1921 Major League Baseball season
The 1921 Major League Baseball season began on April 13, 1921. The regular season ended on October 2, with the New York Giants and New York Yankees as the regular season champions of the National League and American League, respectively. The postseason began with Game 1 of the 18th World Series on October 5 and ended with Game 8 on October 13. The Giants defeated the Yankees, five games to three.
| 1921 MLB season | |
|---|---|
| League | Major League Baseball |
| Sport | Baseball |
| Duration | April 13 – October 13, 1921 |
| Number of games | 154 |
| Number of teams | 16 |
| Pennant Winners | |
| AL champions | New York Yankees |
| AL runners-up | Cleveland Indians |
| NL champions | New York Giants |
| NL runners-up | Pittsburgh Pirates |
| World Series | |
| Champions | New York Giants |
| Runners-up | New York Yankees |
National League
1921 was the first of three straight seasons in which the Yankees would lead the majors in wins. Babe Ruth broke the single season home run record for the third consecutive season by hitting 59 home runs in 152 games. Ruth also broke Roger Connor's record for the most home runs all time when he hit his 139th home run on July 18 against Bert Cole. The record for career strikeouts, previously held by Cy Young was also broken in 1921 by Walter Johnson; Johnson led the league in strikeouts with 143 and ended the season with 2,835 strikeouts. Young struck out 2,803 during his career. The Cincinnati Reds set a Major League record for the fewest strikeouts in a season, with only 308. Future Hall of Famers Kiki Cuyler and Goose Goslin both debuted in September 1921.