The 1983 Major League Baseball season ended with the Baltimore Orioles defeating the Philadelphia Phillies in the fifth game of the World Series. Rick Dempsey was named MVP of the Series. The All-Star Game was held on July 6 at Comiskey Park; the American League won by a score of 13–3, with California Angels outfielder Fred Lynn being named MVP. As of the end of the 2025 season this remains the most recent full season where no player hit for the cycle in a game (excluding the 2020 season which was shortened due to the COVID-19 pandemic). This would be the final full season for Bowie Kuhn as commissioner of baseball.
| 1983 MLB season | |
|---|---|
| League | Major League Baseball |
| Sport | Baseball |
| Duration | April 4 – October 16, 1983 |
| Games | 162 |
| Teams | 26 |
| TV partner(s) | ABC, NBC, USA |
| Draft | |
| Top draft pick | Tim Belcher |
| Picked by | Minnesota Twins |
| Regular season | |
| Season MVP | AL: Cal Ripken Jr. (BAL) NL: Dale Murphy (ATL) |
| Postseason | |
| AL champions | Baltimore Orioles |
| AL runners-up | Chicago White Sox |
| NL champions | Philadelphia Phillies |
| NL runners-up | Los Angeles Dodgers |
| World Series | |
| Champions | Baltimore Orioles |
| Runners-up | Philadelphia Phillies |
| World Series MVP | Rick Dempsey (BAL) |
Angels
White Sox
Royals
Twins
Athletics
Mariners
Rangers
Orioles
Red
Sox
Sox
Indians
Tigers
Brewers
Yankees
Blue
Jays
Jays
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Locations of teams for the 1982–1988 American League seasons
West East
West East
Braves
Reds
Astros
Dodgers
Padres
Giants
Cubs
Expos
Mets
Phillies
Pirates
Cardinals
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Locations of teams for the 1977–1992 National League seasons
West East
West East
Awards and honors
- Baseball Hall of Fame
- Walter Alston
- George Kell
- Juan Marichal
- Brooks Robinson
| Baseball Writers' Association of America Awards | ||
|---|---|---|
| BBWAA Award | National League | American League |
| Rookie of the Year | Darryl Strawberry (NYM) | Ron Kittle (CWS) |
| Cy Young Award | John Denny (PHI) | LaMarr Hoyt (CWS) |
| Manager of the Year | Tommy Lasorda (LAD) | Tony La Russa (CWS) |
| Most Valuable Player | Dale Murphy (ATL) | Cal Ripken Jr. (BAL) |
| Gold Glove Awards | ||
| Position | National League | American League |
| Pitcher | Phil Niekro (ATL) | Ron Guidry (NYY) |
| Catcher | Tony Peña (PIT) | Lance Parrish (DET) |
| First Baseman | Keith Hernandez (NYM)/(STL) | Eddie Murray (BAL) |
| Second Baseman | Ryne Sandberg (CHC) | Lou Whitaker (DET) |
| Third Baseman | Mike Schmidt (PHI) | Buddy Bell (TEX) |
| Shortstop | Ozzie Smith (STL) | Alan Trammell (DET) |
| Outfielders | Andre Dawson (MON) | Dwight Evans (BOS) |
| Willie McGee (STL) | Dwayne Murphy (OAK) | |
| Dale Murphy (ATL) | Dave Winfield (NYY) | |
| Silver Slugger Awards | ||
| Pitcher/Designated Hitter | Fernando Valenzuela (LAD) | Don Baylor (NYY) |
| Catcher | Terry Kennedy (SD) | Lance Parrish (DET) |
| First Baseman | George Hendrick (STL) | Eddie Murray (BAL) |
| Second Baseman | Johnny Ray (PIT) | Lou Whitaker (DET) |
| Third Baseman | Mike Schmidt (PHI) | Wade Boggs (BOS) |
| Shortstop | Dickie Thon (HOU) | Cal Ripken Jr. (BAL) |
| Outfielders | José Cruz (HOU) | Lloyd Moseby (TOR) |
| Andre Dawson (MON) | Jim Rice (BOS) | |
| Dale Murphy (ATL) | Dave Winfield (NYY) | |
Other awards
- Outstanding Designated Hitter Award: Greg Luzinski (CWS)
- Roberto Clemente Award (Humanitarian): Cecil Cooper (MIL)
- Rolaids Relief Man Award: Dan Quisenberry (KC, American); Al Holland (PHI, National).
Player of the Month
| Month | American League | National League |
|---|---|---|
| April | George Brett | Terry Kennedy |
| May | Rod Carew | Darrell Evans |
| June | Lou Whitaker | Andre Dawson |
| July | Cecil Cooper | Dusty Baker |
| August | Lloyd Moseby | Mel Hall |
| September | Cal Ripken Jr. | Dale Murphy |
Pitcher of the Month
| Month | American League | National League |
|---|---|---|
| April | Rick Honeycutt | Pascual Pérez |
| May | Dave Stieb | Bill Laskey |
| June | Charlie Hough | Burt Hooton |
| July | Scott McGregor | Joe Price |
| August | Jack Morris | Jesse Orosco |
| September | Richard Dotson | John Denny |
MLB statistical leaders
| Statistic | American League | National League | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AVG | Wade Boggs BOS | .361 | Bill Madlock PIT | .323 |
| HR | Jim Rice BOS | 39 | Mike Schmidt PHI | 40 |
| RBI | Cecil Cooper MIL Jim Rice BOS | 126 | Dale Murphy ATL | 121 |
| Wins | LaMarr Hoyt CWS | 24 | John Denny PHI | 19 |
| ERA | Rick Honeycutt TEX | 2.42 | Atlee Hammaker SF | 2.25 |
| SO | Jack Morris DET | 232 | Steve Carlton PHI | 275 |
| SV | Dan Quisenberry KC | 45 | Lee Smith CHC | 29 |
| SB | Rickey Henderson OAK | 108 | Tim Raines MON | 90 |
Standings
American League
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Baltimore Orioles | 98 | 64 | .605 | — | 50–31 | 48–33 |
| Detroit Tigers | 92 | 70 | .568 | 6 | 48–33 | 44–37 |
| New York Yankees | 91 | 71 | .562 | 7 | 51–30 | 40–41 |
| Toronto Blue Jays | 89 | 73 | .549 | 9 | 48–33 | 41–40 |
| Milwaukee Brewers | 87 | 75 | .537 | 11 | 52–29 | 35–46 |
| Boston Red Sox | 78 | 84 | .481 | 20 | 38–43 | 40–41 |
| Cleveland Indians | 70 | 92 | .432 | 28 | 36–45 | 34–47 |
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago White Sox | 99 | 63 | .611 | — | 55–26 | 44–37 |
| Kansas City Royals | 79 | 83 | .488 | 20 | 45–36 | 34–47 |
| Texas Rangers | 77 | 85 | .475 | 22 | 44–37 | 33–48 |
| Oakland Athletics | 74 | 88 | .457 | 25 | 42–39 | 32–49 |
| California Angels | 70 | 92 | .432 | 29 | 35–46 | 35–46 |
| Minnesota Twins | 70 | 92 | .432 | 29 | 37–44 | 33–48 |
| Seattle Mariners | 60 | 102 | .370 | 39 | 30–51 | 30–51 |
National League
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Philadelphia Phillies | 90 | 72 | .556 | — | 50–31 | 40–41 |
| Pittsburgh Pirates | 84 | 78 | .519 | 6 | 41–40 | 43–38 |
| Montreal Expos | 82 | 80 | .506 | 8 | 46–35 | 36–45 |
| St. Louis Cardinals | 79 | 83 | .488 | 11 | 44–37 | 35–46 |
| Chicago Cubs | 71 | 91 | .438 | 19 | 43–38 | 28–53 |
| New York Mets | 68 | 94 | .420 | 22 | 41–41 | 27–53 |
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles Dodgers | 91 | 71 | .562 | — | 48–32 | 43–39 |
| Atlanta Braves | 88 | 74 | .543 | 3 | 46–34 | 42–40 |
| Houston Astros | 85 | 77 | .525 | 6 | 46–36 | 39–41 |
| San Diego Padres | 81 | 81 | .500 | 10 | 47–34 | 34–47 |
| San Francisco Giants | 79 | 83 | .488 | 12 | 43–38 | 36–45 |
| Cincinnati Reds | 74 | 88 | .457 | 17 | 36–45 | 38–43 |
Postseason
Bracket
| League Championship Series (ALCS, NLCS) | World Series | ||||||||
| East | Baltimore | 3 | |||||||
| West | Chicago White Sox | 1 | |||||||
| AL | Baltimore | 4 | |||||||
| NL | Philadelphia | 1 | |||||||
| East | Philadelphia | 3 | |||||||
| West | Los Angeles | 1 | |||||||
Home field attendance
| Team name | Wins | %± | Home attendance | %± | Per game |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles Dodgers | 91 | 3.4% | 3,510,313 | −2.7% | 43,879 |
| California Angels | 70 | −24.7% | 2,555,016 | −9.0% | 31,543 |
| Milwaukee Brewers | 87 | −8.4% | 2,397,131 | 21.1% | 29,594 |
| Montreal Expos | 82 | −4.7% | 2,320,651 | 0.1% | 28,650 |
| St. Louis Cardinals | 79 | −14.1% | 2,317,914 | 9.8% | 28,616 |
| New York Yankees | 91 | 15.2% | 2,257,976 | 10.6% | 27,876 |
| Chicago White Sox | 99 | 13.8% | 2,132,821 | 36.0% | 26,331 |
| Philadelphia Phillies | 90 | 1.1% | 2,128,339 | −10.4% | 25,955 |
| Atlanta Braves | 88 | −1.1% | 2,119,935 | 17.6% | 26,499 |
| Baltimore Orioles | 98 | 4.3% | 2,042,071 | 26.6% | 25,211 |
| Kansas City Royals | 79 | −12.2% | 1,963,875 | −14.0% | 23,950 |
| Toronto Blue Jays | 89 | 14.1% | 1,930,415 | 51.3% | 23,832 |
| Detroit Tigers | 92 | 10.8% | 1,829,636 | 11.8% | 22,588 |
| Boston Red Sox | 78 | −12.4% | 1,782,285 | −8.6% | 22,004 |
| San Diego Padres | 81 | 0.0% | 1,539,815 | −4.2% | 18,778 |
| Chicago Cubs | 71 | −2.7% | 1,479,717 | 18.4% | 18,268 |
| Texas Rangers | 77 | 20.3% | 1,363,469 | 18.1% | 16,833 |
| Houston Astros | 85 | 10.4% | 1,351,962 | −13.3% | 16,487 |
| Oakland Athletics | 74 | 8.8% | 1,294,941 | −25.4% | 15,987 |
| San Francisco Giants | 79 | −9.2% | 1,251,530 | 4.2% | 15,451 |
| Pittsburgh Pirates | 84 | 0.0% | 1,225,916 | 19.7% | 15,135 |
| Cincinnati Reds | 74 | 21.3% | 1,190,419 | −10.3% | 14,697 |
| New York Mets | 68 | 4.6% | 1,112,774 | −15.9% | 13,570 |
| Minnesota Twins | 70 | 16.7% | 858,939 | −6.8% | 10,604 |
| Seattle Mariners | 60 | −21.1% | 813,537 | −24.0% | 10,044 |
| Cleveland Indians | 70 | −10.3% | 768,941 | −26.3% | 9,493 |
Television coverage
This was the last season of USA Network Thursday Night Baseball, as MLB decided to only renew the contracts with ABC and NBC.
| Network | Day of week | Announcers |
|---|---|---|
| ABC | Monday nights Sunday afternoons | Al Michaels, Howard Cosell, Earl Weaver, Don Drysdale, Steve Stone |
| NBC | Saturday afternoons | Vin Scully, Joe Garagiola, Bob Costas, Tony Kubek |
| USA | Thursday nights | Eddie Doucette, Nelson Briles, Monte Moore, Wes Parker |
Significant events
- April 27 – Nolan Ryan strikes out Brad Mills of the Montreal Expos. It is the 3,509th strikeout of Ryan's career, breaking the long time record established by Walter Johnson. Ryan will go on to break his own record 2,205 times before retiring.
- June 24 – Don Sutton of the Milwaukee Brewers records the 3,000th strikeout of his career against Alan Bannister of the Cleveland Indians.
- July 3 — The Texas Rangers score twelve runs in the fifteenth inning to defeat the Oakland Athletics 16–4, in the process breaking the MLB record for most runs scored during one single extra inning, previously held by the 1928 New York Yankees.
- July 24 – In the game now known as the Pine Tar Game, George Brett hits an apparent go-ahead 2-run home run off Goose Gossage in the ninth inning of a game against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium. However, Yankees manager Billy Martin challenges that Brett's bat had more than the 18 inches (460 mm) of pine tar allowed, and home plate umpire Tim McClelland upholds Martin's challenge. After being called out and having the home run nullified, Brett goes ballistic and charges out of the dugout after McClelland. The AL president's office later upholds the Kansas City Royals protest, restoring the home run, and the game is completed on August 18, with the Royals winning 5–4.
- July 29 – Steve Garvey, first baseman for the San Diego Padres dislocates his thumb, and ends his streak of 1,207 consecutive games played. It is still the National League record for consecutive games played, but less than half the American League and MLB record of 2,632 by Cal Ripken Jr. from 1982-98.
- September 28 – The Philadelphia Phillies defeat the Chicago Cubs 13–6, for the 7000th regular season win in their history to clinch the National League East Division title.
- October 16 – Eddie Murray slams a pair of home runs and Scott McGregor pitches a five-hitter as the Baltimore Orioles beat the Philadelphia Phillies 5–0 and win the 1983 World Series in Game Five. Baltimore catcher Rick Dempsey, who hit .385 with four doubles and a home run, is the Series MVP.
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