{"id":3322,"date":"2026-04-06T08:30:00","date_gmt":"2026-04-06T08:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/?p=2101"},"modified":"2026-04-05T19:08:59","modified_gmt":"2026-04-05T19:08:59","slug":"mlb_team_rankings_1940s_20_16","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/2026\/04\/06\/mlb_team_rankings_1940s_20_16\/","title":{"rendered":"1940s MLB Team Rankings Countdown: 20 through 16"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Welcome to the first countdown post in our series of MLB team rankings for the 1940s. As a reminder, the teams are ranked from #20 through #1 based on aggregate WAR162. For the 1940s (1940-1949), a total of 160 teams were eligible (16 teams x 10 seasons), so the top 20 teams are a fairly exclusive group. We&#8217;ll summarize each team, including portions of their team dashboard, and explain how they attained their ranking. So, without further ado, here are the teams ranked #20 through #16.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here&#8217;s the interactive dashboard at Tableau Public: <a href=\"https:\/\/public.tableau.com\/views\/Top20MLBTeams1940-1949\/Dashboard1?:language=en-US&amp;publish=yes&amp;:sid=&amp;:redirect=auth&amp;:display_count=n&amp;:origin=viz_share_link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">1940s Top 20 MLB Teams Dashboard<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-726843b6bd671492cff3f6a8823b20b3\" style=\"color:#2a35ff\">#20: 1940 Detroit Tigers, 49.3 WAR162<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The 1940 Tigers prevailed in a tight AL pennant chase, finishing one game ahead of the Indians and three up on the Yankees. The Tigers were then defeated by  the Reds in a 7-game World Series, denying them a second crown in six years.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"719\" height=\"187\" src=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-113.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3376\" srcset=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-113.png 719w, https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-113-300x78.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 719px) 100vw, 719px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>The Tigers had a high-octane offense, scoring 888 runs to edge the Red Sox (872). They also placed first in BA, OBP, OPS, and doubles, and third in home runs. The pitching was not on par with the offense, ranking just fourth in ERA and WHIP, although they topped the league in strikeouts.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"715\" height=\"419\" src=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-115.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3378\" srcset=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-115.png 715w, https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-115-300x176.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 715px) 100vw, 715px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/g\/greenha01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-04-05_br\">Hank Greenberg<\/a> provided much of the offensive spark, leading the AL with 41 homers, 150 RBI, a 1.103 OPS, and 50 doubles, while batting .340. <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/y\/yorkru01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-04-05_br\">Rudy York<\/a> added 33 homers and 134 RBI, and <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/m\/mccosba01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-04-05_br\">Barney McCosky<\/a> batted .340 with 19 triples. Veteran second baseman <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/g\/gehrich01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-04-05_br\">Charlie Gehringer<\/a> batted .313 at age 37 to round out the offense. The pitching corps was led by <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/n\/newsobo01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-04-05_br\">Bobo Newsom<\/a> (21-5, 2.83 ERA) and <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/r\/rowesc01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-04-05_br\">Schoolboy Rowe<\/a> (16-3, 3.46 ERA). <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/search\/search.fcgi?pid=bridge000tom,bridgto01&amp;search=Tommy+Bridges&amp;utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-04-05_br\">Tommy Bridges<\/a> added 12 wins from the second spot in the rotation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-2fe526ef712e37208c240dd2437207d2\" style=\"color:#2a35ff\">#19: 1946 St. Louis Cardinals, 49.4 WAR162<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The Cardinals continued their strong decade with the 1946 NL pennant and World Series winners, who defeated the Red Sox in seven games in the fall classic. The Cards&#8217; 98 regular-season wins edged the Dodgers by two games in a tight NL pennant battle.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"710\" height=\"188\" src=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-116.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3379\" srcset=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-116.png 710w, https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-116-300x79.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 710px) 100vw, 710px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>The Cardinals&#8217; 712 runs topped the NL during a period when scoring continued to decline from the inflated offensive numbers of the 1930s. They also topped the NL in BA and OPS, and finished second in home runs with a modest total of 81. Pitching was a strong point for the 1946 team, as they led the NL in ERA, shutouts, and strikeout-to-walk rate, while placing third in WHIP.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"712\" height=\"414\" src=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-117.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3380\" srcset=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-117.png 712w, https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-117-300x174.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 712px) 100vw, 712px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/m\/musiast01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-04-05_br\">Stan Musial<\/a> was the driving force of the offense, leading the NL in many offensive categories, including BA (.365), OPS (1.021), doubles (50), and triples (20). <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/k\/kurowwh01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-04-05_br\">Whitey Kurowski<\/a> batted .301 with 89 RBI, and <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/s\/slaugen01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-04-05_br\">Enos Slaughter<\/a> led the NL with 130 RBI while compiling a .300 BA. Shortstop <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/m\/marioma01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-04-05_br\">Marty Marion<\/a> batted only .233, but was a strong defender at shortstop for the Cards. The pitching was led by the strong one-two combo of <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/p\/polleho01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-04-05_br\">Howie Pollet<\/a> and <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/b\/brechha01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-04-05_br\">Harry Brecheen<\/a>, both left-handers. Pollet led the league with 21 wins, a 2.10 ERA, and 266 innings pitched; Brecheen tossed a league-best 5 shutouts while posting 15 wins, a number matched by <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/d\/dicksmu01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-04-05_br\">Murry Dickson<\/a>, a combination starter and reliever.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-0d082a4462ce3e65b544653f36ef6c92\" style=\"color:#2a35ff\">#18: 1947 New York Yankees, 49.7 WAR162<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The 1947 Yankees cruised to the AL title, finishing 12 games ahead of the Tigers. The Yanks were armed with the best offense and pitching in the AL, and capped the season by defeating the crosstown Dodgers in a seven-game World Series.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"715\" height=\"185\" src=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-118.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3381\" srcset=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-118.png 715w, https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-118-300x78.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 715px) 100vw, 715px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>The Yankees&#8217; 794 runs easily topped the AL; they also led the league in BA, OPS, triples, and home runs. Their pitching was also strong, as they led the league in ERA and strikeouts, and finished second in WHIP behind the Indians.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"714\" height=\"420\" src=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-119.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3382\" srcset=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-119.png 714w, https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-119-300x176.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 714px) 100vw, 714px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>The Yankees&#8217; offense was well distributed across multiple players, with 34-year-old <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/h\/henrito01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-04-05_br\">Tommy Henrich<\/a> leading the way. Henrich totaled 13 triples (AL-best), 109 runs scored, and 98 RBI; <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/d\/dimagjo01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-04-05_br\">Joe DiMaggio<\/a> had a quiet year (by his standards), batting .315 with 20 homers and 97 RBI, and 37-year-old <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/m\/mcquige02.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-04-05_br\">George McQuinn<\/a> batted .304 with a .397 OBP. <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/r\/rizzuph01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-04-05_br\">Phil Rizzuto<\/a> played his usual strong defense at shortstop while batting .273, with his infield partner Stuffy Stirnweiss picking up 89 walks, leading to a .358 OBP. <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/c\/chandsp01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-04-05_br\">Spud Chandler<\/a> posted a fine 2.46 ERA as the fourth starter, and <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/s\/sheasp01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-04-05_br\">Spec Shea<\/a> allowed the fewest hits per 9 innings from the second spot in the rotation. Reliever <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/p\/pagejo01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-04-05_br\">Joe Page<\/a> saved an AL-best 17 games, and veteran righty <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/r\/reynoal01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-04-05_br\">Allie Reynolds<\/a> posted a 19-8 mark.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-b35347ea4948147924b4a46f90b9d0b4\" style=\"color:#2a35ff\">#17: 1942 Boston Red Sox, 50.1 WAR162<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The Red Sox fielded a very solid team in 1942, but were no match for the Yankees, who won the pennant by a comfortable 9 games over the Red Sox. The Boston squad would have to wait four more years to break through for an AL pennant.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"719\" height=\"185\" src=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-120.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3383\" srcset=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-120.png 719w, https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-120-300x77.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 719px) 100vw, 719px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>The Sox were a strong offensive team, but trailed the Yankees in several categories. Their 761 runs ranked second, as did their 103 homers, but they did lead the AL in BA, OBP, and OPS. If their offense was at a similar level to the Yankees&#8217;, their pitching was not. The staff ranked a distant third in ERA, second in WHIP, fourth in strikeouts, and fifth in strikeout-to-walk rate.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"712\" height=\"414\" src=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-121.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3384\" srcset=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-121.png 712w, https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-121-300x174.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 712px) 100vw, 712px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/w\/willite01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-04-05_br\">Ted Williams<\/a> was indisputably the star for the Red Sox, leading the league in multiple categories. Williams batted .356, had a .499 OBP, .648 SLG, and 1.147 OPS, while swatting 36 homers, drawing 145 walks, scoring 141 runs, and amassing 137 RBI. His excellent supporting crew included shortstop <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/p\/peskyjo01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-04-05_br\">Johnny Pesky<\/a> (.331 BA, 205 hits), <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/d\/doerrbo01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-04-05_br\">Bobby Doerr<\/a> (.290 BA, 102 RBI), and <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/d\/dimagdo01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-04-05_br\">Dom DiMaggio<\/a> (.286 BA, 110 runs scored). On the mound, <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/h\/hughste01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-04-05_br\">Tex Hughson<\/a> was by far the most effective hurler, leading the league in wins (22), complete games (22), innings pitched (281), and strikeouts (113). <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/d\/dobsojo01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-04-05_br\">Joe Dobson<\/a> was the next most effective starter, but had just an 11-9 record for the season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-998e63f31df78ee2bbaff5705cd6ecf2\" style=\"color:#2a35ff\">#16: 1946 Boston Red Sox, 50.7 WAR<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-black-color\">The <\/mark>Red Sox finally broke through for their first AL pennant in 28 years, winning 104 games (7 more than projected) to top the Tigers by 12 games. Unfortunately for the Sox, they fell short in the World Series, losing to the Cardinals in seven games.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"716\" height=\"186\" src=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-122.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3385\" srcset=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-122.png 716w, https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-122-300x78.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 716px) 100vw, 716px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>The Sox topped the AL standings primarily via their high-scoring offense. Their 792 runs were 88 more than the Tigers could muster, and they easily led the league in BA, OBP, and OPS. The pitching was generally middle of the pack, ranking fourth in ERA, third in WHIP, fourth in strikeouts, and second in strikeout-to-walk rate.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"711\" height=\"416\" src=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-123.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3386\" srcset=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-123.png 711w, https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-123-300x176.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 711px) 100vw, 711px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Ted Williams again powered the offense with help from the supporting crew of Johnny Pesky, Bobby Doerr, and Dom DiMaggio. Williams led the AL in runs (142), walks (156), OBP (.497), SLG (.667), and OPS (1.164) while batting .342. Pesky batted .335 with an AL-best 208 hits, Doerr totaled 116 RBI, and DiMaggio batted .316. Tex Hughson (20-11, 2.75 ERA, 3.37 strikeout-to-walk rate) and <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/f\/ferrida01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-04-05_br\">Dave Ferriss<\/a> (25-6) supplied a strong top of the rotation for the Boston squad.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Summary<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>That&#8217;s it for the first entry in our MLB Team Rankings for the 1940s decade! Stay tuned for the countdown from #15 to #11, arriving in a few days. As always, thanks for reading!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Welcome to the first countdown post in our series of MLB team rankings for the 1940s. As a reminder, the teams are ranked from #20 through #1 based on aggregate WAR162. For the 1940s (1940-1949), a total of 160 teams were eligible (16 teams x 10 seasons), so the top 20 teams are a fairly [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[51],"tags":[71,41,66,47,64],"class_list":["post-3322","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-dashboards","tag-1940s","tag-mlb-statistics","tag-rankings","tag-team-war","tag-war162"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>1940s MLB Team Rankings Countdown: 20 through 16 - Visual-Baseball<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"View a countdown through our MLB Team Rankings for the 1940s decade, with teams 20-16 featured in this post\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/2026\/04\/06\/mlb_team_rankings_1940s_20_16\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"1940s MLB Team Rankings Countdown: 20 through 16 - Visual-Baseball\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"View a countdown through our MLB Team Rankings for the 1940s decade, with teams 20-16 featured in this post\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/2026\/04\/06\/mlb_team_rankings_1940s_20_16\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Visual-Baseball\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-04-06T08:30:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-113.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"719\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"187\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"kc2519\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"kc2519\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"8 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/visual-baseball.com\\\/wordpress\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/06\\\/mlb_team_rankings_1940s_20_16\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/visual-baseball.com\\\/wordpress\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/06\\\/mlb_team_rankings_1940s_20_16\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"kc2519\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/visual-baseball.com\\\/wordpress\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/d4ccbd596ab01720245999831d866f7f\"},\"headline\":\"1940s MLB Team Rankings Countdown: 20 through 16\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-04-06T08:30:00+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/visual-baseball.com\\\/wordpress\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/06\\\/mlb_team_rankings_1940s_20_16\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":1086,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/visual-baseball.com\\\/wordpress\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/06\\\/mlb_team_rankings_1940s_20_16\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/visual-baseball.com\\\/wordpress\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/image-113.png\",\"keywords\":[\"1940s\",\"MLB statistics\",\"rankings\",\"team WAR\",\"WAR162\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Dashboards\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/visual-baseball.com\\\/wordpress\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/06\\\/mlb_team_rankings_1940s_20_16\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/visual-baseball.com\\\/wordpress\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/06\\\/mlb_team_rankings_1940s_20_16\\\/\",\"name\":\"1940s MLB Team Rankings Countdown: 20 through 16 - Visual-Baseball\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/visual-baseball.com\\\/wordpress\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/visual-baseball.com\\\/wordpress\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/06\\\/mlb_team_rankings_1940s_20_16\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/visual-baseball.com\\\/wordpress\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/06\\\/mlb_team_rankings_1940s_20_16\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/visual-baseball.com\\\/wordpress\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/image-113.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-04-06T08:30:00+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/visual-baseball.com\\\/wordpress\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/d4ccbd596ab01720245999831d866f7f\"},\"description\":\"View a countdown through our MLB Team Rankings for the 1940s decade, with teams 20-16 featured in this post\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/visual-baseball.com\\\/wordpress\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/06\\\/mlb_team_rankings_1940s_20_16\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/visual-baseball.com\\\/wordpress\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/06\\\/mlb_team_rankings_1940s_20_16\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/visual-baseball.com\\\/wordpress\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/06\\\/mlb_team_rankings_1940s_20_16\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/visual-baseball.com\\\/wordpress\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/image-113.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/visual-baseball.com\\\/wordpress\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/image-113.png\",\"width\":719,\"height\":187},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/visual-baseball.com\\\/wordpress\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/06\\\/mlb_team_rankings_1940s_20_16\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/visual-baseball.com\\\/wordpress\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"1940s MLB Team Rankings Countdown: 20 through 16\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/visual-baseball.com\\\/wordpress\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/visual-baseball.com\\\/wordpress\\\/\",\"name\":\"Visual-Baseball\",\"description\":\"Baseball Analysis and Visualization\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/visual-baseball.com\\\/wordpress\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/visual-baseball.com\\\/wordpress\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/d4ccbd596ab01720245999831d866f7f\",\"name\":\"kc2519\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/8fd7c926b41a850fd0037a90412c8e7116b19c458c184fb0d1f2b912a46601cc?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/8fd7c926b41a850fd0037a90412c8e7116b19c458c184fb0d1f2b912a46601cc?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/8fd7c926b41a850fd0037a90412c8e7116b19c458c184fb0d1f2b912a46601cc?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"kc2519\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/visual-baseball.com\\\/wordpress\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/visual-baseball.com\\\/wordpress\\\/author\\\/kc2519\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"1940s MLB Team Rankings Countdown: 20 through 16 - Visual-Baseball","description":"View a countdown through our MLB Team Rankings for the 1940s decade, with teams 20-16 featured in this post","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/2026\/04\/06\/mlb_team_rankings_1940s_20_16\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"1940s MLB Team Rankings Countdown: 20 through 16 - Visual-Baseball","og_description":"View a countdown through our MLB Team Rankings for the 1940s decade, with teams 20-16 featured in this post","og_url":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/2026\/04\/06\/mlb_team_rankings_1940s_20_16\/","og_site_name":"Visual-Baseball","article_published_time":"2026-04-06T08:30:00+00:00","og_image":[{"width":719,"height":187,"url":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-113.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"kc2519","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"kc2519","Est. reading time":"8 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/2026\/04\/06\/mlb_team_rankings_1940s_20_16\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/2026\/04\/06\/mlb_team_rankings_1940s_20_16\/"},"author":{"name":"kc2519","@id":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/#\/schema\/person\/d4ccbd596ab01720245999831d866f7f"},"headline":"1940s MLB Team Rankings Countdown: 20 through 16","datePublished":"2026-04-06T08:30:00+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/2026\/04\/06\/mlb_team_rankings_1940s_20_16\/"},"wordCount":1086,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/2026\/04\/06\/mlb_team_rankings_1940s_20_16\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-113.png","keywords":["1940s","MLB statistics","rankings","team WAR","WAR162"],"articleSection":["Dashboards"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/2026\/04\/06\/mlb_team_rankings_1940s_20_16\/","url":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/2026\/04\/06\/mlb_team_rankings_1940s_20_16\/","name":"1940s MLB Team Rankings Countdown: 20 through 16 - Visual-Baseball","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/2026\/04\/06\/mlb_team_rankings_1940s_20_16\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/2026\/04\/06\/mlb_team_rankings_1940s_20_16\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-113.png","datePublished":"2026-04-06T08:30:00+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/#\/schema\/person\/d4ccbd596ab01720245999831d866f7f"},"description":"View a countdown through our MLB Team Rankings for the 1940s decade, with teams 20-16 featured in this post","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/2026\/04\/06\/mlb_team_rankings_1940s_20_16\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/2026\/04\/06\/mlb_team_rankings_1940s_20_16\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/2026\/04\/06\/mlb_team_rankings_1940s_20_16\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-113.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-113.png","width":719,"height":187},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/2026\/04\/06\/mlb_team_rankings_1940s_20_16\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"1940s MLB Team Rankings Countdown: 20 through 16"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/#website","url":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/","name":"Visual-Baseball","description":"Baseball Analysis and Visualization","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/#\/schema\/person\/d4ccbd596ab01720245999831d866f7f","name":"kc2519","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8fd7c926b41a850fd0037a90412c8e7116b19c458c184fb0d1f2b912a46601cc?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8fd7c926b41a850fd0037a90412c8e7116b19c458c184fb0d1f2b912a46601cc?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8fd7c926b41a850fd0037a90412c8e7116b19c458c184fb0d1f2b912a46601cc?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"kc2519"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress"],"url":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/author\/kc2519\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3322","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3322"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3322\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3485,"href":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3322\/revisions\/3485"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3322"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3322"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3322"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}