Who Has Won the Most Regular Season Games this Century?

This question was posed to me a week or so ago and I was disappointed to find no recent answer online.  As such, I have done a bit of digging myself.

What follows is the numerical list, in ascending order, of teams’ average wins per season beginning the year 2000.  In addition to this, each teams seasonal high, low, and (19 year) cumulative win totals will be provided.  Teams will completely arbitrarily be grouped into quintiles along the way.

The Ugly

No. 30: Kansas City Royals – 72.01 wins per season

Cumulative Wins: 1371

Peak: 95, 2015 season

Valley: 56 wins, 2005 season

The Royals have won less in the regular season than any other franchise in the 21st century.  Nine times (!) they failed to win 70 games in a season.  That said, they made the most of their peak, earning a World Series title in 2015.

No. 29: Baltimore Orioles – 73.51 wins per season

Cumulative Wins: 1399 

Peak: 96 wins, 2014 season

Valley: 47 wins, 2018 season

It took the Orioles until 2012 to secure 80+ wins in a season this century, but they subsequently strung together a five-year stretch averaging nearly 89 wins per season from 2012-2016.

No. 28: Pittsburgh Pirates – 73.78 wins per season

Cumulative Wins: 1404

Peak: 98 wins, 2015 season

Valley: 57 wins, 2010 season

Much like the Orioles, the Pirates failed to breach the 80-win threshold for more than a decade into the 2000’s.  In 2013, though, they began a three year stretch averaging over 93 wins per season.

No. 27: San Diego Padres – 75.56 wins per season

Cumulative Wins: 1438

Peak: 90 wins, 2010 season

Valley: 63 wins, 2008 season

The Padres have experienced more modest high’s and low’s than any of the three previous teams listed.  As a result, they have a greater overall total of wins, but have failed to experience any significant postseason success in the last decade and a half.

No. 26: Colorado Rockies – 76.19 wins per season

Cumulative Wins: 1450

Peak: 92 wins, 2009 season

Valley: 64 wins, 2012 season

The Rockies have actually eclipsed the 90-win mark three times in the last 12 seasons, but have otherwise been largely smothered in their division by teams like the Dodgers and Giants.  

No. 25: Cincinnati Reds – 76.25 wins per season

Cumulative Wins: 1451

Peak: 97 wins, 2012 season

Valley: 64 wins, 2015

Despite some success in the first half of the 2010’s (90+ wins in three of four seasons from 2010-2013), the Reds have bottomed out with four straight sub-70 win seasons leading into 2019.  Their rebuilding process has taken longer than anticipated but several moves this offseason suggest that they are aiming to accelerate that development timeline.

The Bad

No. 24: Tampa Bay (Devil) Rays – 76.61 wins per season

Cumulative Wins: 1458 wins

Peak: 97 wins, 2008 season

Valley: 55 wins, 2002 season

The Rays position in these ranking is summarized by a stark dichotomy in their performance over this 19 year stretch.  From 2000-2007, they averaged just over 64 wins per season.  From 2008 (the year of their WS appearance) onward, they have averaged nearly 86 wins.

No. 23: Miami Marlins – 76.77 wins per season

Cumulative Wins: 1461

Peak: 91 wins, 2003 season

Valley: 62 wins, 2013 season

In an obvious case of recency bias, I would never have imagined that the Marlins recorded more wins this century than the Rays.  Alas, less variance in their performance over this stretch has resulted in a greater total overall (and far more importantly, a World Series championship).

No. 22: Detroit Tigers: 76.93 wins per season

Cumulative Wins: 1464

Peak: 95 wins, 2011 season

Valley: 43 wins, 2003 season

The Tigers averaged just over 64 wins during the first 6 seasons of the 2000’s, and just over 71 wins from 2016-18.  Between those two rough stretches, however, they experienced sustained success and a handful of noteworthy postseason appearances.

No. 21: Milwaukee Brewers: 77.56 wins per season

Cumulative Wins: 1476

Peak: 96 wins, 2018 season

Valley: 56 wins, 2002 season

Surprising to see the Brewers with a higher win total than the Tigers.  Still, the Tigers 43-win 2003 is tough to make up for, even over a 19 year stretch.  To their credit, beginning in 2005, the Brewers have in fact averaged close to 82 wins per season.

No. 20: Washington Nationals (Montreal Expos) – 78.66 wins per season

Cumulative Wins: 1497 wins

Peak: 98 wins, 2012 season

Valley: 59 wins, 2007/2008 seasons

An impressive regular season stretch (four 95+ win seasons in the last seven years) has been undermined by well documented postseason struggles. 

No. 19: Arizona Diamondbacks – 79.50 wins per season

Cumulative Wins: 1513

Peak: 98 wins, 2002 season

Valley: 51 wins, 2004 season

The Diamondbacks, similarly to the Rockies, have had a particularly impressive season here and there over the last decade plus, but haven’t been able to sustain their success for considerable stretches.  Playing in the same division as the deep-pocketed Dodgers and “even-season” Giants is an obvious contributing factor to those struggles.

The Mediocre

No. 18: Houston Astros – 79.56 wins per season

Cumulative Wins: 1514

Peak: 103 wins, 2018 season

Valley: 51 wins, 2013 season

Recency bias strikes again.  The Astros struggles in both leagues feels like an increasingly distance memory following consecutive 101+ win seasons.  Still, a stretch of three seasons from 2011-2013 averaging 54 wins will really drag down an overall win total.

No. 17: New York Mets – 79.98 wins per season

Cumulative Wins: 1522 

Peak: 97 wins, 2006 season

Valley: 66 wins, 2003 season

Strange to think the Mets have “met” (….) or surpassed 90 wins just as many times this century as the Rockies, but sit nine spots ahead of them on this overall wins list.  Like the Rockies, the Mets have failed to string together their relative success; those three 90-win season coming in 2000, 2006, and 2015, leaving fans with a “flash in the pan” feel.

No. 15 (tie): Minnesota Twins – 80.24 wins per season

Cumulative Wins: 1527

Peak: 96 wins, 2006

Valley: 59 wins, 2016

The Twins position here in the exact midpoint of these rankings is due to their success early on.  Buoyed by four 90+ win seasons in five years from 2002-2006, the Twins have had a harder time of it as of late.

No. 15 (tie): Seattle Mariners – 80.24 wins per season

Cumulative Wins: 1527

Peak: 116 wins, 2001

Valley: 61 wins, 2010

Success skewed early, much like the Twins, the Mariners are carried by virtue of averaging north of 98 wins (thank you, 2001) in the first four years of this century.  That success didn’t extend further though, as they now own the ignominious distinction as owner of MLB’s longest playoff drought.

No. 14: Chicago White Sox – 80.29 wins per season

Cumulative Wins: 1528 

Peak: 99 wins, 2005

Valley: 62 wins, 2018

With just one more win over 19 years than the Mariners and Twins, the White Sox are surely more focused on having exactly one more WS title over that period than the aforementioned.

No. 13: Toronto Blue Jays – 80.50 wins per season

Cumulative Wins: 1532

Peak: 93 wins, 2015 season

Valley: 67 wins, 2004 season

Ensconced in a daunting division, the Blue Jays have managed very nearly 81 wins per season over the last 19 years, no small feat to be sure.  That competitiveness aside, they have generally failed to surge past their stiff competition toward huge or sustained win totals; their 93-win peak is greater than the peaks of only Miami, Colorado, and San Diego. 

The Good

No. 12: Chicago Cubs – 80.92 wins per season

Cumulative Wins: 1540

Peak: 103 wins, 2016 season

Valley: 61 wins, 2012 season

Four years of averaging nearly 97 wins does a lot to help a team forget 15 years of less than 77 wins per season, especially if one of those 90+ win seasons results in a World Series Title.

No. 11: Texas Rangers – 80.97 wins per season

Cumulative Wins: 1541

Peak: 96 wins, 2011 season

Valley: 67 wins, 2014/18 seasons

The Rangers have one more regular season win than the Cubs in the past 19 years.  Most Ranger fans would lament the fact that that single win couldn’t have come in the postseason, when they were a single win (and at various points, a single strike) from a title.  For now, they settle for several memorable, if not bittersweet, postseason runs.

No. 10: Philadelphia Phillies – 81.76 wins per season

Cumulative Wins: 1556 

Peak: 102 wins, 2011 season

Valley: 63 wins, 2015 season

The Phillies won between 80-89 games for seven straight seasons, finally giving way to four straight years of 90+ and a World Series title to remind them of that very successful stretch.  Averaging just over 72 wins per season following 2011 highlights the unwillingness to rebuild following that stretch of success.

No. 9: Cleveland Indians: 82.92 wins per season

Cumulative Wins: 1578 wins

Peak: 102 wins, 2017 season

Valley: 65 wins, 2009 season

Another team that I might not have imagined to be so high, the Indians in fact surpassed the 90 win marker eight times to this point, three times of which came in the past three seasons.  In a vulnerable AL Central, they may well continue to rack up wins.

No. 8: San Francisco Giants: 84.02 wins per season

Cumulative Wins: 1599

Peak: 100 wins, 2003 season

Valley: 64 wins, 2017 season

Three World Series titles in five years render any positional standing of regular season wins moot.  Surprising to see the best regular season Giants team (simply by wins and losses) came so early as 2003 though.

No. 7: Oakland Athletics – 85.76 wins per season

Cumulative Wins: 1632 

Peak: 103 wins, 2002 season

Valley: 68 wins, 2015 season

It is an impressive feat simply to average close to 86 wins with a perpetually deficient payroll, the A’s have additionally fielded teams that collected 90+ wins nine times in these past 19 seasons.

The Best

No. 6: Atlanta Braves – 86.07 wins per season

Cumulative Wins: 1638

Peak: 101 wins, 2002/2003 seasons

Valley: 67 wins, 2015 season

Following seasons of 94 and 96 wins in 2012 and 2013, respectively, the Braves experienced a rare draught, averaging less than 72 wins the next four years. This past year their young core arrived slightly ahead of schedule, and the Braves figure to be back in the thick of it in the NL East.

No. 5: Los Angeles Angels – 86.70 wins per season

Cumulative Wins: 1650

Peak: 100 wins, 2008 season

Valley: 74 wins, 2016 season

Mike Scioscia is no longer at the helm in Anaheim, and while he couldn’t capitalize on Mike Trout’s formidable presence on his team, he did keep the Angels competitive for a considerable stretch.  From 2002 to 2009, the Angels averaged over 92 wins per season and were a familiar face in the playoffs.

No. 4: Los Angeles Dodgers – 88.02 wins per season

Cumulative Wins: 1675

Peak: 104 wins, 2017 season

Valley: 71 wins, 2005 season

The Dodgers have won 90+ games in each of the last six season, a precursor for their string of NL West titles. Additionally impressive, their 71 win valley is their only 70-79 loss season since before 2000. Coming off two WS losses, though, it feels as if this franchise is a strange combination of entitled yet desperate.

No. 3: Boston Red Sox: 89.75 wins per season

Cumulative Wins: 1708

Peak: 108 wins, 2018 season

Valley: 69 wins, 2012 season

In 19 seasons, the Red Sox boast twelve 90+ win campaign’s and, far more importantly, three World Series titles.  No longer are they to be felt bad for.

No. 2: St. Louis Cardinals – 90.43 wins per season

Cumulative Wins: 1721

Peak: 105 wins, 2004 season

Valley: 78 wins, 2007 season

Almost as impressive as the Cardinals (many) peaks this century is the dearth of their valley’s.  Their 78-win 2007 season is their solitary sub-80 win finish since 2000.  Their average is good for a .558 win percentage overall.

No. 1: New York Yankees: 93.69 wins per season

Cumulative Wins: 1783

Peak: 103 wins, 2002 season

Valley: 84 wins, 2014/2016 seasons

Given a .578 overall win percentage this century and a total of five 100+ win teams, it almost feels strange that the Yankees came away with *just* two WS titles (one of which came from a 87 win team).  Averaging well over 93 wins per season, the Yankees are more than 3 wins better per 162 games than the second place Cardinals.

Finally, attached is a quick chart of each teams win total by seasons. The penultimate row includes cumulative win totals (already provided) and the final row features overall win percentage, assuming nineteen 162 game seasons (meaning that percentage might be slightly off for teams that have played game 163’s).