2021 in baseball
International competition
National Team tournaments
Club team tournaments
U.S.A. domestic leagues
Other domestic leagues
Summer leagues
Winter leagues
Awards and honors
Major League Baseball
Events
January
February
- February 12: Major League Baseball announced its new league structure for minor league play, a structure that excluded and effectively disbanded the historic leagues between class A and AAA.
- February 25: Spring Training Begins for all 30 teams including Pitchers and catchers
March
April
- April 1: 2021 Major League Baseball season begins
- April 9:
- *After 52 seasons and 8,205 games, the San Diego Padres record their first no-hitter with Joe Musgrove performing the deed, blanking the Texas Rangers 3–0 at Globe Life Field. He throws 77 of 112 pitches for strikes and strikes out 10 batters; a fourth-inning hit by pitch to Joey Gallo is the only blemish in an otherwise perfect game. The Padres had been the last of the 30 Major League teams to record a no-hitter. Previously, they had had four no-hit bids broken up in the ninth, with Steve Arlin having come the closest, losing his bid on July 18, with two out and one strike to go.
- *Alessandro Ercolani signs an amateur free agent contract with the Pittsburgh Pirates, becoming the first player born in San Marino and the first player developed in San Marino to sign a professional baseball contract outside of the Italian Baseball League.
- April 14: At Guaranteed Rate Field, Carlos Rodón of the Chicago White Sox no-hits the Cleveland Indians 8–0, the 20th no-hitter in franchise history. After retiring the first 25 batters, he loses his bid for a perfect game on a hit by pitch to Roberto Pérez. Rodón, who strikes out seven and throws 75 of 114 pitches for strikes, then retires the next two batters. Rodón becomes the fourth pitcher to record a no-hitter after losing a perfect game bid in the ninth, joining Jack Kralick in, Milt Pappas in and Max Scherzer in the first of his two no-hitters. The no-hitter also ties Eddie Cicotte's 104-year record for the earliest no-hitter calendar-wise by a White Sox pitcher.
- April 15: Jackie Robinson Day
- April 18: At Great American Ball Park, Shane Bieber of the Cleveland Indians becomes the first pitcher to strike out at least 10 batters in his first four starts of a season, dating back to when the mound was moved to its current distance in. He records 13 strikeouts in eight innings in the Indians' 6–3 victory over the Cincinnati Reds. With 48 strikeouts in these four starts, Bieber also ties Nolan Ryan's 43-year record for most strikeouts in his first four starts of a season.
- April 23:
- *At Citi Field, Jacob deGrom of the New York Mets shuts out the Washington Nationals 6–0, striking out 15 batters along the way. With 50 strikeouts on season, he breaks the record of 48 for most by a pitcher in his first four starts of a season, Nolan Ryan having set the record in and Shane Bieber having tied it only five days earlier. deGrom also becomes the third pitcher, after Pedro Martínez in and Gerrit Cole in, to strike out at least 14 batters in three consecutive starts.
- *At Dodger Stadium, Fernando Tatís Jr. hits two home runs off Clayton Kershaw, in the third and fifth innings, to help the San Diego Padres defeat the Los Angeles Dodgers 6–1. Tatís' performance comes 22 years to the day that his father, Fernando Sr., while playing for the St. Louis Cardinals, became the only player, to date, to hit two grand slams in the same inning of a Major League game, that feat also having occurred at Dodger Stadium. Like the son's first home run, the father's two had also come in the third inning; the Cardinals defeated the Dodgers 12–5.
- April 24: For the second consecutive game, Fernando Tatís Jr. records a two-home run game at Dodger Stadium, this time with both home runs coming off defending National League Cy Young Award winner Trevor Bauer in the San Diego Padres' 5–4 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers. According to STATS, Tatís, having hit two home runs off three-time Cy Young winner Clayton Kershaw the day before, becomes the first player to hit multiple home runs against former Cy Young Award winners in consecutive games, as well as the first visiting player to record consecutive multi-home run games at Dodger Stadium since Barry Bonds in.
- April 25: Madison Bumgarner of the Arizona Diamondbacks no-hits the Atlanta Braves 7–0 at Truist Park in the second game of a doubleheader. However, Bumgarner's feat is an unofficial no-hitter, as for the 2021 season, both games of a doubleheader last only seven innings.
- April 26: At Globe Life Field, Justin Upton and Albert Pujols hit back-to-back home runs, the 312th and 667th respectively of their careers, in the third inning of the Los Angeles Angels' 9–4 victory over the Texas Rangers. The 979 homers are the third-most combined between teammates hitting back-to-back homers in the same game. The top two marks are by New York Yankee teammates: 1,099 between Alex Rodriguez and Carlos Beltrán on June 3,, and 1,005 between Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig on May 28,.
- April 30: Hall-of-Famer Roberto Alomar is fired by the Toronto Blue Jays and placed on Major League Baseball's ineligible list following an independent investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct from. Alomar will remain enshrined in the Hall of Fame; however, the Blue Jays announce that they will sever all ties with him, removing his retired number 12 jersey from the Rogers Centre and his name from the stadium's "Level of Excellence", as well as taking down his Hall of Fame banner.
May
- May 4: Minor League season begins
- May 5: At T-Mobile Park, John Means of the Baltimore Orioles no-hits the Seattle Mariners 6–0. He strikes out 12 and faces the minimum 27 batters, Sam Haggerty's reaching base on a dropped third strike in the third inning being the only blemish in an otherwise perfect game; Haggerty is subsequently caught stealing. The no-hitter is the Orioles' first since Bob Milacki, Mike Flanagan, Mark Williamson and Gregg Olson combined for one on July 13,, and their first solo no-hitter since Jim Palmer's on August 13,.
- May 7: At Progressive Field, Wade Miley of the Cincinnati Reds no-hits the Cleveland Indians 3–0. He strikes out eight and throws 72 of 114 pitches for strikes. The only blemishes are in the sixth inning: a double error by Nick Senzel with Amed Rosario batting, first on a fielding error, then on a throwing error that advances Rosario to second base, then a walk to César Hernández. The no-hitter is the 17th in Reds history, the most recent having been Homer Bailey's second on July 2,.
- May 13: In his Milwaukee Brewers' 2–0 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals at American Family Field, Corbin Burnes sets a Major League record for most strikeouts without a base on balls. Entering the game with 49 strikeouts, he strikes out nine before walking Tommy Edman in the fifth inning, the first walk Burnes issues this season. The 58 strikeouts without a walk is the most at any stretch of the season, Curt Schilling having set the old record of 56 in and Gerrit Cole having tied it one day earlier. Burnes also sets a record for strikeouts without a walk to begin a season, Kenley Jansen having set the old record of 51 in
- May 18: At T-Mobile Park, Spencer Turnbull of the Detroit Tigers no-hits the Seattle Mariners 5–0. He strikes out nine batters and throws 77 of 117 pitches for strikes in throwing the eighth no-hitter in Tiger history, and the first since the second of Justin Verlander's three no-hitters on May 7,. The no-hitter is the fifth in the Major Leagues this season, marking the first time since that five no-hitters had been pitched in one season as of May 18. With John Means of the Baltimore Orioles having no-hit the Mariners on May 5, the Mariners become the first team since the Los Angeles Dodgers in August to be no-hit twice in the same month.
- May 19: The sixth no-hitter on the season is pitched, with the New York Yankees' Corey Kluber performing the feat, a 2-0 gem against his former team, the Texas Rangers, at Globe Life Field. Kluber strikes out nine batters, throws 71 of 101 pitches for strikes and yields only one baserunner, a third-inning walk to Charlie Culberson, in throwing the 12th no-hitter in Yankee history and the first since David Cone's perfect game in. With this no-hitter, this season sets a record for most no-hitters before the month of June; the no-hitter also places this season one short of the joint modern-day record of seven pitched in both and.
June
- June 3: Durham Bulls pitcher Tyler Zombro is hit in the head by a line drive, causing him to have a seizure on the pitcher's mound and fracturing his skull.
- June 15: MLB releases a memo relating to foreign substances and pitch doctoring, announcing "a uniform standard for the consistent application of the rules, including regular checks of all pitchers regardless of whether an opposing club's manager makes a request." Included in MLB's announcement were mandatory checks of all pitchers by umpires, with any player found to have a foreign substance immediately ejected and suspended for 10 games.
- June 18–30: 2021 College World Series
- June 24: At Dodger Stadium, four Chicago Cubs pitcher combine to no-hit the Los Angeles Dodgers 4–0. Zach Davies pitches the first six innings, followed by Ryan Tepera, Andrew Chafin and Craig Kimbrel pitching one inning each. The no-hitter is the 17th in Cubs history, and their first-ever combined no-hitter. It is also the seventh no-hitter on the season, tying the modern-day record held jointly by the, and seasons.
- June 25: In the first game of a doubleheader at Citi Field, Aaron Nola of the Philadelphia Phillies strikes out 10 consecutive batters in the Phillies' 2–1, 8-inning loss to the New York Mets. After hitting Jeff McNeil with a pitch and allowing a double to Francisco Lindor to begin the game, Nola strikes out the entire Mets lineup, including Michael Conforto twice. He leaves the game with 12 strikeouts in 5 1/3 innings. Nola ties Tom Seaver's 51-year record for most consecutive strikeouts in one game; Seaver, as a Met, had struck out the last 10 San Diego Padres he faced in an April 22, game at Citi Field's predecessor, Shea Stadium.
July
August
- August 11: At Wrigley Field, Corbin Burnes of the Milwaukee Brewers strikes out 10 consecutive Chicago Cubs in a 10-0 Milwaukee victory. He begins the streak by striking out Frank Schwindel leading off the second inning; after he strikes out Schwindel a second time to begin the fifth, a single by Matt Duffy ends the streak. Burnes becomes the third pitcher to strike out 10 consecutive batters in a game, Tom Seaver having set the record on April 22, and Aaron Nola having tied it on June 25 of this season.
- August 14: At Chase Field, Tyler Gilbert of the Arizona Diamondbacks no-hits the San Diego Padres 7–0 in his first Major League start. Gilbert, who had made three scoreless appearances with Arizona earlier in the season, walks three and strikes out five in pitching the third no-hitter in Diamondbacks history, and the eighth on the season, tying a single-season record set in, the first year overhand pitching was allowed. Gilbert becomes the first pitcher since Bobo Holloman in, and one of four overall, to pitch a no-hitter in his first Major League start. Ted Breitenstein and Bumpus Jones were the other two, having done so in and respectively.
- August 22: Miguel Cabrera hit his 500th career home run, doing it against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre. He became the 28th player to reach this mark.
- August 19–29: The 2021 Little League World Series in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania, is held with US-only teams due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The tournament is won by the Taylor North Little League from Taylor, Michigan.
- August 25: The Baltimore Orioles defeat the Los Angeles Angels by a score of 10–6, snapping a 19-game losing streak. It is their second streak of 10 or more losses of the season.
- August 27–29: Players Weekend
- August 30: Postseason-eligible trading deadline
September
October
November
December
Source:
Deaths
January
- January 8 – Tommy Lasorda, 93, Hall of Fame manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers from 1976 to 1996 who won World Series titles in 1981 and 1988.
- January 19 – Don Sutton, 75, Hall of Fame pitcher who won 324 games for seven major league teams over 23 seasons with 3,574 strikeouts, later a color commentator for Atlanta Braves games on TBS.
- January 22 – Hank Aaron, 86, Hall of Fame right fielder who played 22 seasons for the Milwaukee and Atlanta Braves and Milwaukee Brewers from 1954 to 1976 whose 755 home runs stood as the record until 2007.
February
- February 3 – Wayne Terwilliger, 96, second baseman who played 12 seasons for five major league teams from 1949 to 1960.
- February 16 – Lew Krausse Jr., 77, pitcher who played twelve seasons for five major league teams from 1961 to 1974.
- February 20 – Stan Williams, 84, pitcher who played 14 seasons for six major league teams from 1958 to 1972.
March
- March 3 – Joe Altobelli, 88, minor and major league manager, skipper of the 1983 World Series champion Baltimore Orioles.
- March 8 – Rhéal Cormier, 53, pitcher who played 16 seasons for five major league teams from 1991 to 2007.
- March 14 – Frankie de la Cruz, 37, pitcher who played four seasons for four major league teams from 2007 to 2011, and also played one season each in Japan and Taiwan.
- March 25 – Dr. Bobby Brown, 96, former third baseman for the New York Yankees from 1946 to 1954 and later president of the American League from 1984 to 1994.
- March 26 – Mike Bell, 46, third baseman who played for the Cincinnati Reds in 2000 who was also the bench coach for the Minnesota Twins at the time of his death and whose grandfather Gus Bell, father Buddy Bell and brother David Bell all played in the majors.
April
- April 1 – Ken Reitz, 69, third baseman who played 11 seasons for the St. Louis Cardinals, San Francisco Giants, Chicago Cubs and Pittsburgh Pirates from 1972 to 1982 while winning a Gold Glove Award in 1975 and making the National League All-Star team in 1980.
- April 7 – Jack Smith, 85, pitcher who played for two major league teams from 1962 to 1964.
- April 20 – Tom Robson, 75, First Baseman who played for the Texas Rangers from September 1974 to September 1975.
- April 22 – Adrian Garrett, 78, catcher, first baseman and outfielder and played for 5 different major league teams from 1966 to 1976 and for a pro team in Japan from 1977 to 1979.
May
- May 4 – Ray Miller, 76, manager and coach for three teams between 1978 and 2005.
- May 5 – Del Crandall, 91, 8-time All-Star catcher for the Boston and Milwaukee Braves, San Francisco Giants, Pittsburgh Pirates, Cleveland Indians from 1949 to 1966 and manager of the Milwaukee Brewers and Seattle Mariners from 1972 to 1975 and 1983 to 1984, respectively.
- May 18 – Rennie Stennett, 72, second baseman for the Pittsburgh Pirates and San Francisco Giants from 1971 to 1981.
- May 20 – Phil Lombardi, 58, played for three seasons for both the Yankees and the Mets from 1986 to 1989.
- May 22 – Joe Beckwith, 66, pitcher who played for eight seasons with the Los Angeles Dodgers and Kansas City Royals from 1979 to 1986. He won a World Series championship with the Royals in 1985.
- May 31 – Mike Marshall, 78, relief pitcher who became the first reliever ever to win the Cy Young Award with the 1974 Los Angeles Dodgers while also making a record 106 pitching appearances that same year.
June
July
- July 7 – Ted Wieand, 88, pitcher for 2 seasons who played from 1958 to 1960 with the Cincinnati Reds and spent the last four seasons in the Minor Leagues.
- July 10 – Dick Tidrow, 74, pitcher for 13 seasons played for four major league teams from 1972 to 1984 with the NY Yankees, Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox and NY Mets and won 2 World Series with the NY Yankees before retiring in May 1984.
- July 22 – Tim Talton, 82, catcher who played for the Kansas City A's in 1966 and 1967 before the franchise moved to Oakland for the 1968 season.
August
- August 4 – J. R. Richard, 71, All-Star pitcher who played 10 seasons with the Houston Astros, guiding them to their first playoff appearance and NL West title in 1980.
- August 18 – Solly Drake, 90, outfielder who played only 2 seasons for 3 major league teams Philadelphia Phillies, Chicago Cubs, and Los Angeles Dodgers.
- August 19 – Bill Freehan, 79, 11-time All-Star catcher for 15 seasons with the Detroit Tigers, and member of the 1968 World Series champions.
September
October
- October 2 – Chuck Hartenstein, 79, pitcher for five teams during 13 seasons spanning 1965 to 1977 after a college career at the University of Texas.
- October 4 – Eddie Robinson, 100, first baseman for seven teams from 1942 to 1957, later general manager for the Texas Rangers; the oldest living player at the time of his death.
- October 13 – Ray Fosse, 74, All-Star catcher for the Cleveland Indians, Oakland Athletics, Seattle Mariners and Milwaukee Brewers from 1967 to 1979, and longtime color commentator for the Oakland Athletics.
- October 30 – Jerry Remy, 68, second baseman for the California Angels and Boston Red Sox from 1975 to 1984, and longtime color commentator for Red Sox games, primarily with New England Sports Network.
November
- November 8 – Pedro Feliciano, 45, relief pitcher for the New York Mets and Fukuoka Daiei Hawks from 2002 to 2013.
- November 11 – Art Stewart, 94, front office executive and director of scouting for the Kansas City Royals from 1969 to 2021 who started his scouting career in 1953 with the New York Yankees.
- November 15 – Julio Lugo, 45, shortstop with seven major league teams during a 12-year career; member of the Boston Red Sox championship team in 2007.
- November 22 – Doug Jones, 64, 5-time All-Star closer who saved 303 games for seven teams over 15 seasons from 1982 to 2000.
- November 23 – Bill Virdon, 90, outfielder for the St. Louis Cardinals and Pittsburgh Pirates from 1955 to 1968 and manager for the Pirates, New York Yankees, Houston Astros and Montreal Expos from 1972 to 1984.
- November 29 – LaMarr Hoyt, 66, All-Star pitcher who played for eight years for the Chicago White Sox and the San Diego Padres; led the league in wins twice and won the 1983 American League Cy Young Award.
December
- December 4 − Ron Blazier, 50, pitcher who made his major league debut in 1996 with the Philadelphia Phillies and played for them for two seasons.
- December 12 − Roland Hemond, 92, longtime executive with several teams including the Chicago White Sox, Baltimore Orioles, and Arizona Diamondbacks; 2011 recipient of the Buck O'Neil Lifetime Achievement Award.
- December 20 − Kimera Bartee, 49, outfielder for the Detroit Tigers, Cincinnati Reds and Colorado Rockies from 1996 to 2001 and coach for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Philadelphia Phillies and the Tigers.