1934 Baseball Season

by the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.

More 1934 Baseball Season Headlines

Following are more headlines from the 1934 baseball season, including Babe Ruth's 700th career homer.

The Bambino Nails No. 700

Babe Ruth crossed the plate on July 13, 1934, after hitting his 700th career home run against Detroit at Navin Field. The sports pages the following day deemed it "a record likely never to be surpassed in baseball." Lou Gehrig was second at the time with 314 homers and Rogers Hornsby third with 301.

1934 Detroit Tigers Grab American League Flag

Mickey Cochrane and Goose Goslin were the only two players in the American League to be on five pennant-winning teams between 1921 and 1939 without ever playing for the Yankees. In 1934, Cochrane had a .320 batting average, two home runs, and 76 RBI; Goslin had a .305 average, 13 home runs, and 100 RBI.

Hal Trosky Brings Respect to Tribe

The Indians had a team batting average of .261 and just 50 home runs in 1933. Rookie slugging star Hal Trosky helped pump up the stats to a .287 average and an even 100 four-baggers in 1934. What aided the Indians hitters even more, however, was moving most of the Tribe's home games from gigantic Cleveland Stadium to tiny League Park, the American League's version of the Baker Bowl.

Mickey Cochrane Wins 1934 American League MVP

In 1934, Mickey Cochrane became the first player who had studied under Connie Mack for at least one full season to manage a pennant-winning club. In the American League MVP balloting that year, Cochrane (.320, a pair of home runs, 76 RBI) narrowly edged teammate Charlie Gehringer for the title.

1934 St. Louis Cardinals Take World Title

The St. Louis Cardinals won the World Champion title in 1934. Dubbed the "Gashouse Gang" by New York sportswriter Frank Graham, the Cardinals' gritty, aggressive brand of ball came to symbolize the game during the 1930s -- at least in the National League. The American League had the Yankees, an altogether different breed of team.

1934 Cards and Tigers Go Neck-and-Neck

The Tigers returned home to Navin Field on October 8 with a 3-2 lead in games, only to lose a 4-3 squeaker to Paul Dean. The following day, they suffered an 11-0 blowout at the hands of Paul's brother Dizzy Dean.

Find highlights from the 1934 baseball season on the next page.

To learn more about baseball, see: