The 1976 Major League Baseball season was the last season in which both the AL

American League

The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the American League , is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league based in the Great Lakes states, which eventually aspired to major...

 and the NL

National League

The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League , is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional...

 had the same number of teams until 1993

1993 Major League Baseball season

The 1993 Major League Baseball season was also the final season of two division play in each league, before the Central Division was added the following season, giving both the NL and AL three divisions each....

. The season ended with the Cincinnati Reds

Cincinnati Reds

The Cincinnati Reds are a Major League Baseball team based in Cincinnati, Ohio. They are members of the National League Central Division. The club was established in 1882 as a charter member of the American Association and joined the National League in 1890....

 taking the World Series Championship

World Series

The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball, played between the American League and National League champions since 1903. The winner of the World Series championship is determined through a best-of-seven playoff and awarded the Commissioner's Trophy...

 for the second consecutive season by sweeping the New York Yankees

New York Yankees

The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...

 in four games. It would be the Reds' last title until Lou Piniella

Lou Piniella

Louis Victor Piniella is a former Major League Baseball outfielder and manager. He has been nicknamed "Sweet Lou," both for his swing as a major league hitter and, facetiously, to describe his demeanor as a player and manager...

 guided the club in 1990

1990 Major League Baseball season

-Awards and honors:*Most Valuable Player**Rickey Henderson, Oakland Athletics **Barry Bonds, Pittsburgh Pirates *Cy Young Award**Bob Welch, Oakland Athletics **Doug Drabek, Pittsburgh Pirates *Rookie of the Year...

, and the second time that the Yankees were swept in World Series history. The only team to do it previously was the 1963 Los Angeles Dodgers

1963 Los Angeles Dodgers season

The Los Angeles Dodgers were led by pitcher Sandy Koufax, who won both the Cy Young Award and the Most Valuable Player Award. The team went 99–63 to win the National League title by six games over the runner-up St...

.

Postseason

Awards and honors

EWLINE   American League American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the American League , is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league based in the Great Lakes states, which eventually aspired to major... National League National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League , is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional... Award Player Position Team Player Position Team Most Valuable Player  Thurman Munson Thurman Munson Thurman Lee Munson was an American Major League Baseball catcher. He played his entire 11-year career for the New York Yankees...   C NYY Joe Morgan Joe Morgan Joe Leonard Morgan is a former Major League Baseball second baseman who played for the Houston Astros, Cincinnati Reds, San Francisco Giants, Philadelphia Phillies, and Oakland Athletics from 1963 to 1984. He won two World Series championships with the Reds in 1975 and 1976 and was also named the...   2B CIN Cy Young Award Cy Young Award The Cy Young Award is an honor given annually in baseball to the best pitchers in Major League Baseball , one each for the American League and National League . The award was first introduced in 1956 by Baseball Commissioner Ford Frick in honor of Hall of Fame pitcher Cy Young, who died in 1955...   Jim Palmer Jim Palmer James Alvin "Jim" Palmer , nicknamed "Cakes", is a former Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher. He played his entire 20-year baseball career for the Baltimore Orioles . He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in .As of 2008, Palmer and his wife Susan have homes in Palm Beach, Florida, and...   RHP BAL Randy Jones  LHP SD Rookie of the Year MLB Rookie of the Year Award In Major League Baseball, the Rookie of the Year Award is annually given to one player from each league as voted on by the Baseball Writers Association of America . The award was established in 1940 by the Chicago chapter of the BBWAA, which selected an annual winner from 1940 through 1946...   Mark Fidrych Mark Fidrych Mark Steven Fidrych , nicknamed "The Bird", was a Major League Baseball pitcher. He pitched his entire career for the Detroit Tigers ....   RHP DET Butch Metzger Butch Metzger Clarence Edward "Butch" Metzger is a former Major League Baseball player. Metzger was a relief pitcher, specifically a closer... Pat Zachry Pat Zachry Patrick Paul Zachry is a former Major League baseball pitcher who had a ten year career from to .-Cincinnati Reds:...   RHP RHP SD CIN Relief Man of the Year  Bill Campbell  RHP MIN Rawly Eastwick Rawly Eastwick Rawlins Jackson "Rawly" Eastwick is a former Major League Baseball relief pitcher who played from 1975 to 1981.-Career:...   RHP CIN

Statistical leaders

EWLINE   American League American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the American League , is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league based in the Great Lakes states, which eventually aspired to major... National League National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League , is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional... Type Name Stat Name Stat AVG Batting average Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball that measures the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters. The two statistics are related in that baseball averages are directly descended from the concept of cricket averages.- Cricket :...   George Brett George Brett (baseball) George Howard Brett , nicknamed "Mullet", is a former Major League Baseball third baseman, designated hitter, and first baseman. He played his entire 21-year baseball career for the Kansas City Royals. Brett's 3,154 career hits are the most by any third baseman in major league history, and 15th...  KCR .333 Bill Madlock Bill Madlock Bill "Mad Dog" Madlock, Jr. is a former Major League Baseball player. From 1973 to 1987, Madlock was a right-handed hitter who won several National League batting titles. His record of four batting titles as a third baseman would be eclipsed in 1988 by Wade Boggs. Since 1970, only Tony Gwynn has...  PIT .339 HR Home run In baseball, a home run is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to reach home safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team in the process...   Graig Nettles Graig Nettles Graig Nettles , nicknamed "Puff", is a former Major League Baseball third baseman. During a 22-year baseball career, he played for the Minnesota Twins , Cleveland Indians , New York Yankees , San Diego Padres , Atlanta Braves and Montreal Expos .Nettles was one of the best...  NYY 32 Mike Schmidt Mike Schmidt Michael Jack Schmidt is a Hall of Fame third baseman popularly considered among the greatest third basemen in the history of Major League Baseball. He played his entire career for the Philadelphia Phillies....  PHI 38 RBI  Lee May Lee May Lee Andrew May is a former first baseman in Major League Baseball. From through , May played for the Cincinnati Reds , Houston Astros , Baltimore Orioles and Kansas City Royals . He batted and threw right-handed. He is the brother of former Chicago White Sox and New York Yankees outfielder...  BAL 109 George Foster CIN 121 SB Stolen base In baseball, a stolen base occurs when a baserunner successfully advances to the next base while the pitcher is delivering the ball to home plate...   Billy North Billy North William Alex North is a former center fielder in Major League Baseball. From 1971 to 1981, he played for the Chicago Cubs , Oakland Athletics , Los Angeles Dodgers and San Francisco Giants...  OAK 75 Davey Lopes Davey Lopes David Earle Lopes is a former second baseman and manager in Major League Baseball. He batted and threw right-handed. He is currently the first base coach for the Los Angeles Dodgers.He is of Cape Verdean descent.-Playing:...  LAD 63 Wins Win (baseball) In professional baseball, there are two types of decisions: a win and a loss . In each game, one pitcher on the winning team is awarded a win and one pitcher on the losing team is given a loss in their respective statistics. These pitchers are collectively known as the pitchers of record. Only...   Jim Palmer Jim Palmer James Alvin "Jim" Palmer , nicknamed "Cakes", is a former Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher. He played his entire 20-year baseball career for the Baltimore Orioles . He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in .As of 2008, Palmer and his wife Susan have homes in Palm Beach, Florida, and...  BAL 22 Randy Jones SDP 22 ERA Earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average is the mean of earned runs given up by a pitcher per nine innings pitched. It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number of innings pitched and multiplying by nine...   Mark Fidrych Mark Fidrych Mark Steven Fidrych , nicknamed "The Bird", was a Major League Baseball pitcher. He pitched his entire career for the Detroit Tigers ....  DET 2.34 John Denny John Denny John Allen Denny is a former right-handed Major League Baseball pitcher from 1974 to 1986 for the St. Louis Cardinals, Cleveland Indians, Philadelphia Phillies, and Cincinnati Reds. He won the Cy Young Award in 1983.-Career:Denny was born in Prescott, Arizona and attended Prescott High School...  STL 2.52 SO Strikeout In baseball or softball, a strikeout or strike-out occurs when a batter receives three strikes during his time at bat. A strikeout is a statistic recorded for both pitchers and batters....   Nolan Ryan Nolan Ryan Lynn Nolan Ryan, Jr. , nicknamed "The Ryan Express", is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. He is currently principal owner, president and CEO of the Texas Rangers....  CAL 327 Tom Seaver Tom Seaver George Thomas "Tom" Seaver , nicknamed "Tom Terrific" and "The Franchise", is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. He pitched from 1967-1986 for four different teams in his career, but is noted primarily for his time with the New York Mets...  NYM 235 SV  Sparky Lyle Sparky Lyle Albert Walter "Sparky" Lyle is an American former left-handed relief pitcher who spent sixteen seasons in Major League Baseball . He was a closer from 1969 to 1977, first for the Boston Red Sox and then the New York Yankees. A three-time All-Star, he won the American League Cy Young Award in 1977...  NYY 23 Rawly Eastwick Rawly Eastwick Rawlins Jackson "Rawly" Eastwick is a former Major League Baseball relief pitcher who played from 1975 to 1981.-Career:... CIN 26

External links

• 1976 season at Baseball-reference.com