Thursday, September 22, 2011

Postseason Appearances By MLB Teams

Note that the Yankees have no World Series ring
anywhere near as gaudy as Super Bowl rings tend to get.

Now, here's a list of all postseason appearances by current MLB teams -- presuming, of course, that the Red Sox and Braves don't choke away their seemingly safe Wild Card berths. It does not include 1994, even for those teams that "finished" 1st, but it does include Wild Card berths, lost Playoffs for Pennants and/or Division Titles, the split-season of 1981, and 19th Century Pennants:

1. New York Yankees, 50: 1921, 1922, 1923, 1926, 1927, 1928, 1932, 1936, 1937, 1938, 1939, 1941, 1942, 1943, 1947, 1949, 1950, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1980, 1981, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011.

2. St. Louis Cardinals, 26: 1885, 1886, 1887, 1888 (American Association Pennants under the name St. Louis Browns), 1926, 1928, 1930, 1931, 1934, 1942, 1943, 1944, 1946, 1964, 1967, 1968, 1982, 1985, 1987, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2009.

3. Boston Red Sox, 24: 1903, 1904 (although the Giants chickened out of playing them in the World Series), 1912, 1915, 1916, 1918, 1946, 1948 (that Playoff counts, the last 2 games against the Yankees in '49 do not), 1967, 1975, 1978 (the Bucky Dent Game, a.k.a. the Boston Tie Party), 1986, 1988, 1990, 1995, 1998, 1999, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2011. As you can see, no team has benefited more from the Wild Card than the Sox, and that would be true even if they hadn't won their way to the whole thing in 2004 (cough-steroids-cough).

4. Chicago Cubs, 23: 1876, 1880, 1881, 1882, 1885, 1886 (each of these NL Pennants was won under the name of the Chicago White Stockings), 1906, 1907, 1908, 1910, 1918, 1929, 1932, 1935, 1938, 1945, 1984, 1989, 1998, 2003, 2004, 2007, 2008.

5. Atlanta Braves, 18: 1969, 1982, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2010, 2011. (Plus the 1872, '73, '74 and '75 National Association Pennants as the Boston Red Stockings; the 1877 and '78 NL Pennants as the Boston Red Stockings; the 1883, '91, '92, '93, '97 and '98 Pennants as the Boston Beaneaters; the 1914 and '48 Pennants as the Boston Braves; and the 1957 and '58 Pennants, and '59 Playoff that they lost to the Dodgers, as the Milwaukee Braves. The Atlanta Crackers won Southern Association Pennants in 1907, '09, '13, '17, '19, '25, '35, '38, '46, '54, '56, '57 and '60, and an International League Pennant in 1962.)

6. Los Angeles Dodgers, 18: 1959, 1962 (lost Playoff to Giants, just like in New York in 1951), 1963, 1965, 1966, 1974, 1977, 1978, 1980 (lost NL West Playoff to Astros), 1981, 1983, 1985, 1988, 1995, 1996, 2004, 2008, 2009. (Plus the 1889 American Association Pennant and the 1890 NL Pennant as the Brooklyn Bridegrooms -- don't ask -- the 1899 and 1900 Pennants as the Brooklyn Superbas, the 1916 and '20 Pennants as the Brooklyn Robins, and the 1941, '47, '49, '52, '53, '55 and '56 Pennants, and the lost Pennant Playoffs of 1946 and '51, as the Brooklyn Dodgers. The Pacific Coast League equivalent of the Dodgers, the Hollywood Stars, won Pennants in 1929, '30, '49, '52 and '53.)

7. Pittsburgh Pirates, 16: 1901, 1902, 1903, 1909, 1925, 1927, 1960, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1974, 1975, 1979, 1990, 1991, 1992. This does not count the 1939 Playoff that they lost to the New York Knights on Roy Hobbs' walkoff home run. That was just a movie.

8. Oakland Athletics, 15: 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1981, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1992, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006. (Plus the 1902, '05, '10, '11, '12, '13, '14, '29, '30 and '31 Pennants as the Philadelphia Athletics. The Oakland Oaks won Pacific Coast League Pennants in 1912, '27, '48, '50 and '54.)

9. Cincinnati Reds, 15: 1882, 1919, 1939, 1940, 1961, 1970, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1976, 1979, 1990, 1995, 1999 (Wild Card play-in game, lost to Mets), 2010.

10. Philadelphia Phillies, 14: 1915, 1950, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1980, 1981, 1983, 1993, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011.

11. Detroit Tigers, 13: 1907, 1908, 1909, 1934, 1935, 1940, 1945, 1968, 1972, 1984, 1987, 2006, 2011.

12. Minnesota Twins, 11: 1965, 1969, 1970, 1987, 1991, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2009, 2010. (Plus the 1924, '25 and '33 Pennants as the Washington Senators. The Minneapolis Millers won American Association Pennants in 1896, 1910, '11, '12, '15, '32, '35, '55, '58 and '59. The St. Paul Saints won AA Pennants in 1924 and '48.)

13. Chicago White Sox, 11: 1901, 1906, 1917, 1919, 1959, 1983, 1993, 1994, 2000, 2005, 2008.

14. Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, 11: 1979, 1982, 1986, 1995 (lost Playoff to Seattle after blowing big AL West lead), 2002, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009. (The original Los Angeles Angels won Pacific Coast League Pennants in 1903, '05, '07, '08, '16, '18, '21, '26, '33, '34, '47 and '56.)

15. Cleveland Indians, 10: 1920, 1948, 1954, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2007.

16. Baltimore Orioles, 10: 1966, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1973, 1974, 1979, 1983, 1996, 1997. (Plus the 1944 Pennant as the St. Louis Browns. The original Baltimore Orioles won NL Pennants in 1894, '95 and '96. The Triple-A team of the same name won International Leauge Pennants in 1908, '19, '20, '21, '22, '23, '24, '25, '44 and '50.)

17. San Francisco Giants, 9: 1962, 1971, 1987, 1989, 1997, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2010. (Plus Pennants as the New York Giants in 1888, '89, 1904, '05, '11, '12, '13, '17, '21, '22, '23, '24, '33, '36, '37, '51 and '54, and a lost Playoff in 1908. The San Francisco Seals won Pacific Coast League Pennants in 1909, '15, '17, '22, '23, '25, '28, '31, '35, '43, '44, '45, '46 and '57, their last season.)

18. Houston Astros, 9: 1980, 1981, 1986, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2004, 2005. (The Houston Buffaloes won Texas League Pennants in 1928, '31, '40, '47, '51, '54, '56 and '57.)

19. Kansas City Royals, 7: 1976, 1977, 1978, 1980, 1981, 1984, 1985. (The Kansas City Blues won American Association Pennants in 1888, '90, '98, 1901, '18, '23, '29, '38, '52 and '53.)

20. New York Mets, 7: 1969, 1973, 1986, 1988, 1999, 2000, 2006.

21. Texas Rangers, 5: 1996, 1998, 1999, 2010, 2011. (The Dallas Submarines won Texas League Pennants in 1917 and '18, the Dallas Steers in 1926 and '92, the Dallas Rebels in 1941 and '46, and the Dallas Eagles in 1953. The Fort Worth Panthers won TL Pennants in 1920, '21, '22, '23, '24, '25 and '30, then became the Fort Worth Cats and won Pennants in 1937, '39 and '48.)

22. Arizona Diamondbacks, 5: 1999, 2001, 2002, 2007, 2011. (The Phoenix Giants, later the Phoenix Firebirds, won Pacific Coast League Pennants in 1958 and '77.)

23. San Diego Padres, 5: 1984, 1996, 1998, 2005, 2006. (The original San Diego Padres won Pacific Coast League Pennants in 1937, '62, '64 and '67.)

24. Toronto Blue Jays, 5: 1985, 1989, 1991, 1992, 1993. (The Toronto Maple Leafs, for whom the hockey team was later named, won International League Pennants in 1902, '12, '17, '18, '26, '34, '60, '65 and '66.)

25. Seattle Mariners, 4: 1995, 1997, 2000, 2001. (The Seattle Indians, later renamed the Seattle Rainiers and the Seattle Angels, won Pacific Coast League Pennants in 1924, '40, '41, '42, '51, '55 and '66. Various teams from nearby Tacoma have won them in 1961, '69 and '78.)

26. Milwaukee Brewers, 4: 1981, 1982, 2007, 2011. (The original Milwaukee Brewers won American Association Pennants in 1913, '14, '36, '43, '44, '45, '47, '51 and '52, including their last 2 seasons of play.)

27. Tampa Bay Rays, 2: 2008, 2010. (Prior to the arrival of the then-Devil Rays in 1998, Florida State League Pennants were won by Tampa teams in 1920, '25, '57, '61 and '94; and by St. Petersburg teams in 1922, '58, '59, '67, '73, '75, '86 and '97.)

28. Florida Marlins, 2: 1997, 2003. (Prior to the arrival of the Marlins in 1993, Florida State League Pennants were won by Miami teams in 1969, '70, '71, '72 and '78, and by the Fort Lauderdale Yankees in 1962, '64, '65, '80, '82, '84 and '87.)

29. Colorado Rockies, 1: 2007. (The Denver Bears won American Association Pennants in 1923, '29, '57, '71, '76, '77, '81, and '83, and in 1991 as the Denver Zephyrs.)

30. Washington Nationals, none. (1981 as Montreal Expos. The Montreal Royals won International League Pennants in 1898, 1935, '41, '45, '46, '48, '51, '52, '53, '55 and '58.)

7 comments:

Paul said...

You missed one. The Rockies were the NL Wild Card in 1995.

Ronald said...

You didn't ask, but the Brooklyn Bridegrooms got that name before the 1888 season when several players got married. It's in my book When the Dodgers Were Bridegrooms. Congrats on getting your Stockings right with their current day counterparts. Ron in Williamsburg, Va. at www.brooklyndodgershistory.com

Justin said...

thanks for the list... you'd be suprised how hard it is to find a compilation of team playoff appearances by year! kudos!

The Real News said...

You are missing pennants for the minor league teams.

Between 1933 and 1960 most of the leagues had playoffs

The wikipedia sections include the playoff champions not pennant

Houston Buffaloes won the pennant in 1905, 1906, 1909, 1912, 1913, 1914, 1928, 1931, 1933, 1939, 1940, 1941, 1947, 1951, 1956 for a total of 16

They won 1st rd playoffs in 1940, 1947, 1951, 1954,1955, 1956, 1957

They won playoff titles in 1928, 1931, 1940, 1947, 1951, 1954, 1956, 1957

Dixie Series titles in 1928, 1947, 1956, 1957

atlrwreck05 said...

The Giants didn't chicken out of playing the Sox in 1904, the owner just didn't view the American League as viable or worthy of a National League team's time.

Unknown said...

And 2009

Unknown said...

And 2009