2001 in baseball

The following are the baseball events of the year 2001 throughout the world.  

Champions

Major League Baseball

• Regular Season Champions

• World Series Champion - Arizona Diamondbacks
• Postseason - October 9 to November 4

Click on any series score to link to that series' page.
Higher seed has home field advantage during Division Series and League Championship Series.
The National League Champion has home field advantage during the World Series as a result of the pre-2003 "alternating years" rule.
American League is seeded 1-3/2-4 as a result of the AL regular season champion (Seattle Mariners) and the AL wild card (Oakland Athletics) coming from the same division.
National League is seeded 1-3/2-4 as a result of the NL regular season champion (Houston Astros) and the NL wild card (St. Louis Cardinals) coming from the same division.

• Postseason MVPs
  • World Series MVP - Randy Johnson/Curt Schilling (co-MVPs)
  • ALCS MVP - Andy Pettitte
  • NLCS MVP - Craig Counsell
• All-Star Game, July 10 at Safeco Field: American League, 4-1; Cal Ripken, Jr., MVP
  • Home Run Derby, July 9 - Luis González, Arizona Diamondbacks

Other champions

• Caribbean World Series: Águilas Cibaeñas (Dominican Republic)
• College World Series: Miami (Fla.)
• Cuban National Series: Santiago de Cuba over Pinar del Río
• European Champions: Netherlands over Russia (4-0)
• European Cup: Neptunus (Netherlands) over San Marino (San Marino)
• Japan Series: Yakult Swallows over Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes (4-1)
• Little League World Series: Tokyo Kitasuna, Tokyo, Japan

Awards and honors

• Most Valuable Player
  • Ichiro Suzuki (AL)
  • Barry Bonds (NL)
• Cy Young Award
  • Roger Clemens (AL)
  • Randy Johnson (NL)
• Rookie of the Year
  • Ichiro Suzuki (AL)
  • Albert Pujols (NL)
• Manager of the Year Award
  • Lou Piniella (AL)
  • Larry Bowa (NL)

MLB statistical leaders

¹Major League single season home run record

Major League Baseball final standings

• The asterisk denotes the club that won the wild card for its respective league.
• Note: St. Louis and Houston finished the season tied, and Houston was awarded the division title due to winning their season series.

Events

January-March

• January 16 - Outfielders Dave Winfield and Kirby Puckett are elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in their first year on the ballot.

• February 8 - The Dominican Republic defeats Mexico 5-3 to take its fourth Caribbean World Series title in five years.

• February 11 - Three Rivers Stadium, the home of the Pittsburgh Pirates since 1970, is imploded before thousands of onlookers. The team will play in new PNC Park this season.

• February 20 - Atlanta Braves center fielder Andruw Jones wins a record $8.2 million contract in salary arbitration. The previous record of $7.25 million was set in 2000 by New York Yankees reliever Mariano Rivera.

• March 6 - Second baseman Bill Mazeroski and Negro League pitcher Hilton Smith are elected to the Hall of Fame by the Veterans Committee.

• March 8 - The Baltimore Orioles announce that Albert Belle is "totally disabled and unable to perform as a major league baseball player" due to a severe case of degenerative arthritis of the right hip.

• March 23 - A panel of veteran baseball writers, historians and executives selects a roster of the Top 100 Greatest Cleveland Indians Players, as part of the club's 100th Anniversary Celebration.

April-June

• April 4 - Hideo Nomo hurls a 3-0 no-hitter against the Baltimore Orioles in his Boston Red Sox debut. It is Nomo's second career no-hitter, making him the fourth pitcher in history to hurl one in both the NL and the AL. It is also the earliest no-hitter, by date, in major league history.

• April 14 - A major league record is set as 11 one-run games are played, breaking the mark of 10 set in 1967. With a 1–0 win over the New York Mets, the Cincinnati Reds set the modern-day NL record with their 175th consecutive game without being shut out, breaking the mark of 174 set by the 1992-93 Philadelphia Phillies.

• April 17 - Barry Bonds becomes the 17th player in major league history to hit 500 career home runs.

• May 5 - The Chicago Cubs defeat the Los Angeles Dodgers 20-1. It is the 15th time since 1900 that Chicago have scored 20 runs in a game, and the 11th time they've done it at Wrigley Field.

• May 12 - At Jack Murphy Stadium, A.J. Burnett of the Florida Marlins throws a 3-0 no-hitter against the host San Diego Padres. Burnette strikes out seven, but walks nine (the most in a no-hitter) and hits a batter. It is the 228th complete game no-hitter in major league history.

• May 16 - Rickey Henderson leads off with a home run, extending his major league record for leadoff home runs to 79. This is more than twice the total for the #2 and #3 players on the list, Brady Anderson (44) and Bobby Bonds (35).

• May 25 - Hideo Nomo of the Boston Red Sox tosses a one-hitter and strikes out 14 in a 4-0 win over the Toronto Blue Jays. Nomo faces one batter over the minimum of 27, giving up a leadoff double in the fourth inning to Shannon Stewart. Previously, Nomo tossed a no-hit game on April 4 against the Orioles.

• May 28 - Collecting five singles and a three-run home run, Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Paul Lo Duca goes 6-for-6 against the Colorado Rockies to tie an NL record for hits in an extra-inning game.

• June 12 - Dodgers outfielder Gary Sheffield becomes the first player in major league history to win three 1-0 games in a season with a home run, when he solos to beat the Atlanta Braves 1-0. He also supplied the only scoring by homering in April 2 versus Milwaukee, and in May 7 against Florida.

July-September

• July 10 - The American League defeats the National League 4–1 in the All–Star Game. Cal Ripken, Jr. thrills the crowd by hitting a home run and is selected the MVP. Derek Jeter and Magglio Ordóñez also homer for the American League.

• August 8 - The Impossible Return - Notably, the Indians tied a Major League Baseball record by erasing a 12-run Seattle lead. Thus, despite its relatively low-profile as a regular season match, the game is vividly remembered and beloved around Cleveland today. For Seattle fans, it is not only a source of angst because of the game itself but because, had the Mariners held on, they would have broken the all-time Major League record for most wins in a season, instead of tying the 1906 Chicago Cubs with 116 wins.

• August 15 - For the first time in major league history, four pitchers from Venezuela combine to win their respective starts the same day: Freddy García, of the Seattle Mariners, against the Boston Red Sox, 6-2; Kelvim Escobar, of the Toronto Blue Jays, over the Oakland Athletics, 5-2; Giovanni Carrara of the Los Angeles Dodgers, against the Montreal Expos, 13-1; and Omar Daal, in a Philadelphia Phillies victory over the Milwaukee Brewers, 8-6.

• September 1 - Rafael Palmeiro of the Texas Rangers collects his 100th run batted in. He becomes only the fourth major league player with seven consecutive seasons with at least 35 home runs and 100 RBI. This is the eighth time in his career he has had at least 100. He joins some elite company; Jimmie Foxx had nine such consecutive seasons., and Babe Ruth and Sammy Sosa also had seven.

• September 2 - Mike Mussina of the New York Yankees comes within one strike of a perfect game against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park. He retires the first 26 Red Sox hitters in order before outfielder Carl Everett lines a base hit to left centre field to break up the perfect game and no hitter. Mussina has to settle for a one-hitter in a 1-0 Yankees win.

• September 3 - Bud Smith of the St. Louis Cardinals becomes the 16th rookie in modern history to throw a no-hitter and the second to do it to the San Diego Padres this season in the Cardinals' 4-0 win. Smith is making his 11th career start.

• September 5 - Roger Clemens becomes the second pitcher in major league history to win 19 of his first 20 decisions, leading the New York Yankees over the Toronto Blue Jays 4-3.

• September 6 - Barry Bonds of the San Francisco Giants becomes the fifth player in major league history to hit 60 home runs in a season during a game against the Arizona Diamondbacks. He joins Babe Ruth, Roger Maris, Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa. Bonds, who is the oldest to join this elite group, reaches the historic plateau the quickest, needing only 141 games to reach the milestone.

• September 12 - Minor League Baseball cancels the remainder of the 2001 playoff series. All leaders in their series are deemed champions, and those series which had not started or tied had all teams participating named co-champions.

• September 14 - Commissioner Bud Selig announces that baseball will resume playing on September 17, six days after the 9/11 attacks.

• September 21 - In the first sporting event in New York City since the 9/11 Terrorist Attacks, Mike Piazza hits a dramatic 2 run home run in the 8th inning to give the Mets a 3-2 win over the Atlanta Braves. Before the game the 2 rival teams shake hands to show that America was a country united.

• September 24 - Pittsburgh Pirates rookie Craig Wilson ties the major league record for pinch-hit home runs in a season by hitting his seventh in the Pirates' 7–6 win over the Chicago Cubs. Dave Hansen of the Los Angeles Dodgers set the mark last season.

• September 27 - Sammy Sosa of the Chicago Cubs hits a home run and carries a small American Flag around the bases in a 6-5 loss to the Houston Astros
• September 28 - Alex Rodriguez of the Texas Rangers hits his 50th home run in an 11–2 victory over the Anaheim Angels and becomes the 20th player in major league history to hit 50 homers in a season.

October

• October 4 - Rickey Henderson hits a home run to become the major leagues' all-time career runs scored leader with 2,246.

• October 4 - Tim Raines plays left field and his son Tim Jr. plays center in the Baltimore Orioles' 5–4 loss to the Boston Red Sox. They become the second father-son duo to play in the same game, matching the feat turned by Ken Griffey and Ken Jr.

• October 5 - Barry Bonds hits his 71st and 72nd home runs of the year to set a new major league single-season mark in the San Francisco Giants' 11–10 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers.

• October 5 - The Baltimore Orioles lose to the Boston Red Sox 7–5, as Cal Ripken, Jr. becomes the seventh player in major league history to play in 3,000 career games.

• October 6
  • The Seattle Mariners beat the Texas Rangers 1-0, setting the American league record to 116 wins in a regular season and tying the major league mark set by the Chicago Cubs in 1906.
  • Lenny Harris breaks Manny Mota's all-time mark for pinch hits with the 151st of his career as the New York Mets defeat the Montreal Expos 4–0.

• October 7:
  • Rickey Henderson gets the 3,000th hit of his career, as the San Diego Padres lose to the Colorado Rockies. The game is the final one of Tony Gwynn's career. Meanwhile, Larry Walker wins his third NL batting title in three years at .350. Walker and Rockies teammate Todd Helton (.336) become the first teammates to finish 1-2 since John Olerud (.363), Paul Molitor (.332) and Roberto Alomar (.326) were the top three for the Toronto Blue Jays in 1993.
  • Albert Pujols ties Emmet "Snags" Heidrick (1899) for most hits by a St. Louis Cardinals rookie when he makes his 194th.
  • Barry Bonds extends his major-league record with his 73rd home run of the season. He will finish the year with a .863 slugging percentage to break Babe Ruth's all-time single-season record.
  • In a day of records, the Chicago Cubs lose to the Pittsburgh Pirates in their final game of the season, 4–3. They become the first team in major league history to not allow an opposing pitcher to throw a complete game against them all season. Sammy Sosa closes out 2001 with his 64th home run in his final at-bat of the game and sets a new franchise record with 98 extra base hits, one more than Hack Wilson (1930). Sosa also finishes with another franchise record of 425 total bases (the seventh best all-time total), two ahead of Wilson. His 160 RBI are the highest total in the NL since Chuck Klein posted 170 in 1930; Sosa's RBI total for the past four years also breaks Klein's four-year mark set in 1929-32. To finish out the record day, five Cubs pitchers combine for 12 strikeouts as the staff sets a major league record with 1,246 strikeouts. The New York Yankees did the same, setting an AL mark with 1,266 strikeouts.

November-December

• November 1 - The New York Yankees pull off 2 incredible comebacks. With the Arizona Diamondbacks leading 3-1 with 2 outs in the 9th inning of Game 4 of the 2001 World Series, Tino Martinez hits a game tying 2 run home run. One inning later (at 12:04 ET) Derek Jeter hits a walkoff home run to win Game 4, while fans wave a banner which says "Mr. November". Later that night in Game 5, with the Yankees trailing 2-0 in the 9th inning with 2 outs, Scott Brosius hits a 2 run game tying home run to tie that game at 2. The Yankees win 3-2 and take a 3-2 series lead.

• November 4 - The Arizona Diamondbacks win the first World Series of their four-year existence with a come-from-behind 3–2 win over the New York Yankees. Luis González drives home the winning run while Randy Johnson gets the win in relief. Johnson and Curt Schilling share the Series MVP award.

• November 11 - Mark McGwire announces his retirement. His 583 career home runs place him fifth on the all-time list.

• December 6 - Major League Baseball reportedly gives John Henry permission to sell the Florida Marlins to Montréal Expos owner Jeffrey Loria. The Expos are expected to be either contracted or taken over by MLB.

• December 20 - The limited partners of the Boston Red Sox vote unanimously to sell the team to a group led by Florida Marlins owner John Henry and former San Diego Padres owner Tom Werner. The $660 million price, plus an assumption of $40 in debt, would double the record price for a baseball team.

Movies

• 61* (TV)
• Hardball
• Summer Catch

Deaths

January-April

• January 22 - Tommie Agee, 58, All-Star center fielder who was the 1966 AL Rookie of the Year with the White Sox, best remembered for two catches in Game 3 of the 1969 World Series that helped the Mets win the championship
• January 28 - Curt Blefary, 57, outfielder who was the 1965 AL Rookie of the Year with the Orioles
• February 16 - Bob Buhl, 72, All-Star pitcher who won 166 games, mainly with the Braves and Cubs; notoriously poor hitter was 0-for-70 in 1962
• February 18 - Eddie Mathews, 69, Hall of Fame third baseman for the Braves in Boston, Milwaukee and Atlanta who retired with 512 home runs, sixth most in history, hitting 40 four times and leading NL twice; batted .300 three times, scored 100 runs eight times and had five 100-RBI seasons; set major league records with 2181 games and 4323 assists at third base, and NL mark with 369 double plays; appeared on first cover of Sports Illustrated in 1954; was manager of Braves in 1974 when former teammate Hank Aaron broke career home run record
• February 20 - Bill Rigney, 83, manager of the Giants when team moved to San Francisco, later managed Angels, and led Twins to 1970 division title; previously an All-Star infielder for Giants in New York
• February 24 - Phil Collier, 75, sportswriter for the San Diego Union-Tribune who covered the Dodgers, Angels and Padres from 1958 to 1999
• March 20 - Luis Alvarado, 52, infielder for six teams, most notably the White Sox
• April 9 - Willie Stargell, 61, Hall of Fame left fielder for the Pittsburgh Pirates who hit 475 home runs, leading NL twice; was MVP of the regular season, NLCS and World Series in 1979, the only player to do so; batted .300 three times and had five 100-RBI seasons
• April 21 - Hal White, 82, pitcher for the Tigers who eaned shutouts in his first two major league starts; later a coach and scout

May-August

• May 19 - Joe Lovitto, 50, the Texas Rangers' first center fielder, from 1972-75
• June 2 - Gene Woodling, 78, All-Star left fielder who batted .318 in five World Series with the Yankees
• June 16 - Sam Jethroe, 84, All-Star outfielder in the Negro Leagues, later the 1950 NL Rookie of the Year with the Braves at age 32
• June 20 - Bob Keegan, 80, All-Star pitcher who won 40 games, including a no-hitter, for the White Sox
• July 17 - Chief Hogsett, 97, pitcher for the Tigers who made a critical relief appearance in the 1935 World Series
• August 10 - Lou Boudreau, 84, Hall of Fame shortstop for the Cleveland Indians who won 1948 MVP award after leading team to World Series title as a player-manager, the last person to do so; won 1944 batting title and led AL in doubles three times, later a broadcaster
• August 24 - Hank Sauer, 84, All-Star left fielder for four NL teams after rookie season at age 31; won 1952 MVP award with the Cubs after leading league in home runs and RBI
• August 29 - Dick Selma, 57, pitcher who won the San Diego Padres' first game in 1969 and saved 22 games for 1970 Phillies
• August 31 - Crash Davis, 82, infielder for the Philadelphia Athletics from 1940-42 whose name was given to Kevin Costner's character in Bull Durham

September-December

• September 17 - Bubba Church, 77, pitcher who won 15 games for 1951 Phillies, also played for the Reds and Cubs
• September 20 - Joe Stephenson, 80, backup catcher for three teams who gained renown as a scout for the Red Sox
• September 25 - Ritter Collett, 80, sportswriter who covered the Cincinnati Reds for various Dayton newspapers since 1946
• October 5 - Woody Jensen, 94, left fielder for the Pirates who batted .324 in 1935 and set a record with 696 at bats in 1936
• October 18 - Ferris Fain, 80, five-time All-Star first baseman for the Athletics and White Sox who won consecutive batting titles in 1951-52
• November 23 - Bo Belinsky, 64, pitcher who enjoyed a 10-win rookie season in 1962 with the Angels, including the first no-hitter on the West Coast, but whose raucous personal life derailed his career
• November 29 - Marcelino López, 58, Cuban pitcher who won 14 games as a 1965 rookie with the Angels but never recaptured the same form
• December 24 - Hank Soar, 87, American League umpire from 1950 to 1973 who worked in five World Series; former football player with the New York Giants
• December 26 - Tom McBride, 87, outfielder who batted .305 for the 1945 Red Sox, getting six RBI in one inning in August

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