DiMaggio Wins Batting Title.

DiMaggio Wins Batting Title. In 1939 New York Yankee outfielder Joe DiMaggio won the batting title in the American League (AL) with an average of .381 and was named the Most Valuable Player (MVP) in the AL. . DiMaggio Wins Batting Title "Joltin' Joe" DiMaggio is perhaps best known for hitting safely in 56 consecutive major-league games in 1941. However, DiMaggio's .381 batting average in 1939 stood as the fifth-highest average by an American League (AL) player for more than a half-century. By 1939 the New York Yankees knew DiMaggio was a bona fide superstar. DiMaggio, a lanky center fielder, led the league in triples as a 22-year-old rookie in 1936. A year later he topped all AL players in home runs and runs scored. Augmenting a powerful lineup featuring Bill Dickey and Lou Gehrig, DiMaggio helped power the Bronx Bombers to three consecutive World Series titles from 1936 to 1938. During that span New York averaged more than 100 victories per season and won 12 of 15 World Series contests. But the 1939 season opened sadly. After only eight games, an ailing Gehrig told manager Joe McCarthy that he could no longer play because of a rare muscular disease. His streak of 2130 consecutive games ended. He would die two years later. The Yankees, suffering from his absence--as well as the loss of Babe Ruth who had left the team in 1935--needed not only an offensive leader but an emotional leader as well. DiMaggio seemed the likely candidate. DiMaggio had a lot to prove to himself, to New Yorkers, and to his teammates. He responded nobly, powering the Yankees to an early-season lead over the secondplace Boston Red Sox. The Red Sox, however, tormented New York all season, thanks to defending batting champion Jimmie Foxx and their own rising star--rookie outfielder Ted Williams. Just before the All-Star Game, in fact, the Red Sox visited Yankee Stadium and left with five consecutive wins, four of which came in two double-header sweeps. DiMaggio was pressured to come up with something special. In the All-Star Game he swatted a solo home run in the fifth inning to help the AL secure a 3-1 victory over the National League (NL). Inspired by DiMaggio's feat, the Yankees charged out of the midseason break with an eight-game winning streak that offset Boston's 23-10 record in July. As August unfolded DiMaggio chased the .400 mark, a plateau no major leaguer had reached since Bill Terry of the New York Giants hit .401 in 1930. DiMaggio's ledger peaked at .412 in early September but tumbled when he suffered an eye infection. He ended the season with a league-best mark of .381, a comfortable 21 points ahead of the second-place Foxx, whose .372 average topped the AL a year earlier. Legendary for his ability to fight off pitches, DiMaggio struck out a mere 20 times in 461 at bats--an average of only once every six games. He led the club with 126 runs batted in (RBIs) despite missing 24 games due to injury. His heroics helped New York rank first in the AL in home runs, RBIs, and runs scored. New York placed second behind Boston in team batting average. Three other Yankees drove in more than 100 runs that year--catcher Bill Dickey, second baseman Joe Gordon, and outfielder George Selkirk. Led by right-hander Red Ruffing, New York assembled a terrific pitching staff that posted the AL's lowest earned run average for the sixth year in a row. The Yankees coasted to the AL pennant, posting their highest winning percentage since the championship club of 1927 led by Gehrig and Ruth. With good reason, New York was heavily favored to defeat the NL-champion Cincinnati Reds in the World Series. In the ninth inning of game one DiMaggio punished Reds pitcher Paul Derringer, who had intentionally walked Dickey, by driving in Charlie Keller for the winning run. In game three DiMaggio ripped a two-run homer in the third inning to put New York back on top following an earlier Cincinnati rally. In game four DiMaggio took part in one of the most bizarre plays in World Series history. Down two runs in the top of the ninth, the Yankees tied the score at four apiece to take the game into extra innings. DiMaggio came up in the top of the tenth with two men on base and a chance to bring home the go-ahead run. He rapped a single to right field, scoring one run. When Reds outfielder Ival Goodman misplayed the ball, Keller, a burly rookie known as King Kong, raced home and slammed into catcher Ernie Lombardi--whose nickname, the Schnozz, was derived from his sizable nose. With Lombardi lying stunned on the ground, DiMaggio came around to score. The play went down in World Series lore as "Schnozz's Snooze." New York won the game, 7-4. The victory gave Yankee's manager McCarthy a league-record four consecutive championships. DiMaggio emerged as the AL's most valuable player (MVP), besting Jimmie Foxx 280 votes to 170. DiMaggio repeated as batting champion in 1940, posting a .352 average. He won his second MVP award in 1941 and his third in 1947. He hit above .330 in 5 of 13 major league seasons. Microsoft ® Encarta ® 2009. © 1993-2008 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.