YEAR IN REVIEW : 2016 National League

Off the field...

The United Kingdom voted in a referendum to leave the European Union, a politico-economic union of twenty-eight member states that are located primarily in Europe.

The 2016 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXXI Olympiad and commonly known as Rio 2016, was a major international multi-sport event held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from August 5th through August 21st, 2016.

News in the United States was virtually dominated by clashes between the two presidential candidates, Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton.

In the American League...

New York Yankees rookie sensation Gary Sanchez became; the fastest player in Major League history to reach 11 home runs, doing so in his 23rd career game on August 27, 2016, against the Baltimore Orioles, the first rookie in Major League history to win consecutive Player of the Week awards, and when he hit his 19th home run on September 21, 2016, against the Tampa Bay Rays, he became the quickest player in Major League history to hit 19 home runs, doing so in his 45th game.

On August 19, 2016, the Baltimore Orioles set a new Major League record by hitting four home runs before recording their first out, in the course of a five run first inning against the Houston Astros.

The Cleveland Indians defeated the Toronto Blue Jays in the 2016 ALCS despite hitting just .168, setting a Major League record for the lowest batting average for a winning team in a postseason series. When they defeated the Chicago Cubs 1–0 in Game 3 of the 2016 World Series, it was their fifth shutout of the postseason, also a Major League record!

In the National League...

The 2016 San Diego Padres became the first team in Major League history to be shut out in three consecutive games to open a season. San Diego lost to Los Angeles by the scores of 15–0 (the largest shutout victory on Opening Day in Major League history.), 3–0 and 7–0, respectively.

Jake Arrieta (Chicago Cubs) threw his second career no-hitter, destroying the Cincinnati Reds 16–0 on April 21, 2016. Arrieta walked four and struck out six as he became the fourth reigning Cy Young winner (joining Sandy Koufax, Bob Gibson, and Clayton Kershaw), to throw a no-hitter the following season.

The Atlanta Braves and Miami Marlins played a special neutral-site game at Fort Bragg Stadium, on July 3, 2016, a newly constructed field in Fort Bragg, North Carolina, in observance of the Independence Day long weekend. It was the first professional, regular-season sporting event held on an active military installation.

Around the League...

The Major League Baseball All-Star Game's 87th edition was played on July 12, 2016, at Petco Park in San Diego, California, home of the San Diego Padres. The American League, who won the All-Star Game 4–2, also won home-field advantage in the 2016 World Series.

New to the rule book in 2016, Rule 6.01(j), which created criteria for a legal slide while trying to break up a double play, which is defined as making contact with the ground before reaching the base, being able to and attempting to reach the base with a hand or foot, being able to and attempting to remain on the base at the completion of the slide (except at home plate) and not changing his path for the purpose of initiating contact with a fielder.