1959 MLB Leaders and Award Winners

2 leagues · 155 team games · 46 ranking tables · 23 awards

Awards

Most Valuable Player

Ernie BanksNational League
Nellie FoxAmerican League

Cy Young Award

Early WynnBoth leagues — one award across both

Rookie of the Year

Bob AllisonAmerican League
Willie McCoveyNational League

Gold Glove

Hank AaronNational League
Luis AparicioAmerican League
Ken BoyerNational League
Jackie BrandtNational League
Del CrandallNational League
Nellie FoxAmerican League
Harvey HaddixNational League
Gil HodgesNational League
Jackie JensenAmerican League
Al KalineAmerican League
Sherm LollarAmerican League
Frank MalzoneAmerican League
Willie MaysNational League
Roy McMillanNational League
Minnie MiñosoAmerican League
Charlie NealNational League
Vic PowerAmerican League
Bobby ShantzAmerican League

Not every award existed in this season. This database has Silver Slugger (from 1980). Their absence here is not a statement about these players: those awards had not been invented yet.

American League

Led the American League — the first row of every table below.

Batting13 categories

RunsR

1	Eddie Yost	115
2	Mickey Mantle	104
3	Vic Power	102
4	Jackie Jensen	101
5	Harvey Kuenn	99
6	Luis Aparicio	98
6	Harmon Killebrew	98
8	Pete Runnels	95
9	Minnie Miñoso	92
10	Rocky Colavito	90
10	Frank Malzone	90

HitsH

1	Harvey Kuenn	198
2	Nellie Fox	191
3	Pete Runnels	176
4	Minnie Miñoso	172
4	Vic Power	172
6	Frank Malzone	169
7	Al Kaline	167
8	Luis Aparicio	157
9	Mickey Mantle	154
10	Hector Lopez	153

Doubles2B

1	Harvey Kuenn	42
2	Nellie Fox	34
2	Frank Malzone	34
4	Pete Runnels	33
4	Dick Williams	33
6	Minnie Miñoso	32
7	Jackie Jensen	31
7	Vic Power	31
9	Bubba Phillips	27
10	Jim Landis	26
10	Hector Lopez	26

Triples3B

1	Bob Allison	9
2	Gil McDougald	8
3	Tony Kubek	7
3	Harvey Kuenn	7
3	Jim Landis	7
3	Roger Maris	7
7	Nellie Fox	6
7	Elston Howard	6
7	Vic Power	6
7	Bobby Richardson	6
7	Pete Runnels	6
7	Bill Tuttle	6

Home RunsHR

1	Rocky Colavito	42
1	Harmon Killebrew	42
3	Jim Lemon	33
4	Mickey Mantle	31
4	Charlie Maxwell	31
6	Bob Allison	30
7	Woodie Held	29
8	Jackie Jensen	28
9	Al Kaline	27
10	Gus Triandos	25

Runs Batted InRBI

1	Jackie Jensen	112
2	Rocky Colavito	111
3	Harmon Killebrew	105
4	Jim Lemon	100
5	Charlie Maxwell	95
6	Al Kaline	94
7	Hector Lopez	93
8	Frank Malzone	92
8	Minnie Miñoso	92
10	Bob Cerv	87

WalksBB

1	Eddie Yost	135
2	Pete Runnels	95
3	Mickey Mantle	93
4	Don Buddin	92
5	Harmon Killebrew	90
6	Jackie Jensen	88
7	Charlie Maxwell	81
8	Jim Landis	78
8	Gene Woodling	78
10	Al Kaline	72

Stolen BasesSB

1	Luis Aparicio	56
2	Mickey Mantle	21
3	Jackie Jensen	20
3	Jim Landis	20
5	Bob Allison	13
6	Al Kaline	10
6	Bill Tuttle	10
8	Gary Geiger	9
8	Lenny Green	9
8	Al Pilarcik	9
8	Vic Power	9
8	Eddie Yost	9

Wins Above ReplacementWAR

1	Mickey Mantle	7.7
2	Al Kaline	7.6
3	Eddie Yost	6.8
4	Pete Runnels	5.9
5	Harmon Killebrew	5.9
6	Tito Francona	5.3
7	Jackie Jensen	5.0
8	Jim Landis	4.8
9	Harvey Kuenn	4.8
10	Minnie Miñoso	4.8

Batting Averagemin 481 PA

1	Harvey Kuenn	.353
2	Al Kaline	.327
3	Pete Runnels	.314
4	Nellie Fox	.306
5	Minnie Miñoso	.302
6	Bobby Richardson	.301
7	Bill Tuttle	.300
7	Gene Woodling	.300
9	Vic Power	.289
10	Bob Cerv	.285
10	Mickey Mantle	.285

On-Base Percentagemin 481 PA

1	Eddie Yost	.435
2	Pete Runnels	.415
3	Al Kaline	.410
4	Harvey Kuenn	.402
4	Gene Woodling	.402
6	Mickey Mantle	.390
7	Nellie Fox	.380
8	Minnie Miñoso	.377
9	Jackie Jensen	.372
10	Jim Landis	.370

Slugging Percentagemin 481 PA

1	Al Kaline	.530
2	Harmon Killebrew	.516
3	Mickey Mantle	.514
4	Rocky Colavito	.512
5	Jim Lemon	.510
6	Harvey Kuenn	.501
7	Jackie Jensen	.492
8	Bob Allison	.482
9	Bob Cerv	.479
10	Hector Lopez	.471

On-Base Plus Sluggingmin 481 PA

1	Al Kaline	.940
2	Mickey Mantle	.904
3	Harvey Kuenn	.903
4	Eddie Yost	.871
5	Harmon Killebrew	.870
6	Jackie Jensen	.863
7	Gene Woodling	.856
8	Rocky Colavito	.849
9	Minnie Miñoso	.846
10	Jim Lemon	.844

Pitching10 categories

WinsW

1	Early Wynn	22
2	Cal McLish	19
3	Bob Shaw	18
4	Jim Bunning	17
4	Frank Lary	17
4	Don Mossi	17
4	Camilo Pascual	17
8	Gary Bell	16
8	Bud Daley	16
8	Whitey Ford	16

SavesSV

1	Turk Lown	15
2	Ryne Duren	14
2	Billy Loes	14
2	Gerry Staley	14
5	Mike Fornieles	11
6	Tom Morgan	9
7	Tex Clevenger	8
8	Leo Kiely	7
8	Dave Sisler	7
8	Chuck Stobbs	7

StrikeoutsSO

1	Jim Bunning	201
2	Camilo Pascual	185
3	Early Wynn	179
4	Herb Score	147
5	Hoyt Wilhelm	139
6	Frank Lary	137
7	Gary Bell	136
8	Bud Daley	125
8	Don Mossi	125
10	Tom Brewer	121

Innings PitchedIP

1	Early Wynn	255.7
2	Jim Bunning	249.7
3	Paul Foytack	240.3
4	Camilo Pascual	238.7
5	Cal McLish	235.3
6	Gary Bell	234.0
7	Pedro Ramos	233.7
8	Bob Shaw	230.7
9	Don Mossi	228.0
10	Hoyt Wilhelm	226.0

Complete GamesCG

1	Camilo Pascual	17
2	Don Mossi	15
2	Milt Pappas	15
4	Jim Bunning	14
4	Early Wynn	14
6	Cal McLish	13
6	Hoyt Wilhelm	13
8	Gary Bell	12
8	Bud Daley	12
8	Billy Pierce	12

ShutoutsSHO

1	Camilo Pascual	6
2	Early Wynn	5
3	Milt Pappas	4
4	Tom Brewer	3
4	Jerry Casale	3
4	Frank Lary	3
4	Don Mossi	3
4	Bob Shaw	3
4	Bob Turley	3
4	Hoyt Wilhelm	3

Wins Above ReplacementWAR

1	Camilo Pascual	6.6
2	Don Mossi	4.2
3	Milt Pappas	4.0
4	Frank Lary	3.9
5	Hoyt Wilhelm	3.9
6	Early Wynn	3.5
7	Tom Brewer	3.3
8	Bob Shaw	2.9
9	Jerry Walker	2.8
10	Jim Bunning	2.8

Earned Run Averagemin 155 IP

1	Hoyt Wilhelm	2.19
2	Camilo Pascual	2.64
3	Bob Shaw	2.69
4	Art Ditmar	2.90
5	Jerry Walker	2.92
6	Billy O'Dell	2.94
7	Whitey Ford	3.04
8	Bud Daley	3.16
9	Early Wynn	3.17
10	Milt Pappas	3.27

Walks and Hits per Inningmin 155 IP

1	Art Ditmar	1.03
2	Hoyt Wilhelm	1.13
3	Camilo Pascual	1.14
4	Don Mossi	1.14
5	Billy O'Dell	1.15
6	Hal Brown	1.16
7	Jerry Walker	1.17
8	Bob Shaw	1.18
9	Jim Bunning	1.18
10	Milt Pappas	1.19

Fielding Independent Pitchingmin 155 IP

1	Camilo Pascual	2.44
2	Milt Pappas	3.03
3	Hoyt Wilhelm	3.22
4	Don Mossi	3.27
5	Jerry Walker	3.28
6	Bob Shaw	3.40
7	Frank Lary	3.42
8	Hal Brown	3.43
9	Tom Brewer	3.52
10	Whitey Ford	3.58

National League

Led the National League — the first row of every table below.

Batting13 categories

RunsR

1	Vada Pinson	131
2	Willie Mays	125
3	Eddie Mathews	118
4	Hank Aaron	116
5	Frank Robinson	106
6	Charlie Neal	103
7	Johnny Temple	102
8	Ernie Banks	97
9	Tony Taylor	96
10	Wally Moon	93

HitsH

1	Hank Aaron	223
2	Vada Pinson	205
3	Orlando Cepeda	192
4	Johnny Temple	186
5	Eddie Mathews	182
6	Willie Mays	180
7	Ernie Banks	179
8	Don Blasingame	178
9	Charlie Neal	177
10	Tony Taylor	175

Doubles2B

1	Vada Pinson	47
2	Hank Aaron	46
3	Willie Mays	43
4	Gino Cimoli	40
5	Orlando Cepeda	35
5	Johnny Temple	35
7	Bill White	33
8	Frank Robinson	31
9	Charlie Neal	30
9	Tony Taylor	30

Triples3B

1	Wally Moon	11
1	Charlie Neal	11
3	Al Dark	9
3	Vada Pinson	9
3	Bill White	9
6	Eddie Mathews	8
6	Tony Taylor	8
8	Hank Aaron	7
8	Don Blasingame	7
8	Gino Cimoli	7
8	Roberto Clemente	7
8	Dick Groat	7
8	Joe Koppe	7
8	John Roseboro	7

Home RunsHR

1	Eddie Mathews	46
2	Ernie Banks	45
3	Hank Aaron	39
4	Frank Robinson	36
5	Willie Mays	34
6	Ken Boyer	28
7	Orlando Cepeda	27
7	Dick Stuart	27
9	Joe Adcock	25
9	Gil Hodges	25

Runs Batted InRBI

1	Ernie Banks	143
2	Frank Robinson	125
3	Hank Aaron	123
4	Gus Bell	115
5	Eddie Mathews	114
6	Orlando Cepeda	105
7	Willie Mays	104
8	Ken Boyer	94
8	Wally Post	94
10	Duke Snider	88

WalksBB

1	Jim Gilliam	96
2	Joe Cunningham	88
3	Wally Moon	81
4	Eddie Mathews	80
5	Richie Ashburn	79
6	Johnny Temple	72
7	Don Hoak	71
8	Ed Bouchee	70
9	Frank Robinson	69
10	Don Blasingame	67
10	Ken Boyer	67
10	Bob Skinner	67

Stolen BasesSB

1	Willie Mays	27
2	Orlando Cepeda	23
2	Jim Gilliam	23
2	Tony Taylor	23
5	Vada Pinson	21
6	Frank Robinson	18
7	Charlie Neal	17
8	Don Blasingame	15
8	Wally Moon	15
8	Bill White	15

Wins Above ReplacementWAR

1	Eddie Mathews	9.2
2	Ernie Banks	8.9
3	Hank Aaron	8.5
4	Willie Mays	8.4
5	Vada Pinson	8.0
6	Ken Boyer	6.3
7	Frank Robinson	6.1
8	Joe Cunningham	4.5
9	Charlie Neal	4.5
10	Don Hoak	4.4

Batting Averagemin 481 PA

1	Hank Aaron	.355
2	Joe Cunningham	.345
3	Orlando Cepeda	.317
4	Vada Pinson	.316
5	Willie Mays	.313
6	Frank Robinson	.311
6	Johnny Temple	.311
8	Ken Boyer	.309
9	Eddie Mathews	.306
10	Ernie Banks	.304

On-Base Percentagemin 481 PA

1	Joe Cunningham	.453
2	Hank Aaron	.401
3	Wally Moon	.394
4	Frank Robinson	.391
5	Eddie Mathews	.390
6	Jim Gilliam	.387
7	Ken Boyer	.384
8	Willie Mays	.381
9	Johnny Temple	.380
10	Ed Bouchee	.375

Slugging Percentagemin 481 PA

1	Hank Aaron	.636
2	Ernie Banks	.596
3	Eddie Mathews	.593
4	Willie Mays	.583
4	Frank Robinson	.583
6	Orlando Cepeda	.522
7	Vada Pinson	.509
8	Ken Boyer	.508
9	Wally Moon	.495
10	Joe Cunningham	.478

On-Base Plus Sluggingmin 481 PA

1	Hank Aaron	1.037
2	Eddie Mathews	.983
3	Frank Robinson	.975
4	Ernie Banks	.970
5	Willie Mays	.964
6	Joe Cunningham	.931
7	Ken Boyer	.892
8	Wally Moon	.890
9	Vada Pinson	.880
10	Orlando Cepeda	.878

Pitching10 categories

WinsW

1	Lew Burdette	21
1	Sam Jones	21
1	Warren Spahn	21
4	Johnny Antonelli	19
5	Roy Face	18
5	Vern Law	18
7	Don Drysdale	17
8	Glen Hobbie	16
9	Bob Buhl	15
9	Robin Roberts	15
9	Jack Sanford	15

SavesSV

1	Lindy McDaniel	15
1	Don McMahon	15
3	Don Elston	13
4	Bill Henry	12
5	Roy Face	10
5	Brooks Lawrence	10
7	Clem Labine	9
8	Stu Miller	8
9	Turk Farrell	6
10	Orlando Peña	5

StrikeoutsSO

1	Don Drysdale	242
2	Sam Jones	209
3	Sandy Koufax	173
4	Johnny Antonelli	165
5	Mike McCormick	151
6	Harvey Haddix	149
7	Larry Jackson	145
7	Johnny Podres	145
9	Warren Spahn	143
10	Glen Hobbie	138

Innings PitchedIP

1	Warren Spahn	292.0
2	Lew Burdette	289.7
3	Johnny Antonelli	282.0
4	Don Drysdale	270.7
4	Sam Jones	270.7
6	Vern Law	266.0
7	Robin Roberts	257.3
8	Larry Jackson	256.0
9	Bob Anderson	235.3
10	Bob Friend	234.7

Complete GamesCG

1	Warren Spahn	21
2	Lew Burdette	20
2	Vern Law	20
4	Robin Roberts	19
5	Johnny Antonelli	17
5	Don Newcombe	17
7	Sam Jones	16
8	Don Drysdale	15
9	Harvey Haddix	14
10	Bob Buhl	12
10	Gene Conley	12
10	Larry Jackson	12

ShutoutsSHO

1	Johnny Antonelli	4
1	Bob Buhl	4
1	Lew Burdette	4
1	Roger Craig	4
1	Don Drysdale	4
1	Sam Jones	4
1	Warren Spahn	4
8	Ernie Broglio	3
8	Gene Conley	3
8	Glen Hobbie	3
8	Larry Jackson	3
8	Mike McCormick	3

Wins Above ReplacementWAR

1	Larry Jackson	6.0
2	Don Drysdale	5.0
3	Warren Spahn	4.7
4	Sam Jones	4.4
5	Jim Owens	4.4
6	Johnny Antonelli	3.9
7	Vern Law	3.8
8	Robin Roberts	3.8
9	Bob Friend	3.7
10	Gene Conley	3.6

Earned Run Averagemin 155 IP

1	Sam Jones	2.83
2	Stu Miller	2.85
3	Bob Buhl	2.86
4	Warren Spahn	2.96
5	Vern Law	2.98
6	Gene Conley	3.00
7	Johnny Antonelli	3.10
8	Harvey Haddix	3.13
9	Jack Sanford	3.16
10	Don Newcombe	3.16

Walks and Hits per Inningmin 155 IP

1	Harvey Haddix	1.06
2	Don Newcombe	1.09
3	Gene Conley	1.12
4	Vern Law	1.12
5	Johnny Antonelli	1.15
6	Dave Hillman	1.16
7	Robin Roberts	1.17
8	Jack Sanford	1.21
8	Warren Spahn	1.21
10	Lew Burdette	1.21

Fielding Independent Pitchingmin 155 IP

1	Larry Jackson	2.87
2	Gene Conley	3.08
3	Sam Jones	3.16
4	Jim Owens	3.19
5	Warren Spahn	3.23
6	Don Drysdale	3.23
7	Harvey Haddix	3.40
8	Bob Friend	3.46
9	Dave Hillman	3.47
10	Don Newcombe	3.54

How this page is built

The qualifying line for 1959 is 481 plate appearances and 155 innings pitched. It comes from the length of the schedule — 155 games per team, measured from the season files themselves — at the official rate of 3.1 plate appearances and one inning per team game. Batting average, on-base, slugging, OPS, earned run average and WHIP all use it; a player who came to the plate twice and got two hits does not appear at the top of the batting average table, which is exactly what that line is for. Counting statistics such as home runs and strikeouts have no minimum, because none is needed.

How the rankings were made

Wins above replacement in these tables is ours rather than the source database's, so it will not match a published figure exactly. Also: why every ranking stops at one league, and why some categories are missing on purpose.

Every ranking on this page is worked out inside one league. 1959 is counted as 2 separate leagues — American League and National League, and a player is ranked only against the men in his own. Leading the American League and leading baseball are different claims, and the one we can make from these files is the first. There is no combined table anywhere on this page, because adding two leagues together would produce a number that no record book recognises.

There are 46 ranking tables here, 14 places deep. Players tied on a value share a place, so a table can run past ten rows when the tenth spot is shared, and a league with fewer than ten qualified players in a category is left out rather than shown as a top ten that is not one. A player who did none of the thing is not ranked in it either — a shutout table lists the pitchers who threw one, not the hundreds who threw none tied on zero. Some categories are missing on purpose: nobody leads a league in strikeouts at the plate, in losses, or in home runs allowed. A ranking is meant to mark an achievement, so only achievements are ranked.

Wins above replacement on this page is ours, not the source database's. The hitting and pitching files carry a WAR column that we compute here from the same season lines you see, using park factors and a run environment worked out per season. Published versions elsewhere use different methods and will not match ours exactly. Every other column is the record as the database supplies it.

Names on this page lead to that player's own record. Most of them open a full career page with every season he appeared in. Some open a summary screen instead — we pre-build pages for the players people look for, and everyone else is assembled on demand from the same files, so the numbers are identical either way even though the address looks different.

Data for 1871 to 2025: Lahman Baseball Database 2025, compiled by SABR (Society for American Baseball Research) and licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 Unported. Negro Leagues data licensed from Seamheads.com and included under SABR major-league recommendations (2021-02-11, 2024-06-03). This page ranks the 1959 season lines published on this site, league by league, with WAR worked out here. — the WAR columns are computed here — and they are published under the same CC BY-SA 3.0 Unported licence, as ShareAlike requires. That database is published once a season is complete, so the 2026 figures on this site come from a different place: the MLB Stats API, whose notice reads “Copyright 2026 MLB Advanced Media, L.P. Use of any content on this page acknowledges agreement to the terms posted here http://gdx.mlb.com/components/copyright.txt”. Those numbers are MLB Advanced Media, L.P.’s, not SABR (Society for American Baseball Research)’s, and they carry that notice rather than the CC BY-SA 3.0 Unported licence above. Not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to Major League Baseball or any of its clubs.