Pair of Teams Tied for MLB Season Most Wins
Rays Must Improve to Have a Chance
When the Tampa Bay Rays began the 2023 season with 13 wins, people began asking if they could set the MLB season most wins record. It’s still possible. But the Rays will need to turn it up another notch.
Chasing the MLB Season Most Wins Record
The 1906 Chicago Cubs finished the season with an impressive 116-36 record. That’s a whopping .763 winning percentage. The record stood for nearly 100 years until the 2001 Seattle Mariners also won 116 games.
Unlikely Contenders: MLB Season Most Wins
The MLB schedule had changed by then and Seattle played 162 games. The Mariners had a winning percentage of .716. Still impressive, but not quite as good as what the Cubs did.
Through June 4, the Tampa Bay Rays are winning at a .689 percentage, which is a bit behind the Mariners. If Tampa Bay were to continue to play at that percentage, the Rays would end up with 112 victories. Impressive, but not quite good enough.
To tie the Cubs and Seattle for the MLB season most wins record, the Rays are going to have to win nearly 74% of their final 100 games. That’s unlikely to happen, but then again, few people expected Tampa Bay to run off 13 straight wins to open the season.
The schedule isn’t very favorable for the Rays. If you look at the MLB standings by division, the AL East is the toughest division in baseball. There aren’t any weak teams. It was the only division in MLB to not have a team below .500 through June 4.
Team | Winning Percentage *Last Updated 6/8/23 | |
---|---|---|
Tampa Bay Rays | .703 | |
Seattle Mariners | .716 | |
Chicago Cubs | .763 | |
Texas Rangers | .656 |
Rangers Snapping at Tampa Bay Ankles
Even more unlikely than Tampa Bay challenging the MLB season most wins record is the Texas Rangers making a run at it. But the Rangers are only one game behind the Rays in the loss column. And Texas has the best run differential in Major League Baseball.
The Rangers lead the league in runs scored and are getting good pitching. Based on their run differential, the Rangers should be 42-16. That’s a .724 winning percentage. With their World Series odds currently at +1400, Texas offers some decent value. Tampa Bay is +625, which is pretty fair.
But if the Rays, or the Rangers for that matter, fail to get 116 wins this season, they can take a bit of solace. Neither the 1906 Cubs or 2001 Mariners won the World Series.
The Cubs were defeated by the White Sox 4-2 in the World Series. The Mariners lost to the New York Yankees in the American League Championship Series 4-1.
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