June 30
*Eddie Murray of the Cleveland Indians gets his 3,000th career hit in a 3-1 Cleveland win over the Minnesota Twins at the Metrodome. The last player to reach the plateau did it in the same park, in 1993.
July 18 – Albert Belle of the Cleveland Indians becomes the second player to hit a walk-off grand slam against California Angels closer Lee Smith this season. Mark McGwire of the Oakland Athletics does that on June 30. The only other pitchers in major-league history to surrender two game-ending grand slams in one season are Satchel Paige and Lindy McDaniel. New York Mets closer Francisco Rodríguez joins this group during the season.
August 10 – The Los Angeles Dodgers are forced to forfeit to the visiting St. Louis Cardinals when inebriated fans react to several close calls by throwing souvenir baseballs onto the field.
September 4 – Robin Ventura of the Chicago White Sox becomes the eighth player in major league history to hit two grand slams in a single game, doing so in the 4th and 5th innings of the White Sox 14-3 win over the Texas Rangers. The last to do it is Frank Robinson in 1970.
September 6 – Cal Ripken, Jr. of the Baltimore Orioles plays in his 2,131st consecutive major league game to surpass Lou Gehrig's 56-year record. When the game becomes official in the middle of the fifth inning, Ripken takes a victory lap around Camden Yards during the 22-minute standing ovation from the sellout crowd, including President Bill Clinton. In the game, Ripken goes 2-for-4, including a home run, in Baltimore's 4-2 win over California. It is baseball's most memorable moment in the 1990s.
September 8 – The Cleveland Indians clinch the American League Central Division with a 3-2 win over the Baltimore Orioles. It is Cleveland's first postseason appearance since 1954, and ends the then-longest post-season drought in the Major Leagues.
September 13 – Second baseman Lou Whitaker and shortstop Alan Trammell of the Detroit Tigers play in their 1,915th game together, setting an American League record.
September 15 – The St. Louis Cardinals' shortstop Ozzie Smith is a part of his 1,554th double play to establish a new Major League record, despite the Cardinals losing to the Los Angeles Dodgers, 7-6.
September 25 – In a 7-0 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals at Wrigley Field, Frank Castillo of the Chicago Cubs has a no-hitter broken up with two out in the ninth—by inches. Bernard Gilkey hits a line drive to right field and despite an all-out attempt by Sammy Sosa to make a diving catch, the ball falls in for a hit and eventually rolls to the wall for a triple, the Cardinals' lone hit of the game. The near no-hitter is almost the first by a Cub pitcher and the first one the Cubs are involved in, since Milt Pappas in.
September 28 – Greg A. Harris of the Montreal Expos becomes the first major league pitcher since 1893 to pitch with both hands in one game. Harris faces four batters, two from his usual right side and two from the left, in the ninth inning of a 9–7 loss to the Cincinnati Reds.
September 30 – Albert Belle hits his 50th home run of the season, and becomes the first player in Major League history to collect 50 home runs and 50 doubles in a season.
October–December
October 2 – In a one-game playoff the Seattle Mariners beat the California Angels 9–1 at Seattle after finishing tied atop the AL West.
October 8 – After being down 2 games-to-zero in the best of 5 series to the New York Yankees, the Seattle Mariners complete a comeback, capped by the late inning heroics of Edgar Martínez, their designated hitter. Forever known as "the double" in Mariner lore, Martinez strokes a breaking ball into left field, scoring Joey Cora and Ken Griffey, Jr. in the bottom of the 11th to erase a 1 run deficit and win the game and the series.
October 23 – The St. Louis Cardinals hire Tony La Russa as their manager.
October 28 – In a pitchers' duel, the Atlanta Braves win Game 6 of the World Series 1-0, on a combined one-hitter by Tom Glavine and Mark Wohlers. David Justice's sixth-inning home run accounts for the game's only run. In winning, the Braves become the first team to win World Championships representing three different cities – Boston, Milwaukee and Atlanta. Catcher Tony Peña's leadoff single in the 6th is Cleveland's only hit. Glavine is named Series MVP.
November 9 – Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Hideo Nomo is named National League Rookie of the Year, becoming the first Japanese player ever to win a Major League award. Nomo posts a 13-6 record with 236 strikeouts and a 2.54 ERA in innings of work.
December 22
*Anheuser-Busch agrees to sell the St. Louis Cardinals for $150 million to an investment group that agrees to keep the team in St. Louis.
*The Florida Marlins sign free agent pitcher Kevin Brown.
*The Philadelphia Phillies sign free agent third baseman Todd Zeile.
*The Boston Red Sox sign free agent pitcher Jamie Moyer.
January 2 – Don Elston, 65, two-time All-Star relief pitcher who played for the Chicago Cubs and Brooklyn Dodgers during nine seasons spanning 1953–1964, heading the National League with 69 relief appearances in 1958 and 65 in 1959, while leading all relievers with 127.0 innings pitched in 1960.
January 3 – Ollie Bejma, 87, middle infielder and third baseman for the Chicago White Sox and St. Louis Browns in a span of four seasons between 1934 and 1939.
January 3 – Bob Darnell, 64, pitcher who played for the Brooklyn Dodgers during the 1954 and 1956 seasons.
January 3 – Mickey Haefner, 82, knuckleball left-handed pitcher who played from 1943 through 1950 for the Washington Senators, Chicago White Sox and Boston Braves.
January 3 – Jim Tyack, 83, outfielder for the 1943 Philadelphia Athletics.
January 4 – Harry Gumbert, 85, pitcher who played with four clubs during 15 seasons from 1935–1950, going 11-3 in 1936 and winning 10 in 1937 for the New York Giants, helping them win back-to-back National League pennant winners, then going 9-5 to help the St. Louis Cardinals clinch the NL pennant in 1942 and 10-5 a year later, en route to the 1942 World Series which the Cardinals beat the New York Yankees, 4 games to 1.
January 4 – Ralph Onis, 86, catcher for the 1935 Brooklyn Dodgers.
January 7 – Kite Thomas, 71, outfielder who played from 1952 to 1953 for the Philadelphia Athletics and Washington Senators.
January 17 – John Hall, 71, pitcher for the 1948 Brooklyn Dodgers.
January 18 – Ron Luciano, 57, American League umpire from 1968 to 1980 known for his flamboyance and several books.
January 20 – Mark Filley, 82, pitcher for the 1934 Washington Senators.
January 21 – Russ Bauers, 80, pitcher for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Chicago Cubs and St. Louis Browns over eight seasons between 1936 and 1950.
January 23 – Saul Rogovin, 72, pitcher for the Detroit Tigers, Chicago White Sox, Baltimore Orioles, and Philadelphia Phillies in a span of eight seasons from 1949–1957, while leading the American League with a 2.78 ERA in 1951.
January 24 – Herb Karpel, 77, pitcher for the 1946 New York Yankees.
January 26 – Dick Tettelbach, 65, outfielder who played from 1955 through 1957 for the New York Yankees and Washington Senators.
January 30 – Buddy Gremp, 75, first baseman for the Boston Braves from 1940 to 1942.
February
February 6 – Elmer Burkart, 78, pitcher who played for the Philadelphia Phillies from 1936 to 1940.
February 7 – Cecil Upshaw, 52, right-handed reliever who played for five teams during nine seasons from 1966–1975, saving 27 games for the Atlanta Braves in 1969, well known for his unorthodox but effective submarine delivery, as he tore up the ring finger on his pitching hand and had at least two surgeries and rehabbing.
February 24 – Woody Williams, 82, second baseman for the Brooklyn Dodgers and Cincinnati Reds in part of two seasons from 1938–1945.
February 28 – Wally Millies, 88, backup catcher for the Philadelphia Phillies, Washington Senators and Brooklyn Dodgers in a span of six seasons between 1934 and 1941.
March
March 2 – Ray Moore, 68, pitcher who played for the Brooklyn Dodgers, Baltimore Orioles, Chicago White Sox, Washington Senators and Minnesota Twins over 11 seasons from 1952 to 1963.
March 5 – Roy Hughes, 84, middle infielder and third baseman for four teams over nine seasons from 1935–1946, who delivered 188 hits and scored 112 runs for the 1936 Cleveland Indians.
March 11 – Don Manno, 79, left fielder and third baseman for the Boston Bees and Braves from 1940 to 1941.
March 13 – Leon Day, 78, seven-time All-Star pitcher for the Newark Eagles of the Negro Leagues, who set several league strikeout marks, including 18 victims in one game, and was enshrined into the Baseball Hall of Fame just six days before his death.
March 14 – Charlie Letchas, 79, backup infielder who played for the Philadelphia Phillies and Washington Senators in a span of four seasons from 1939–1946.
March 17 – Jimmy Uchrinscko, 94, pitcher for the 1927 Washington Senators.
March 27 – Chet Nichols, 64, pitcher 64, pitcher for the Boston and Milwaukee Braves, Boston Red Sox and Cincinnati Reds during nine seasons between 1951 and 1964, who posted 10 wins and led the National League with a 2.88 ERA in his roolie season.
March 29 – Terry Moore, 82, four-time All-Star center fielder for the St. Louis Cardinals in 11 seasons from 1935–1948, who hit a.304 average in 1940, and captained the and World Series champion teams.
April
April 7 – Frank Secory, 82, National League umpire from 1952 to 1970 who worked in four World Series, six All-Star Games and nine no-hitters, previously a Chicago Cubs outfielder, well known for a pivotal hit in the 1945 World Series.
April 9 – Bob Allison, 60, All-Star outfielder for the Washington Senators and Minnesota Twins, who earned the 1959 American League Rookie of the Year award, had three 30-home run seasons, and led the league in triples and runs once each.
April 10 – Billy Myers, 84, shortstop who played with the Cincinnati Reds from 1935 to 1940 and for the Chicago Cubs in 1941, being a member of the 1937 National League champion Reds in 1939 and 1949, and best remembered for his game-winning sacrifice fly in Game 7 of the 1940 World Series against the Detroit Tigers.
April 13 – Hal Peck, 77, right fielder who played from 1943 to 1949 for the Brooklyn Dodgers, Philadelphia Athletics and Cleveland Indians, and also was a member of the 1948 World Series champion Indians.
April 19 – Jack Wilson, 83, pitcher who played from 1934 through 1942 with the Boston Red Sox, Philadelphia Athletics, Washington Senators and Detroit Tigers.
April 23 – Jake Daniel, 85, first baseman for the 1937 Brooklyn Dodgers.
April 24 – John Campbell, 87, pitcher for the Washington Senators in the 1933 season.
April 27 – Kent Peterson, 69, pitcher who played for the Cincinnati Reds and Philadelphia Phillies in all or part of eight seasons spanning 1944–1953.
April 28 – Peaches Davis, 89, pitcher who played from 1936 to 1939 for the Cincinnati Reds.
April 28 – Gustavo Polidor, 33, Venezuelan infielder for the California Angels, Milwaukee Brewers and Florida Marlins during seven seasons between 1985 and 1993.
April 29 – Ray Prim, 88, pitcher for the Washington Senators, Philadelphia Phillies and Chicago Cubs in a span of six seasons from 1933–1946; one of many ballplayers whose career was interrupted during World War II, who posted a 13-8 record and led National League pitchers with a 2.40 for the pennant winning Cubs in 1945.
May
May 4 – Connie Wisniewski, 73, four-time All-American Girls Professional Baseball League All-Star pitcher and outfielder, who set several records in the circuit in a nine-year career from 1944 through 1952.
May 7 – Gus Bell, 66, All-Star outfielder, mainly with the Cincinnati Reds, who had four 100-RBI seasons, led the National League in triples in 1951, and was the oldest in a Major League family that includes his son Buddy and his grandsons David and Mike.
May 17 – George Metkovich, 74, outfielder and first baseman who played for the Boston Red Sox, Cleveland Indians, Chicago White Sox, Pittsburgh Pirates, Chicago Cubs and Milwaukee Braves in a span of ten seasons from 1943–1954.
May 18 – Jack Kramer, 77, three-time All-Star pitcher, who led the St. Louis Browns to their only World Series appearance in 1944.
May 19 – Fred Frink, 83. outfielder for the 1934 Philadelphia Phillies.
May 23 – Ab Wright, 89, outfielder who played with the Cleveland Indians in the 1935 season and for the Boston Braves in 1944.
May 30 – Glenn Burke, 42, center fielder for the Los Angeles Dodgers and Oakland Athletics in four seasons from 1978–1979, who was the first player in Major League history to publicly acknowledge his homosexuality during his professional career.
May 31 – Norm Brown, 76, pitcher who played for the Philadelphia Athletics in the 1943 and 1946 seasons.
June
June 7 – Eddie Lake, 79, middle infielder and third baseman who played for the St. Louis Cardinals, Boston Red Sox and Detroit Tigers during eleven seasons spanning 1939–1950.
June 9 – Zoilo Versalles, 55, Cuban two-time All-Star and two-time Gold Glove shortstop who led the Minnesota Twins to the 1965 American League pennant, as well as the first Latin American player to win the Most Valuable Player Award, while leading the league in triples three times and in doubles and runs once each.
June 10 – Stan Andrews, 78, backup catcher who played for the Boston Bees, Brooklyn Dodgers and Philadelphia Phillies. in a span of four seasons from 1939–1945.
June 10 – Lindsey Nelson, 76, broadcaster for the New York Mets from 1962 to 1979, and later for the San Francisco Giants and NBC.
June 17 – Bruce Campbell, 85, right fielder for five clubs during 13 seasons from 1930–1942, who returned from a bout with spinal meningitis in 1936 while playing for the Cleveland Indians, to get six hits in a nine-inning ball game and reach a.372 average in 172 at-bats, appearing also in all seven games of the 1940 World Series with the Detroit Tigers, posting a batting line of.360/.448/.520 with one home run and six RBI, while batting sixth in the line-up behind Charlie Gehringer, Hank Greenberg and Rudy York.
July
July 4 – Adeline Kerrar, 70, All-American Girls Professional Baseball League catcher and infielder.
July 17 – Herb Hippauf, 56, relief pitcher for the 1966 Atlanta Braves.
July 27 – Rick Ferrell, 89, Hall of Fame and eight-time All-Star catcher who played for the St. Louis Browns, Boston Red Sox and Washington Senators from 1929–1947, whose 1,806 career-games caught were an American League record until 1988, being also a batterymate of his brother Wes Ferrell with the Red Sox from 1934 through 1938.
August
August 1 – Ruby Knezovich, 77, Canadian catcher who played from 1943 to 1944 in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League.
August 3 – Harry Craft, 80, manager of the Houston Colt.45s in their 1962 debut, who also managed the Kansas City Athletics and Chicago Cubs, and previously was a Cincinnati Reds center fielder.
August 4 – Dick Bartell, 87, All-Star shortstop for five teams, known for his combative personality, who batted.300 five times and scored 100 runs three times, while batting.381 for the New York Giants in the 1936 World Series.
August 13 – Mickey Mantle, 63, Hall of Fame and 16-time All-Star center fielder, as well as a powerful switch-hitter for the New York Yankees, being a successor to Babe Ruth and Joe DiMaggio as symbol of the Yankees' long reign, who earned the American League MVP Award from 1956–1957 and in 1962, while setting a record with 18 home runs in World Series play, hitting.300 or more ten times, leading the AL in runs six times to set an all-time record, winning the 1956 Triple Crown, four home run titles –hitting 50 twice–, and retiring with the third most career HRs and walks in MLB history, including career marks for runs, RBI and slugging percentage.
August 20 – Bill Kennedy, 76, pitcher who played for the Washington Senators in a span of three seasons from 1942–1947.
August 20 – Von McDaniel, 56, pitcher who joined his elder brother Lindy on the 1957–1958 St. Louis Cardinals pitching staff, throwing a complete game, two-hit shutout for St. Louis in his debut against the defending National League champion Brooklyn Dodgers in 1957, winning his first four decisions, including 19 consecutive scoreless innings and a one-hitter, even though a breakdown in his pitching mechanics resulted in severe control problems that curtailed his promising pitching career, which caused him to eventually become a third baseman in the minor leagues.
September 7 – Al Papai, 78, knuckleballer specialist for four major league teams from 1948–1955, and one of 29 players to pitch for the St. Louis Browns and Cardinals clubs.
September 15 – Napoleón Reyes, 75, Cuban corner infielder for the New York Giants in part of three seasons spanning 1943–1950, who tied a National League record for the most hit by pitches in a season, being hit on eight occasions in 1945, joining Hall of FamerMel Ott and All-Star center outfielder Andy Pafko.
September 19 – Mem Lovett, 83, who appeared as a pinch-hitter in a single game with the Chicago White Sox in the 1933 season.
September 21 – Tony Cuccinello, 87, three-time All-Star second baseman and third baseman for five teams during 15 seasons spanning 1930–1945, who led National League second basemen in assists and double plays three times and hit.300 or better five times, with a career high.315 in 1931, while hitting.308 in 1945, losing the American League batting title in the last day of the season by.001 to Snuffy Stirnweiss.
October 3 – Nippy Jones, 70, backup first baseman for the St. Louis Cardinals, Philadelphia Phillies and Milwaukee Braves in eight seasons between 1946 and 1957, who made a token appearance as a pinch hitter in the 1946 World Series, won by the Cardinals, whose last time at bat in his undistinguished career earned him enduring fame in a memorable shoe-polish incident that helped the Braves win Game 4 of the 1957 World Series en route to the world championship.
October 10 – Ed Gill, 100, pitcher for the 1919 Washington Senators.
October 16 – Joe Szekely, 70, right fielder who played with the Cincinnati Redlegs in its 1953 season.
October 21 – Vada Pinson, 57, three-time All-Star and Gold Glove center fielder, who spent his 18-year career with five clubs from 1958 through 1975, most prominently with the Cincinnati Reds, leading the National League in hits, doubles and triples twice each, including four 200-hit seasons, while ending his career with 2,757 hits, 256 home runs and 305 stolen bases.
October 26 – Lyman Linde, 75, pitcher for the Cleveland Indians during two seasons from 1947 to 1948.
October 29 – Al Niemiec, 84, second baseman who played with the Boston Red Sox in the 1934 season and for the Philadelphia Athletics in 1936.
November
November 2 – Sal Gliatto, 93, pitcher for the 1930 Cleveland Indians.
November 19 – Ed Wright, 76, pitcher for the Boston Braves and Philadelphia Athletics between 1945 and 1952, who also threw a no-hitter in the American Association in 1945 and hurled the first shutout in Caribbean Series history in 1949.
November 22 – Art Smith, 89, pitcher who played for the Chicago White Sox in 1932.
November 23 – Lee Rogers, 82, pitcher who played for the Boston Red Sox and Brooklyn Dodgers during the 1938 season.
November 24 – Irene Hickson, 80, All-Star catcher who played in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League in a span of nine seasons from 1943–1950, winning the batting title in 1943 and being a member of two championship teams in 1943 and 1946.
November 30 – Jim Davis, 69, pitcher for the Chicago Cubs, St. Louis Cardinals and New York Giants from 1954 to 1957, who in 1956 became the first pitcher in 40 years to record four strikeouts in a single inning.
November 30 – William Suero, 29, Dominican Republic infielder for the Milwaukee Brewers from 1992 to 1993.
December
December 2 – Art Herring, 89, pitcher who played for the Detroit Tigers, Brooklyn Dodgers, Chicago White Sox and Pittsburgh Pirates during eleven seasons spanning 1929–1947.
December 5 – Bill Bruton, 70, speedy center fielder for the Milwaukee Braves and Detroit Tigers over eight seasons from 1953 to 1964, who led the National League in stolen bases three times, triples twice and runs once, being also a member of the Braves teams that clinched two NL pennants from 1957–1958 and the 1957 World Series, while tying an MLB record with two bases-loaded triples in one game, to join Elmer Valo and Duane Kuiper.
December 11 – Woody Wheaton, 81, two-way outfielder / pitcher for the Philadelphia Athletics in two seasons from 1943–1944.
December 12 – Mike Modak, 73, pitcher for the 1945 Cincinnati Reds.
December 17 – George Cox, 91, pitcher who played for the Chicago White Sox in 1928.
December 20 – Betty Wanless, 67, All-American Girls Professional Baseball League infielder.
December 27 – Al Barlick, 80, Hall of Fame umpire for 28 National League seasons between 1940 and 1971, who officiated seven World Series and an MLB record seven All-Star Games.
December 26 – Bob Veselic, 40, relief pitcher for the Minnesota Twins in the 1980 and 1981 seasons.
December 27 – Oscar Judd, 87, Canadian All-Star pitcher who played from 1941 through 1948 for the Boston Red Sox and Philadelphia Phillies.
