For the second time in three years, the Red Sox have waived the white flag at the trade deadline, which wouldn’t be remarkable if they hadn’t captured a checkered flag in between. In a season already marred by historic failure from a defending champion, by selling off its team, Boston is now all but assured of placing their 2013 World Series championship between book-end seasons at the bottom of the AL East.
First Shall Be Last, Last Shall Be First
# 1994 season was strike-shortened. *Won World Series. Note: If Blue Jays, who trail A.L. lead by two games, win the division, they will become 12th worst to first team. Red Sox would not be first WS champ to finish last in the following season; 1997 Marlins, who won wild card, finished last in 1998.
Data Source: Baseball-reference.com
Last year, the Red Sox became only the 11th team since 1901 to finish in first place one year after bringing up the rear of their division (and only the second to win the World Series in the process). Now, this season, they are poised to become only the eighth team to go in the opposite direction, as well as the first to sandwich a division title around two stints in the cellar. This roller coaster ride in the standings over the last few years probably has Red Sox Nation feeling a little dizzy, but it doesn’t capture the extent of Boston’s rags to riches Schizophrenia.
World Series Champs with Sub-.500 Records Before and After
Note: Green shading indicates the World Series championship year.
Data Source: Baseball-reference.com
Since 1903, 109 teams have been crowned World Series champions. Of that total, 15 finished below .500 before winning it all, while 17 had a losing record in the year after, but only four champs did both. Barring an unexpected turnaround, the Red Sox will become the fifth. What’s more, Boston’s current combined winning percentage of .435 in 2012 and 2014 ranks behind only the 1997 Marlins for the worst record by a World Series winner in the seasons before and after a championship.
Top-10 and Bottom-10 Before and After Records of World Series Champs
Data Source: Baseball-reference.com
The Red Sox magic number to avoid wresting total infamy from the 1997 Marlins is 17, or 32% of its remaining 53 games. That’s not the goal Boston was aiming for at the beginning of the season, but even with a depleted roster, the Red Sox should be able to avoid this shame. Then again, as the last three years have shown, predictions are not for the faint of heart in Red Sox Nation.
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