Article: The Recent History Of 100-Loss Teams

[Tom Froemming]

Watching a team slump its way through a summer and flirt with 100 losses is like watching a quicksand scene. It's a slow, gruelling situation to watch and every move that's made seems to make the character sink deeper and deeper.

 

Quicksand became a cliche in action/adventure movies of the 50s and 60s, and it's easy to see why. Quicksand adds a lot of potential for suspense and drama, making the viewer feel helpless. You wish there was a way you could jump through the screen and offer a helping hand to the doomed hero or damsel in distress.But unlike in the movies, watching a baseball team seemingly trapped in quicksand doesn't last a few scenes. It can often stretch over several years.

 

Of course, there is a chance the Twins avoid 100 losses. As of Thursday evening the team has 92 losses with 15 games remaining. And 100 is sort of an arbitrary number, but there is certainly a stigma against reaching triple-digit losses. It's a rare feat to accomplish, if you can call it that, and really sticks out in the standings.

 

It doesn't happen every season, and the Twins have only hit the century mark in losses once, losing 102 in 1982. Here's a rundown of every 100-loss team since the strike:

 

15: None

14: None

13: Astros 111, Marlins 100

12: Astros 107, Cubs 101

11: Astros 106

10: Pirates 105, Mariners 101

09: Nationals 103

08: Nationals 102, Mariners 101

07: None

06: Rays 101, Royals 100

05: Royals 106

04: Diamondbacks 111, Royals 104

03: Tigers 119

02: Tigers 106, Rays 106, Brewers 106, Royals 100

01: Pirates 100, Rays 100

00: None

99: None

98: Marlins 108

97: None

96: Tigers 109

95: None (144-game season)

 

That's 24 times it's happened, but only to 11 different franchises. So once you've lost 100, you're at high risk of doing it again. In fact, on seven different occasions in that span a team has followed a 100-loss season with another one. The Astros and Royals even managed to lose 100 in three-straight years.

 

In the movies, there's usually a quick fix that gets someone out of quicksand. Eventually somebody shows up with a branch, lasso or whip. Unfortunately, that's not how it works in baseball. Here's the average record of those 100-loss teams year-by-year after reaching the milestone:

 

First season: 67-95

Two years later: 72-90

Three years later: 77-85

Four years later: 80-82

 

Just two of those 24 100-loss teams managed to bounce back and have a winning record the next season. The 2003 Royals won 83 games and the 2009 Mariners won 85, but both teams finished third in their divisions.

 

Of course, there are success stories. Four of those 11 franchises have World Series appearances at some point since losing 100. And there's a good chance either the Nationals or Cubs will join that group this year.

 

The quickest turnaround to the World Series belongs to the Rays, who lost 101 in 2006 and were in the Fall Classic just two seasons later. And it only took the Tigers three seasons to go from 119 losses in 2003 to American League champs in '06.

 

Staying on the positive side, here's a list of some standout draft picks those 100-loss teams selected the following June: Kris Bryant, Carlos Correa, Gerrit Cole, Bryce Harper, Stephen Strasburg, David Price, Alex Gordon, Justin Upton, Justin Verlander and Josh Beckett.

 

The Twins boast a couple of the most remarkable turnarounds in baseball history, but falling all the way to 100 losses is like being neck deep in quicksand.

 

Hopefully the new President of Baseball Operations brings a lasso.

 

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[Linus]

Interesting. Makes the tank it or blow it up strategies look not quite as attractive.

[WiesbadenDAN]

Hopefully next spring I can forget that I read any of this! 

[wsnydes]

I was hoping somebody would post something like this.  I didn't figure it was too realistic to expect a winning team next season, but at least it's been done.  Regardless, for next season the playoffs should not be the goal, getting back to .500 should be.  That'll be difficult enough.

[Tom Froemming]

 

I was hoping somebody would post something like this.  I didn't figure it was too realistic to expect a winning team next season, but at least it's been done.  Regardless, for next season the playoffs should not be the goal, getting back to .500 should be.  That'll be difficult enough.

Thanks for the comment, you got my wheels turning on this some more. I wondered if it was maybe more realistic to hope the Twins can bounce back since they had a winning season the year prior to losing 100 (assuming that happens this year).

 

I took a look, and only one team in the stretch we're looking at went from winners, to 100 losses and back to winners again.

 

Mariners

2007: 88 W

2008: 101 L

2009: 85 W

 

Of course, Seattle then lost 101 again in 2010. So they were all over the place. There were three other teams to lose 100 after posting a winning record the year prior, but they all failed to bounce back.

 

Marlins

1997: 92 W

1998: 108 L

1999: 98 L

 

Royals

2003: 83 W

2004: 104 L

2005: 106 L

 

D-Backs

2003: 84 W

2004: 111 L

2005: 85 L

 

So you are correct, just getting back to .500 would be a pretty impressive accomplishment.

[Mike Sixel]

 

Interesting. Makes the tank it or blow it up strategies look not quite as attractive.

 

Well, not all of those were planned.....so I'm not sure you can say they were following that strategy.

 

I liked the OP, thanks!

[theBOMisthebomb]

The schedule has been released, get your tickets for 2017!

[Tom Froemming]

 

The schedule has been released, get your tickets for 2017!

New for 2017: Plenty of leg room and no lines!

[Rosterman]

The secret is to make the other team lose.

 

[gil4]

 

The secret is to make the other team lose.

 

You had to wait until September to share this vital info?

[Riverbrian]

If the Twins pitch next year like they did this year... Repeating 100 losses sounds reasonable.

 

If the new guy can dig up pitching that gets us closer to league average. I would not be surprised if the Twins win more than they lose.

[gil4]

 

Of course, there is a chance the Twins avoid 100 losses. As of Thursday evening the team has 92 losses with 15 games remaining. And 100 is sort of an arbitrary number, but there is certainly a stigma against reaching triple-digit losses. It's a rare feat to accomplish, if you can call it that, and really sticks out in the standings.
...

 

That's 24 times it's happened, but only to 11 different franchises. So once you've lost 100, you're at high risk of doing it again. In fact, on seven different occasions in that span a team has followed a 100-loss season with another one. The Astros and Royals even managed to lose 100 in three-straight years.

 

As you pointed out, 100 is an arbitrary number that indicates "really bad," but the Twins have been really bad for five of six years now (just not quite that bad), so I'm hopeful that the process of turning it around is well under way, not just beginning.

Edited September 17, 2016 by gil4

[mickeymental]

 

If the Twins pitch next year like they did this year... Repeating 100 losses sounds reasonable.

If the new guy can dig up pitching that gets us closer to league average. I would not be surprised if the Twins win more than they lose.

no big mystery: the twins have surrendered 821 runs; oakland, at exactly 700, is next among american league teams.

[EddieMatthews]

When a team goes from losing 90+ games in 2011, 12 13, and 14 with veterans and dumpster divers, it shows a team with lost direction.  

 

The 2016 team has lost 90+ with a transition to youth.  2017 will show if these youngsters can turn the team around.  

 

And of course, there is the question of pitching, especially the starters.  There is no youth movement in place yet, just hope for Berrios.

[Thrylos]

 

 

 

 

 

Marlins

1997: 92 W

1998: 108 L

1999: 98 L

 

That 1997 team needs an asterisk because it was a World Champion team.  After winning, the Marlins decided to have a full rebuild and dismantle that team.  The average age of the 1997 team was 28.5 for hitters and 27.5 for pitchers and dropped to 25.4 and 24.5 for 1998.  

 

And a rebuilding team needs few years to stabilize.  There is the progression of the Marlins (in Wins)

 

1998 - 54
1999 - 64
2000 - 79
2001 - 76
2002 - 79
2003 - 91 World Champions

 

I'd take 5 years from 100 L to a World Championship any day.  If the Twins did the right thing and rebuilt in 2012, that could had been next season for the Twins...

 

Unlike that young Marlins' team that lost 108, the 2016 average ages for the Twins is 27.1 for hitters and 28.4 for pitchers.

 

That is the problem there... 

 

 

If you go back to the last 100+ L Twins' team, the 1982, you will see that it was the only time the Twins have rebuilt seriously.  The average ages for that team were 25.3 for hitters and 25.5 for pitchers.  And like the Marlins, we all know what they did in 5 seasons...