1972 Major League Baseball season

Labor strike

1972 was affected by a players' strike over pension and salary arbitration. The strike, which started on April 1, erased the first ten days of the season, canceling 86 games, and ended on April 13. Both leagues decided to excise the lost portion of the season with no makeups, and start the season on April 15. As a result, an uneven number of games were lost by each team; some as few as six, some as many as nine. The lack of makeups, even when they affected the playoffs, led to the Boston Red Sox losing the American League East by half a game to the Detroit Tigers, who played one more game (156 to 155).

Schedule

The 1972 schedule, originally scheduled with a 162 game schedule per team, consisted of 153–156 games for all teams in the American League and National League, each of which had twelve teams. Each league was split into two six-team divisions. Each team was (pre-strike) scheduled to play 18 games against their five division rivals, totaling 90 games, and 12 games against six interdivision opponents, totaling 72 games. Due to the strike, the total number of games were inconsistently cut down, as sthe first ten days scheduled were simply canceled. The structure of the 162-game format was put in place since the and would be used until in the American League and in the National League.

Opening Day, which pre-strike was scheduled for April 5, took place on April 15, featuring 22 teams. The final day of the regular season was on October 4, also featuring 22 teams. The League Championship Series for both leagues began on October 7. The National League Championship Series concluded on October 11, while the American League Championship Series concluded October 12. The World Series took place between October 14 and October 22.

Rule changes

The 1972 season saw the following rule changes:

• The rule governing "players to be named later" was modified to prohibit such a player from appearing in the same league as the team to which he was traded, between the date of the trade and the date of its completion. This provision was added to keep a player from directly competing with a club to whom he had been traded. The rule was also modified to require that a cash amount be specified so that the teams could later agree to use the cash consideration instead of the player.
• During the season several players — notably St. Louis outfielders Lou Brock and José Cardenal and San Diego outfielder Ivan Murrell — began using a so-called "Japanese teacup bat," which had a hollow end. NL President Chub Feeney approved its use pending the eventual opinion of the Rules Committee, which met at the meetings and approved. Committee chairman John H. Johnson, an administrative aide to the commissioner, claimed that the bat did not provide the hitter an advantage.
• The committee ruled that all Double-A players would be required to wear an earflap helmet beginning in 1972, and all Triple-A players by 1973. The rule would not be implemented at the major league level until 1983, and only applied to new players.

Teams

Standings

American League

National League

Postseason

Main article: 1972 Major League Baseball postseason

The postseason began on October 7 and ended on October 22 with the Oakland Athletics defeating the Cincinnati Reds in the 1972 World Series in seven games.

Bracket

Managerial changes

Off-season

In-season

League leaders

American League

National League

1 National League Triple Crown pitching winner

Awards and honors

Regular season

Other awards

• Commissioner's Award (Humanitarian): Brooks Robinson (BAL)
• Hutch Award: Bobby Tolan (CIN)
• Sport Magazine's World Series Most Valuable Player Award: Gene Tenace (OAK)

Monthly awards

Player of the Month

Main article: Major League Baseball Player of the Month Award

Baseball Hall of Fame

Main article: National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum

• Yogi Berra
• Josh Gibson
• Lefty Gomez
• Sandy Koufax (at 36, the youngest inductee ever)
• Buck Leonard
• Early Wynn
• Ross Youngs
• Will Harridge (executive)

Home field attendance

Uniforms

Most teams (16 of 24) switched from wool flannel uniforms to double knit uniforms made of nylon and rayon at the outset of 1972. The Pirates were first to adopt double knits when they moved from Forbes Field to Three Rivers Stadium in July 1970. The Cardinals switched at the start of the 1971 season, and the Orioles gradually phased out their flannels throughout 1971, becoming all-double knit in time for the postseason.

The Giants wore flannels until midseason, going to double knits at home only; the flannels would not be phased out for the road uniforms until 1973. The Red Sox switched to double knits midway through 1972, but continued to wear flannels occasionally. Only the Royals, Expos and Yankees wore flannels full-time during the 1972 season, and all three converted to double knits for 1973 (the Royals waited to switch uniforms until their new stadium opened).

Venues

With the relocation from Washington, D.C. to Arlington, Texas, the Texas Rangers (formerly Washington Senators) move from Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium (where they played 10 seasons) to Arlington Stadium (where they would go on to play for 22 seasons through ).

The Kansas City Royals would play their final game at Municipal Stadium on October 4 against the Texas Rangers, moving into Royals Stadium for the start of the season.

Television coverage

NBC was the exclusive national TV broadcaster of MLB. While the network had occasionally aired a limited number of Monday night games in past seasons, 1972 was the first year that NBC signed a contract for a regular slate of Monday Night Baseball. The network continued to air the weekend Game of the Week, the All-Star Game, both League Championship Series, and the World Series.

Retired numbers

• Frank Robinson had his No. 20 retired by the Baltimore Orioles on March 10. This was the first number retired by the team. Robinson would later have his No. 20 retired by the Cincinnati Reds on May 22, and the Cleveland Indians on May 27,
• Pie Traynor had his No. 20 retired by the Pittsburgh Pirates on April 18. This was the third number retired by the team.
• Willie Mays had his No. 24 retired by the San Francisco Giants on May 12. This was the third number retired by the team. Mays would later have his No. 24 retired by the New York Mets on August 27, .
• On June 4, the Los Angeles Dodgers retired three numbers, their first three numbers retired by the team.
  • Roy Campanella had his No. 39 retired.
  • Sandy Koufax had his No. 32 retired.
  • Jackie Robinson had his No. 42 retired. Robinson would later have his No. 42 retired in all of MLB on April 15, to acknowledge his contributions to breaking the baseball color line. From 2004, this day would be known annually as Jackie Robinson Day.
• On July 22, the New York Yankees retired No. 8 to honor two players. This was their sixth and seventh numbers retired by the team.
  • Yogi Berra had his No. 8 retired.
  • Bill Dickey had his No. 8 retired.

References

References

1. "1972 Final Standings".
2. Liebman, Rob. "Schedule Changes Since 1876 – Society for American Baseball Research".
3. Armour, Mark. "1971 Winter Meetings: The Swap Meet – Society for American Baseball Research".
4. "Rules History".
5. Street, Jim. "Safe at home plate". [[Major League Baseball Advanced Media]].
6. "1972 Major League Managers".
7. "1972 American League Batting Leaders".
8. "1972 American League Pitching Leaders".
9. "1972 National League Batting Leaders".
10. "1972 National League Pitching Leaders".
11. "Major League Player of the Year Award by The Sporting News {{!}} Baseball Almanac".
12. "Pitcher of the Year Award by The Sporting News {{!}} Baseball Almanac".
13. "Fireman of the Year Award / Reliever of the Year Award by The Sporting News {{!}} Baseball Almanac".
14. "Rookie Player of the Year Award by The Sporting News {{!}} Baseball Almanac".
15. "Rookie Pitcher of the Year Award by The Sporting News {{!}} Baseball Almanac".
16. "The Sporting News Comeback Player of the Year Award {{!}} Baseball Almanac".
17. "Manager of the Year Award by The Sporting News {{!}} Baseball Almanac".
18. "MLB Executive of the Year Award {{!}} Baseball Almanac".
19. "New York Mets Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". [[Baseball-Reference.com]].
20. "Detroit Tigers Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". [[Baseball-Reference.com]].
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22. "Cincinnati Reds Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". [[Baseball-Reference.com]].
23. "Houston Astros Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". [[Baseball-Reference.com]].
24. "Boston Red Sox Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". [[Baseball-Reference.com]].
25. "Pittsburgh Pirates Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". [[Baseball-Reference.com]].
26. "Philadelphia Phillies Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". [[Baseball-Reference.com]].
27. "Chicago Cubs Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". [[Baseball-Reference.com]].
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29. "Chicago White Sox Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". [[Baseball-Reference.com]].
30. "Washington Nationals Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". [[Baseball-Reference.com]].
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32. "Oakland Athletics Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". [[Baseball-Reference.com]].
33. "Baltimore Orioles Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". [[Baseball-Reference.com]].
34. "Minnesota Twins Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". [[Baseball-Reference.com]].
35. "Atlanta Braves Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". [[Baseball-Reference.com]].
36. "Los Angeles Angels Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". [[Baseball-Reference.com]].
37. "Kansas City Royals Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". [[Baseball-Reference.com]].
38. "Texas Rangers Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". [[Baseball-Reference.com]].
39. "San Francisco Giants Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". [[Baseball-Reference.com]].
40. "San Diego Padres Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". [[Baseball-Reference.com]].
41. "Cleveland Indians Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". [[Baseball-Reference.com]].
42. "Milwaukee Brewers Attendance, Stadiums and Park Factors". [[Baseball-Reference.com]].
43. (February 23, 1971). "TV to test prime-time ball games". St. Petersburg Times.