Sunday August 19, 2012

The Yankees have 27 World Series Titles and 13 Losses in the Fall Classic since 1921. That is 40 Total appearances in 90 Years. Can they make it 41/91 this year. Heading into Sunday Aug.19, they own the 1 seed in the AL.

Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Writer): Follow @chuckbooth3024 Baseball seasons are 162 games long.  They used to be 154 games at one point, just ask all of the Yankees fans who did not want Roger Maris to break Babe Ruth’s HR Record with an additional 8 game schedule.  The point is, every year is a marathon.  Yes there are teams that can catch a hot streak and ride it all the way through the playoffs.  We were privy to this the last few years with the World Series Championship teams of St. Louis and San Francisco.  Ironically, both of these teams are on this top ten list.  These organizations are on here because of a commitment to excellence as a Franchise.  The New York Yankees do have a stacked lineup every year to help aid the World Championship Seasons, aside from them though,  is there any other team that has spent money like crazy for decades?  The answer is no.

Out of these teams listed in the top 10, The Baltimore Orioles have had the longest stretch since they have made the World Series (1983), yet the Cardinals were the closest to have been in the Fall Classic in wrapping up their 5th title in the last 50 years last year.  Of teams that are not on this list, they are 5 teams that did not make the top 11 but have 2 World Series Trophies since 1961: Toronto won the WS in 1992 and 1993, Florida put away wins in 1997 and 2003, Pittsburgh won in 1971 and 1979,  Detroit won in 1968 and 1984 and Minnesota in 1987 and 1991.   Out of these 11 teams, only 3 teams have winning records in the Fall Classic since 1961:  NY Yankees (9-6), Oakland (4-2) and St.Louis (5-4).  This clearly shows that is easier to make the World Series than it is to win it.  The Atlanta Braves made 5 World Series in the 90’s, only to lose 4 of them.  All of these teams did exist in 1961.  Some of the teams that are expansion clubs do have great numbers and maybe just haven’t been around long enough.  Florida is in its 20th year and still has 2 World Series wins.  The Blue Jays have only been around for 35 years and have 2 WS Titles.  Arizona is in its 15th year right now and boasts a Trophy already. Tampa Bay has one WS appearance and is looking to make the playoffs for the 4th time in 6 years, to then add their 2nd WS Appearance if possible.   It is long-suffering fans like the Chicago Cubs that haven’t won since 1909, or even appeared in the WS since 1945, that are growing extremely restless.

*** MLB Reports does not own the copyrights to the following videos or music. The videos are from MLB.com, courtesy of Fox, TBS, and KMOX, and the music is “Dark Horses” by Switchfoot from their album “Vice Versa”***

The Nationals are one of 2 teams in the MLB (The Mariners is the other) that have never made a World Series Appearance. Will they shutdown Stephen Strasburg and hurt their chance to break this drought? Photo courtesy of birthdaydirect.com

Then there is Seattle and Washington, who are the last 2 teams in the MLB to not have appeared in the World Series.  The Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals have been around since 1969, so that is 43 years.  The closest they came was losing to the LA Dodgers in the 1981 NLCS Championship.  Of course one always wonders what might have been if the 1994 Season was not lost.  The closest the Mariners have ever come was the 116 win team of 2001, where they lost the ALCS to the New York Yankees.  It was Ichiro’s first season with the club and they tied the Chicago Cubs for most wins ever in the regular season.  They had a couple of more decent seasons near the top of the AL West with Lou Piniella as coach,  but have been horrific for the last decade.  Washington will most likely make the playoffs, heading into Sunday’s action they are 8.5 games ahead of the #3 team for the Wild Card (LA Dodgers).  This is another reason they should pitch Stephen Strasburg in October.  I repeat, the Franchise has never been to the World Series!

In the next 50 years, every team should aspire to be on this list.  The Yankees aside, there is a chance for prolonged stints as productive small market teams.  We can look to Oakland, Minnesota, Tampa Bay and even the Cardinals for teams that do it the right way by building through the Amateur Draft.  If you look at this list, only Philadelphia, Boston and the New York Mets are not anywhere near the playoff bar. I do apologize Red Sox fans, I don’t think they can turn it around without Big Papi.  The Mets were pretty good until the Wilpon’s/Madoff Scandal and now have an anchor set at sea until that situation is resolved.  Philadelphia will have one more great shot in 2013, before it will become really hard to be competitive due to heavy payroll.  Boston does have the best chance in making it back to prominence as they are only a few players/and a couple of bounce back players-away. 

I will say it again. The New York Yankees really have to try to cash in another one this year.  With Derek Jeter, A-Rod and Andy Pettitte, how long before Father Time comes around for them?  The last time I checked, ‘Father Time’ was batting 1,000!  CC and Tex are in their 30’s now and Robinson Cano is going to cost you 25 Million Dollars a Year to re-sign as a free agent after the 2013 season in which the team will surely take the 15 Million Team Option for next year.  With the new club payroll being maintained at roughly 190 Million, will this be possible? If that is the case, you can kiss Nick Swisher good-bye after this year with Mariano Rivera coming back in 2013.  I predicted the Detroit Tigers to win the World Series from the beginning of the year, so I will stick with the prediction.  I have recently been tooting the Cardinals and Rays value to lock down a spot in the Fall Classic for ODDS anyway.  There is something scary about Atlanta too.  Their offensive players never seem to hit to their full potential, yet the pitching has carried them.  If Freddie Freeman and/or Jason Heyward can hit in the playoffs,  then look out!

Appearances and Records:

1. New York Yankees 15: Record is 9-6.  They won the WS in 1961, 1962, 1977, 1978, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000 and 2009.  They lost in 1963, 1964, 1976, 1981, 2001 and 2003.

2. St. Louis Cardinals 9:  Record is 5-4.  They won the WS in 1964, 1967, 1982, 2006 and 2011.  They lost in 1968, 1985, 1987 and 2004.

3. LA Dodgers 8: Record is 4-4.  They won the WS in 1963, 1965, 1981 and 1988 and lost in 1966, 1973, 1977 and 1978.

4. Oakland Athletics 6: Record is 4-2.  They won in 1972, 1973, 1974 and 1989 and lost in 1988 and 1990. 

5. Cincinnati Reds 6: Record is 3-3.  They won in 1975, 1976 and 1990 and lost in 1961, 1970 and 197.

6. Baltimore Orioles 6: Record is 3-3.  They won in 1966, 1970 and 1983.  They lost in 1969, 1971 and 1979.

7. Boston Red Sox 5: Record is 2-3.  They won in 2004 and 2007.  They lost in 1967, 1975 and 1986.

8. Philadelphia Phillies 5: Record is 2-3.  They won in 1980 and 2008.  They lost in 1983, 1993 and 2009.

9. Atlanta Braves 5: Record is 1-4.  They won in 1995 and lost in 1991, 1992, 1996, and 1999.

10. New York Mets 4: Record is 2-2.  They won in 1969 and 1986.  They lost in 1973 and 2000.

11. San Francisco Giants 4:  Record is 1-3. They won in 2010 and lost in 1962, 1989 and 2002.

The Oakland Athletics won three straight World Series from 1972-1974.  They also appeared in 3 straight World Series from 1988-1990, but were swept by the Dodgers in 1988 and  the Reds in 1990 while winning the Bay Series vs SF in 1989 via a sweep.  Does Billy Beane have a World Series Appearance in his future?

(* The views and opinions expressed in this report are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of mlbreports.com*)

 ***Thank you to our Lead Baseball Writer- Chuck Booth for preparing today’s feature on MLB reports.  To learn more about “The Fastest 30 Ballgames” and Chuck Booth, you can follow Chuck on Twitter (@ChuckBooth3024) and you can also follow Chuck’s website for his Guinness Book of World Record Bid to see all 30 MLB Park in 23 days click here  or on the 30 MLB Parks in 23 days GWR tracker at the Reports click here. To Purchase or read about “The Fastest 30 Ballgames Book, ” please click here ***

 Please e-mail us at: mlbreports@gmail.com with any questions and feedback.  You can follow us on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook.  To subscribe to our website and have the Daily Reports sent directly to your inbox, click here and follow the link at the top of our homepage.

Follow @mlbreports