For the fourth and final year, there were two separate All-Star Games played. The first, the 32nd All-Star Game, was held on July 11 at District of Columbia Stadium in Washington, D.C., home of the Washington Senators. The National League won, 3–1. The second, the 33rd All-Star Game, was held on July 31 at Wrigley Field in Chicago, Illinois, home of the Chicago Cubs. The American League won, 9–4.
In response to the proposed Continental League, the National League announced expansion during the 1960 World Series, with a new team in Houston, Texas and a new team in New York City. The 1962 season would see the Houston Colt .45s and New York Mets enfranchised, the latter being the National League's return to New York City after a four-year absence.
Schedule
The 1962 schedule consisted of 162 games for all teams in the American League and National League, each of which had 10 teams. Each team was scheduled to play 18 games against the other nine teams of their respective league. The 162-game, 18 games per team format had previously been used by the American League since the previous season due to expansion and was the first season that the National League used it due to their own expansion. The format would be used until 1969.
Opening Day took place on April 9, featuring four teams. The final day of the scheduled regular season was on October 1, which saw all 20 teams play, the first time all existing teams played on the final day since 1960. Due to the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Francisco Giants finishing with the same record of 101–61, a best-of-three tie-breaker was scheduled, to be considered an extension of the regular season, and took place between October 1 and October 3. The World Series took place between October 4 and October 16
Milestones
Batters
Cycles
- Lou Clinton (BOS):
- Clinton hit for his first cycle and 13th in franchise history, on July 13 against the Kansas City Athletics.[10]
Other batting accomplishments
- Earl Averill Jr. (LAA):
- Tied a Major League record by reaching base in 17 consecutive plate appearances between June 3 and 10, previously set by Piggy Ward in 1893.[11]
- Bob Allison / Harmon Killebrew (MIN):
- Became the first duo to hit two grand slams in the same inning, in the midst of an 11-run first inning against the Cleveland Indians on July 18.
- Warren Spahn (MIL):
- Set a National League record for most career home runs by a pitcher by hitting his 35th home run on July 26 against the New York Mets.[12]
- Mickey Mantle (NYY):
- Became the seventh player in Major League history to hit 400 home runs in the fifth inning against the Detroit Tigers on September 10.[13][14]
Pitchers
No-hitters
- Bo Belinsky (LAA):
- Belinsky threw his first career no-hitter and first no-hitter in franchise history, by defeating the Baltimore Orioles 2–0 on May 5. Belinsky walked four, hitting two by pitch, and struck out nine.[15]
- Earl Wilson (BOS):
- Wilson threw his first career no-hitter and 12th no-hitter in franchise history, by defeating the Los Angeles Angels 2–0 on June 26. Wilson walked four and struck out five.[16]
- Sandy Koufax (LAD):
- Koufax threw his first career no-hitter and 14th no-hitter in franchise history, by defeating the New York Mets 5–0 on June 30. Koufax walked five and struck out 13, throwing 80 strikes on 138 pitches.[17]
- Bill Monbouquette (BOS):
- Monbouquette threw his first career no-hitter and 13th no-hitter in franchise history, by defeating the Chicago White Sox 1–0 on August 1. Monbouquette walked one and struck out seven.[18]
- Jack Kralick (MIN):
- Kralick threw his first career no-hitter and third no-hitter in franchise history, by defeating the Kansas City Athletics 1–0 on August 26. Kralick walked one and struck out three.[19]
Other pitching accomplishments
- Sandy Koufax (LAD):
- Became the third player to strike out 18 batters in a modern Major League game (including his previous record in 1959) for most strikeouts in a single game in a 10–2 win against the Chicago Cubs on April 24.[20]
- Tom Cheney (WAS):
- Set a Major League record (when including extra innings) for most strikeouts in a single game, throwing 21 strikeouts in a 16-inning 2–1 win against the Baltimore Orioles on September 12.[21]
Miscellaneous
- New York Yankees:
- Set a Major League record for most runs scored in the 22nd inning, by scoring two runs against the Detroit Tigers on September 1.[22]
- New York Mets:
- Set the modern Major League record for most losses in a season on September 30 with 120. The previous record of 117 was set by the Philadelphia Athletics in 1916.
Awards and honors
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Regular season
| Baseball Writers' Association of America Awards | ||
|---|---|---|
| BBWAA Award | National League | American League |
| Rookie of the Year | Ken Hubbs (CHC) | Tom Tresh (NYY) |
| Cy Young Award | Don Drysdale (LAD) | — |
| Most Valuable Player | Maury Wills (LAD) | Mickey Mantle (NYY) |
| Babe Ruth Award (World Series MVP) | — | Ralph Terry (NYY) |
| Gold Glove Awards | ||
| Position | National League | American League |
| Pitcher | Bobby Shantz (STL/HOU) | Jim Kaat (MIN) |
| Catcher | Del Crandall (MIL) | Earl Battey (MIN) |
| 1st Base | Bill White (STL) | Vic Power (MIN) |
| 2nd Base | Ken Hubbs (CHC) | Bobby Richardson (NYY) |
| 3rd Base | Jim Davenport (SF) | Brooks Robinson (BAL) |
| Shortstop | Maury Wills (LAD) | Luis Aparicio (CWS) |
| Outfield | Bill Virdon (PIT) | Jim Landis (CWS) |
| Roberto Clemente (PIT) | Al Kaline (DET) | |
| Willie Mays (SF) | Mickey Mantle (NYY) | |
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