The Los Angeles Dodgers Epic Collapse

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Ever since April, the Los Angeles Dodgers have been the kings of baseball, winning game after game. But ever since August 26th, their winning started to change. With a record of 91-36 and a 21 Game lead in the NL West, things started to change. The Dodgers would loose 16 of the next 17 games, including an 11 game losing streak.  Where does the Dodgers’ September collapse rank among other collapses?

2011 Boston Red Sox

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The Boston Red Sox were competing for first place in the division and had a 9 game lead over the Tampa Bay Rays for the Wild Card going into September. The Red Sox would end up losing 20 games in September, blowing their 9 game lead. Their most devastating loss was a 4-3 defeat at the hands of the Orioles on the last game of the season. Going into the bottom of the 9th, the Red Sox had a 2-1 lead with one strike remaining The Orioles would end up winning the game and ending Boston’s season.

2011 Atlanta Braves

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2011 was just an epic year of collapses. Similar to the Red Sox, the Atlanta Braves had a 9 game lead over the St. Louis Cardinals on September 6th. The Braves would eventually blow that lead, including ending the season with a 5 game losing streak, and they missed the postseason. Their counterpart, the Cardinals, would end up winning the 2011 World Series.

2007 New York Mets

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The 2007 Mets were coming off of a great 2006 campaign, winning the NL East, and they were the favorites to repeat. However, with a 7 game lead over the Philadelphia Phillies on September 12th, the Mets would end up blowing the division lead on the last day of the season. Ending the season losing 6 out of their last 7 games, including a three game sweep against the Phillies. What a tough way to end a season.

1978 Boston Red Sox

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The 1978 season will always be known as the “Boston Massacre.”  With a 7.5 game lead on the New York Yankees, the Yankees would go into Fenway Park and sweep the Red Sox. After the sweep, the Red Sox would loose 14 of their next 17 games. They turned it back around and won 8 straight to force a one game playoff with the Yankees, only to lose against their arch rival.

1969 Chicago Cubs

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The Cubs had a 9.5 game lead and a 98% win probably to make the postseason. Within the final six weeks, they would loose 14 of their final 17 games. The New York Mets would end up winning the division. Luckily, the Cubs’ World Series drought would come to an end in the 2016 season finally winning the World Series.

1995 California Angels

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From April to early August, the California Angels were having an amazing season. The Angels had an 11.5 game lead and were cruising to the finish line, but all of a sudden their luck would run out. The Angels would end up loosing 27 of their final 39 games and blow their 11.5 game lead. To top the collapse, the Angels would lose to Randy Johnson and his Mariners 9-1.

The Worse Collapse in Baseball History

1964 Philadelphia Phillies

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Known as the “Phold,” the Phillies had a 6.5 game lead with 12 games left in the season. How do you blow a 6.5 game lead with only 12 games left? Leave it to the Phillies to lose 10 straight games and blow their lead. The manager for the Phillies would start starting pitchers, Jim Bunning and Chris Short on short rest and still end up losing the game. In the end, the Phillies were tied with the Cincinnati Reds for second place, one game behind the St. Louis Cardinals.

Where do the Dodgers Rank?

Unlike the teams I mentioned earlier, the Dodgers already clinched a postseason spot. But with the playoffs getting closer, can the Dodgers regain what they had? We have seen this Dodger team go from being in the same conversation as the 2001 Seattle Mariners and the 1998 New York Yankees to a team that cannot win a game. Can the Dodgers reach the World Series? History seems to be against them.

The Dodgers suffered an 11-game losing streak in September. No team has had a losing streak longer than 9 games and won a World Series. That losing streak capped off a stretch where they only won once in 17 games. The 1953 Yankees lost 9 straight and still won the World Series, and there have been 7 teams that lost 7 in a row and still won it all.

Luckily for the Dodgers, they had a historic hot streak from June 7 through August 25. However, baseball is a game of momentum. The Dodgers do not have it. The Cleveland Indians, on the other hand, seem to peaking at the right time.