2007 in baseball

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The following are the baseball events of the year 2007 throughout the world.  

This year in baseball

2000s

2009 • 2008 • 2007 • 2006 • 2005
2004 • 2003 • 2002 • 2001 • 2000

1990s

1999 • 1998 • 1997 • 1996 • 1995
1994 • 1993 • 1992 • 1991 • 1990

1980s

1989 • 1988 • 1987 • 1986 • 1985
1984 • 1983 • 1982 • 1981 • 1980

1970s

1979 • 1978 • 1977 • 1976 • 1975
1974 • 1973 • 1972 • 1971 • 1970

1960s

1969 • 1968 • 1967 • 1966 • 1965
1964 • 1963 • 1962 • 1961 • 1960

1950s

1959 • 1958 • 1957 • 1956 • 1955
1954 • 1953 • 1952 • 1951 • 1950

1940s

1949 • 1948 • 1947 • 1946 • 1945
1944 • 1943 • 1942 • 1941 • 1940

1930s

1939 • 1938 • 1937 • 1936 • 1935
1934 • 1933 • 1932 • 1931 • 1930

1920s

1929 • 1928 • 1927 • 1926 • 1925
1924 • 1923 • 1922 • 1921 • 1920

1910s

1919 • 1918 • 1917 • 1916 • 1915
1914 • 1913 • 1912 • 1911 • 1910

1900s

1909 • 1908 • 1907 • 1906 • 1905
1904 • 1903 • 1902 • 1901 • 1900

1890s

1899 • 1898 • 1897 • 1896 • 1895
1894 • 1893 • 1892 • 1891 • 1890

1880s

1889 • 1888 • 1887 • 1886 • 1885
1884 • 1883 • 1882 • 1881 • 1880

1870s

1879 • 1878 • 1877 • 1876 • 1875
1874 • 1873 • 1872 • 1871 • 1870

Early Years

1845-1868 • 1869
See also
Sources

Contents

Champions

Major League Baseball

  • Regular Season Champions
League Eastern Division Champion Central Division Champion Western Division Champion Wild Card Qualifier
American League Boston Red Sox Cleveland Indians Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim New York Yankees
National League Philadelphia Phillies Chicago Cubs Arizona Diamondbacks Colorado Rockies


  Division Series
TV: TBS/TNT		 League Championship Series
TV: TBS (NLCS);
FOX (ALCS)		 World Series
TV: Fox
                           
  1  Boston Red Sox 3  
3  LA Angels of Anaheim 0  
  1  Boston Red Sox 4  
American League
  2  Cleveland Indians 3  
2  Cleveland Indians 3
  4  New York Yankees 1  
    1  Boston Red Sox 4
  4  Colorado Rockies 0
  1  Arizona Diamondbacks 3  
3  Chicago Cubs 0  
  1  Arizona Diamondbacks 0
National League
  4  Colorado Rockies 4  
2  Philadelphia Phillies 0
  4  Colorado Rockies 3  

Click on any series score to link to that series' page.
Higher seed had home field advantage during Division Series and League Championship Series.
The American League champion has home field advantage during the World Series as a result of the AL victory in the All-Star Game.

Other champions

1 - The appearance by the Huskies of Rouen, France in the final marks the first time since 1976 that a team from outside the professional leagues of the Netherlands or Italy has finished in the top two.

Awards and honors

* Francoeur and Rowand finished tied in the voting

Major League Baseball final standings

Main article: 2007 Major League Baseball season
American League
Rank Club Wins Losses Win %   GB
East Division
1st Boston Red Sox 96 66 .593    –
2nd New York Yankees† 94 68 .580   2.0
3rd Toronto Blue Jays 83 79 .512 13.0
4th Baltimore Orioles 69 93 .426 27.0
5th Tampa Bay Devil Rays 66 96 .407 30.0
Central Division
1st Cleveland Indians 96 66 .593    –
2nd Detroit Tigers 88 74 .543   8.0
3rd Minnesota Twins 79 83 .488 17.0
4th Chicago White Sox 72 90 .444 24.0
5th Kansas City Royals 69 93 .426 27.0
West Division
1st Los Angeles Angels 94 68 .580    –
2nd Seattle Mariners 88 74 .543   6.0
3rd Oakland Athletics 76 86 .469 18.0
4th Texas Rangers 75 87 .463 19.0

†Denotes the club that won the wild card for its respective league. The Rockies defeated the Padres 9-8 (13) in a one-game playoff for the NL wild card.
National League
Rank Club Wins Losses Win %   GB
East Division
1st Philadelphia Phillies 89 73 .549    –
2nd New York Mets 88 74 .543   1.0
3rd Atlanta Braves 84 78 .519   5.0
4th Washington Nationals 73 89 .451 16.0
5th Florida Marlins 71 91 .438 18.0
Central Division
1st Chicago Cubs 85 77 .525    –
2nd Milwaukee Brewers 83 79 .512   2.0
3rd St. Louis Cardinals 78 84 .481   7.0
4th Houston Astros 73 89 .451 12.0
5th Cincinnati Reds 72 90 .444 13.0
6th Pittsburgh Pirates 68 94 .420 17.0
West Division
1st Arizona Diamondbacks 90 72 .556    –
2nd Colorado Rockies† 90 73 .552   0.5
3rd San Diego Padres 89 74 .546   1.5
4th Los Angeles Dodgers 82 80 .506   8.0
5th San Francisco Giants 71 91 .438 19.0

The 90 wins by the Diamondbacks and Rockies were the fewest to lead the NL since 1959, with the exception of the strike-shortened seasons of 1981, 1994 and 1995. No NL team won or lost 95 games for the first time since 1983.

Also, this was the second consecutive season in which no team won at least 60% of its games, the first time that this has happened in Major League Baseball history.

Events

January-March

April

  • April 2:
    • Bruce Froemming works behind home plate for the opener between the Athletics and Mariners, tying Bill Klem's major league record of 37 seasons as an umpire.
    • The Tribune Company, after agreeing to a buyout of $8.2 billion by real estate magnate Sam Zell, announces that the Chicago Cubs will be subsequently sold following the 2007 season.
  • April 15 - To celebrate the sixtieth anniversary of Jackie Robinson's first major league game, dozens of players wear his league-wide retired number, 42. The Los Angeles Dodgers are one of six teams whose entire roster wears number 42 for their games.
  • April 20 - Bruce Froemming umpires at first base in the Cleveland Indians-Tampa Bay Devil Rays game, passing Bill Klem to become – at age 67 years 204 days – the oldest umpire in major league history.
  • April 23 - Alex Rodriguez of the New York Yankees hits two home runs, his 13th and 14th of the season, in a 10-8 loss to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, surpassing the American League record and tying the Major League record for most home runs hit in the month of April.

May

June

  • June 4 - Mark Ellis hits for the cycle at McAfee Coliseum as his Oakland Athletics defeat the Boston Red Sox, 5-4 in 11 innings. He hit a triple in the 2nd inning, a solo home run in the 4th and a double in the 6th. Although a fielder's choice in the 8th with the A's holding the lead seemingly ended his run for the cycle, a rally by the Red Sox in the 9th pushed extra innings, allowing Ellis to get the single he needed in the 10th inning.
  • June 16 - The Cubs and Padres each collect only two hits as Russell Branyan's home run in the ninth inning gives San Diego a 1-0 win. The Cubs' Carlos Zambrano takes a no-hitter into the eighth, while Padres starter Chris Young allows no hits before being ejected in the fourth following a brawl.

July

  • July 2 - Roger Clemens becomes the eighth major league pitcher to win 350 games, in the Yankees' 5-1 win over the Minnesota Twins.
  • July 9 - Vladimir Guerrero of the Los Angeles Angels wins the 2007 Home Run Derby in San Francisco. Despite the highly publicized presence of McCovey Cove beyond the right field fence, not a single home run touches the water.

August

  • August 9:
    • Roger Clemens is suspended for the fourth time in his career for hitting Toronto's Alex Rios with a pitch after both teams were warned.
    • Rick Ankiel, formerly a pitcher with infamous control problems, returns to the major leagues as an outfielder for the St. Louis Cardinals, hitting a 3-run home run in his fourth at-bat.
  • August 22 - In the first game of a doubleheader, the Texas Rangers beat the Baltimore Orioles 30-3, setting a new record for runs scored by a single team in a game in the modern (post-1900) era, and the American League all-time record. The Rangers' 30 runs were the most in a game since the Chicago Colts beat the Louisville Colonels 36-7 on June 29, 1897. With a 9-7 victory in the second game, the Rangers also set the record for most runs scored by a single team in a doubleheader, with 39.

September

  • September 6 - Rick Ankiel's stunning one-month return to baseball as a hitter is mired by controversy when the New York Daily News reports that he purchased 12 month's worth of HGH from a Florida pharmacy from January to December 2004. A few days later, Jay Gibbons of the Orioles is reported to also have received HGH from the same pharmacy. Ankiel did not deny using HGH prior to MLB's official banning of the substance in 2005, stating he used it during that time under the care of a licensed physician.
  • September 7 - Curtis Granderson of the Tigers hits his 20th home run of the season, becoming the sixth player in major league history, and the first since 1979, to join the 20–20–20 club, indicating 20 doubles, 20 triples, and 20 home runs in the same season. He ends the season with 38 doubles, 23 triples, and 23 home runs.
  • September 8 - The 50th and 51st home runs of the season by Alex Rodriguez are his 48th and 49th as a third baseman. The first breaks his own AL record for the position, while the second breaks the major league record for the position which had stood since 1980 (Mike Schmidt, tied by Adrián Beltré in 2004). Rodriguez's 50th home run also makes him the first player in major league history to collect 50 home runs, 130 runs scored, 130 RBI and 20 stolen bases in a single season (the previous closest player was Larry Walker in 1997, who fell one home run short with 49 HR, 143 runs, 130 RBI and 33 steals).
  • September 16:
    • Jim Thome of the White Sox, playing in his 2,000th game, becomes the 23rd player in major league history to reach the 500 home run milestone when he hits a walk-off home run off Dustin Moseley of the Angels to win the game 9-7, making 2007 the first season in history in which three players have hit their 500th homer in the same season. It is also the first time that the 500-homer mark has been reached with a walk-off shot.
    • David Wright of the Mets hits his 30th home run of the season to go with 31 stolen bases, becoming only the fifth player in major league history to become a member of the 30-30 club before the age of 25, in a 10-6 loss to the Phillies.
    • Todd Jones of the Tigers becomes the 21st pitcher in major league history to record 300 saves.
    • Todd Helton hits his 300th career home run.
  • September 18 - Moisés Alou of the Mets, age 41, hits in his 22nd consecutive game, a modern era record for a player over 40.
  • September 19 - Andy Pettitte becomes the 110th pitcher to earn 200 major league victories in the Yankees' 2-1 win over the Orioles.
  • September 21
    • Barry Bonds announces that his tenure (1993-2007) with the San Francisco Giants has ended, after the team indicates it will not sign him for 2008.
    • Moisés Alou extends his hitting streak to 25 games, breaking the Mets single-season record shared by Mike Piazza and Hubie Brooks. In the same game, the Marlins commit a franchise-high six errors in a 9-6 loss. Eight of the nine runs were unearned as a result of the errors, two of them by Miguel Cabrera. Two days later, Alou surpasses David Wright's overall club mark of 26 games, which spanned two seasons. The streak ends at 30 games on the 26th, a new major league record for a player over 40.
  • September 22 - The Boston Red Sox become the first major league team to earn a playoff spot with an 8-6 defeat of the Devil Rays.
  • September 26
    • Cardinals slugger Albert Pujols hits his 32nd home run of the season in the first inning against the Brewers, giving him 100 RBI and making him the first player in major league history to have at least a .300 batting average with 30 homers and 100 RBI in his first seven seasons.
    • Reds second baseman Brandon Phillips homers in the first inning off Juan Gutiérrez of the Astros, making him only the second player at his position to collect 30 home runs and steal 30 bases in the same season. Alfonso Soriano has accomplished the feat three times at the same position.
    • Red Sox third baseman Mike Lowell collects five RBI in a 11–6 Boston victory over the Athletics, raising his total to 116 and setting a new team record for most RBI in a season by a third baseman; Butch Hobson collected 112 RBI in 1977.
    • The New York Yankees secure their 13th consecutive postseason berth with a 12-4 rout of the Devil Rays.
    • Barry Bonds goes 0-for-3 in his final game with the Giants, an 11-3 loss to the visiting Padres.
  • September 27 - Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard strikes out for the 196th and 197th times of the season, surpassing Adam Dunn's single-season record of 195 strikeouts in 2004. He ends the season with a new record of 199 strikeouts.
  • September 29
    • The Arizona Diamondbacks clinch their fourth National League West title even before taking the field against the Colorado Rockies, when San Diego loses to Milwaukee 4-3.
    • In his second-to-last major league game, Craig Biggio plays at his original position of catcher for the first two innings, playing behind the plate for the first time in 16 years after spending his first four seasons there.
  • September 30
    • The New York Mets lose to the Florida Marlins 8-1, completing one of the worst collapses in major league history by squandering a 7-game lead with 17 games remaining in the NL East race, and finish the season one game behind the Philadelphia Phillies, who defeat the Nationals 6-1 to clinch the division title for the first time since 1993.
    • Jimmy Rollins collects his 20th triple of the season, making him the seventh member of the 20–20–20 club and the second new member this year along with Curtis Granderson; this also marks the first time in major league history that two batters record 20–20–20 seasons during the same year. He also becomes the fourth member of the 20–20–20–20 club, as well as the first player in major league history to collect at least 20 doubles, 20 triples, 20 home runs and 40 stolen bases in a single season; this also marks the first time that two players record 20–20–20–20 seasons during the same year (Granderson met the mark earlier in September 2007), and the second time that a batter had a 30-30 season and a 20–20–20–20 season during the same year (Willie Mays accomplished the feat in 1957). Rollins ends the season with 38 doubles, 20 triples, 30 home runs, and 41 stolen bases.
    • Bruce Froemming receives a standing ovation from his Milwaukee hometown crowd prior to working his last regular-season game after a record 37 *full* seasons as a major league umpire; his final game overall takes place on October 8 in the Indians-Yankees AL Division Series. In the game, the San Diego Padres fail to clinch the NL wild card spot by losing 11-6 to the Milwaukee Brewers. He also extended his record (April 20) for oldest umpire ever in a regular-season game to 68 years, 2 days.

October

  • October 1 - The Colorado Rockies defeat the San Diego Padres 9-8 in 13 innings in the 2007 NL Wild Card tie-breaker to secure the last of the eight MLB playoff spots, completing a run in which they won 14 of their last 15 games, tying the best 15-game finish in major league history. Despite an error in the game, the Rockies also set a major league record for team fielding percentage (.9893), breaking the 2006 Boston Red Sox mark of .9891.
  • October 18 – After the New York Yankees offer him only a one-year contract at a base salary one-third less than what he earned in 2007, Joe Torre leaves after 12 seasons as manager.
  • October 24 – The National Baseball Hall of Fame announces that it will honor Buck O'Neil by establishing a lifetime achievement award in his name. O'Neil, a Negro League first baseman and manager who died in October 2006, will be honored with a statue to be dedicated at the next Hall of Fame induction in Cooperstown, N.Y. After leaving the Negro Leagues, O'Neil became the first African American coach in the majors by joining the Cubs staff in 1962, and was later an influential figure in the promotion of baseball and study of Negro Leagues history. He was nominated to a special Hall ballot for Negro League players, managers, and executives in 2006, but didn't receive the necessary number of votes to gain admission into the Hall.

November

  • November 6
    • Greg Maddux wins his 17th Gold Glove Award, breaking a record he had previously shared with Jim Kaat and Brooks Robinson.
    • By a vote of 25-5, major league general managers endorse the use of instant replay for the first time, with the condition that its scope be limited to determining where a potential home run ball left the park or the possibility of fan interference on a home run.
  • November 8
    • General managers decide to mandate first- and third-base coaches to wear head protection during games starting in 2008. This was prompted by the death on July 22 of minor-league first-base coach Mike Coolbaugh of the Tulsa Drillers, a Double-A affiliate of the Colorado Rockies, who was hit in the neck by a foul line drive, killing him on impact.
    • The Tampa Bay Devil Rays officially drop the "Devil" from their name, becoming the Tampa Bay Rays. In addition to the name change, they also change their colors from green and black to navy blue, Columbia blue, and gold, and design new uniforms that will be worn starting in 2008.
  • November 16
    • Barry Bonds is indicted on charges of perjury and obstructing justice.
    • Alex Rodriguez agrees to an outline of a deal with the New York Yankees (10 years, $275 million, with extra money if he breaks the career home run record with the Yankees. In total the deal could reach $300 million.)

December

Media

Deaths

January-March

  • January 1 - Ernie Koy, 97, left fielder for four NL teams from 1938-1942 who homered in his first at bat, with the Dodgers
  • January 4 - Bob Milliken, 80, pitcher for the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1953 and 1954
  • January 16 - Betty Trezza, 81, shortstop for the Racine Belles of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League
  • January 19 - Bill Lefebvre, 91, pitcher for the Boston Red Sox and Washington Senators between 1938 and 1944
  • January 20 - Vern Ruhle, 55, pitcher for the Tigers and Astros who had notable starts for Houston in the 1980, 1981 playoffs; later a pitching coach for four NL teams
  • January 23 - Dick Joyce, 63, pitcher for the Kansas City Athletics in 1965
  • January 25 - Jack Lang, 85, sportswriter for New York area newspapers from 1946 to 1989, and longtime BBWAA official who was responsible for notifying Hall of Famers of their election from 1966 to 1988
  • January 27 - Bing Devine, 90, general manager who built the Cardinals' pennant winners of 1964, '67 and '68; later president of the Mets
  • January 29 - Art Fowler, 84, pitcher from 1954 to 1964, mainly with the Redlegs and Angels, who became pitching coach for five teams under manager Billy Martin
  • January 30 - Max Lanier, 91, All-Star pitcher who won 101 games for the Cardinals, led NL in ERA in 1943 and won final game of the 1944 World Series; father of infielder-manager Hal
  • February 1 - Ray Berres, 99, catcher for four NL teams from 1934 to 1945, later a White Sox pitching coach for nearly two decades
  • February 4 - Steve Barber, 68, All-Star pitcher for the Orioles who in 1963 became the first 20-game winner in modern Baltimore history
  • February 4 - Jim Pisoni, 77, outfielder, the last player to debut in a St Louis Browns uniform, who also played for the Kansas City Athletics, Milwaukee Braves and New York Yankees
  • February 6 - Lew Burdette, 80, All-Star pitcher for the Braves who was MVP of the 1957 World Series, led NL with 21 wins in 1959
  • February 9 - Hank Bauer, 84, All-Star right fielder for the Yankees on seven World Series champions; managed Orioles to 1966 World Series title
  • February 15 - Buddy Hancken, 92, catcher for the 1940 Philadelphia Athletics; later a minor league manager, scout, coach and executive
  • February 18 - Danny Reynolds, 87, infielder for the 1945 Chicago White Sox
  • February 20 - Bob Malloy, 88, pitcher for the Cincinnati Reds and St. Louis Browns between 1943 and 1949
  • February 20 - Casey Wise, 74, infielder for the Chicago Cubs (1957), Milwaukee Braves (1958-1959) and Detroit Tigers (1960)
  • February 21 - Sherman Jones, 72, pitcher for three NL teams from 1960-1962; later a Kansas legislator for twelve years
  • March 2 - Clem Labine, 80, All-Star relief pitcher for the Dodgers who helped the team win its first World Series in 1955, held NL record for career saves from 1958 to 1962
  • March 3 - Gene Oliver, 71, catcher and first baseman for five teams in the 1960s who hit 21 home runs for the 1965 Milwaukee Braves
  • March 7 - Emil Mailho, 97, outfielder for the 1936 Philadelphia Athletics
  • March 8 - John Vukovich, 59, third baseman for three teams, mainly the Phillies, from 1970 to 1981; later a Phillies coach for 17 seasons
  • March 10 - Art Lopatka, 87, pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals and Philadelphia Phillies in the 1940s
  • March 10 -