In one of the closest votes in the history of the award, the Baseball Writers’ Association of America names Yankees catcher Yogi Berra (.294, 27, 88) as the American League’s Most Valuable Player. The Yankees catcher, who will also cop the honor in 1954 and 1955, edges out the Browns’ 20-game winner Ned Garver, who was told he had won the award by a representative from the BBWAA before a recount gave the Bronx Bomber backstop a slight edge.
The Baseball Writers Association of America announces that slugging first baseman Walt Dropo of the Boston Red Sox is the Rookie of the Year in the American League. Dropo led the league with 144 RBI.
Commissioner Happy Chandler and players’ representatives agree on the split of the TV and radio rights from the World Series.
1934 – Ford Frick, National League publicity director, is named league president. He will eventually become Commissioner.
Massachusetts voters overwhelmingly approve a referendum that will allow professional sports to be played on Sundays on a local option basis within the commonwealth. After admitting to using $200,000 of his funds, Braves’ owner Judge Emil Fuch will plead nolo contendere to spending money to influence the outcome of the election, resulting in the team being fined $1,000 in Municipal Court.
1920 – At a meeting to depose Ban Johnson as the American League president, a new 12-team National League, made up of the dissenting 11 teams plus one of the five teams loyal to Johnson, is agreed to. John Heydler will be its president and federal judge Kenesaw Landis the proposed chairman of the new commission. This revolutionary plan for a new senior circuit will be discarded a few days later, after four of the five American League clubs still backing Johnson agree to a joint meeting on November 12th in Chicago, IL.
1894 – King Kelly, probably the most popular baseball player of the 19th century, dies of pneumonia in Boston, MA.
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