It could be worse. That’s small consolation for Astros fans, but by winning their 42nd game last week, they avoided the inglorious distinction of suffering the most catastrophic single-season turnaround since 1901. That ignominy belongs to the 1915 Philadelphia Athletics, who endured a reversal of 56 games.
Despite avoiding the Athletics’ level of futility, the Astros are still a good bet to join the list of the 20 biggest collapses of the modern era. The top 20 includes six clubs, like the Astros, who finished in first place the previous season. On the bright side, every team on the list except one improved its fortunes the following year. The average team on the list followed this course:
1st Year 93-69
2nd Year 59-103 (-34)
3rd Year 71-91 (+12)
The prospect of a mere 12-game improvement next season shouldn’t inspire much confidence in Houston fans, but the Astros don’t quite resemble many of the worst teams on the list, either. Without further ado, here are some of the teams the Astros will likely join in the history books:
1915 Philadelphia Athletics, 43-109 (-56). After winning four pennants and three World Series in five years, the Athletics set the standard for misery. Connie Mack’s decision to dismantle his famed $100,000 infield as well as his pitching staff cemented the club in last place for seven straight seasons, five of them with at least 100 losses. The team was actually 7.5 games worse in 1916 at 36-117, the lowliest record in American League history.
1935 Boston Braves, 38-115 (-41). The worst turnaround in the National League since 1901 also produced the second-lowest winning percentage of the 20th century. The Braves were an anomaly, however: they finished 78-73 in 1934 and 71-83 in 1936, a 32.5-game rebound from 1935. Babe Ruth spent the last season of his career with the 1935 Braves. Signed as a publicity stunt, the 40-year-old Bambino had all he could stomach and hung ’em up after just 28 games.
1998 Florida Marlins, 54-108 (-38). The largest of the recent declines, the Marlins were gutted after their 1997 World Series victory. The departures of Charles Johnson, Jeff Conine, Bobby Bonilla, Gary Sheffield, Moises Alou, Devon White, Kevin Brown, Al Leiter, and Robb Nen virtually assured a last-place finish in 1998. The youthful Marlins improved by 10 games to 64-98 in 1999.
1915 Baltimore Terrapins, 47-107 (-37). The short-lived Federal League featured one of the worst turnarounds in baseball history, as the Terrapins fell from third place in 1914 to last place in 1915. The league and the team mercifully folded after the season.
1914 Cleveland Naps, 51-102 (-35.5). The 1914 Naps, as the Indians were then called, were a hapless team bottoming out. After a third-place finish in 1913, they fell to last in 1914 and improved by only 6.5 games to 57-95 and seventh place in 1915.
1921 Chicago White Sox, 62-92 (-34). When eight of your players are banned for life after throwing the World Series, your team tends to suffer. Surprisingly, the depleted White Sox recovered to a .500 record in 1922, a 15-game jump.
1934 Washington Senators, 66-86 (-33). The Senators put together a good run, finishing second in 1930, third in 1931 and 1932, and winning the pennant in 1933. They disintegrated in 1934 and improved by only half a game the next year.
1982 Cincinnati Reds, 61-101 (-32). The Reds finished with the best record in baseball in 1981, but failed to make the playoffs thanks to the strike-abbreviated split season. They clearly took it hard, as the last remnants of the Big Red Machine fell to pieces. The 1983 Reds improved by 13 games to 74-88, but it was 1990 before Cincinnati returned to the postseason.
1943 New York Giants, 55-98 (-30.5). War is hell, and so were the 1943 Giants. Everyone else had to play under the same conditions, though, so that’s no excuse. The Giants regained 11.5 games to reach 67-87 in 1944, but remained mired in mediocrity for the rest of the decade.
1992 Los Angeles Dodgers, 63-99 (-30). After finishing runner-up to the worst-to-first Braves in 1991, the Dodgers themselves fell to last place. They returned to .500 in 1993 with an 18-game resurgence. They then finished first in strike-cancelled 1994, made the playoffs in 1995 and 1996, and missed the postseason by just two games in 1997.
1932 St. Louis Cardinals, 72-82 (-29). The Cardinals won four pennants and two World Series in the six seasons prior to dismal 1932. They improved by 10.5 games to 82-71 in 1933, then won the World Series again in 1934. Between 1925 and 1949 the Cardinals finished in the second division only three times.
1989 Detroit Tigers, 59-103 (-29). The Tigers won the American League East in 1987, finished second in 1988, then self-destructed in 1989. They improved by 20 games to 79-83 in 1990, however, powered by Cecil Fielder’s 51 home runs. They’ve been pretty much mediocre or worse ever since.
1918 Chicago White Sox, 57-67 (-28). The White Sox finished second in 1916, won the World Series in 1917, then fell to sixth place in 1918. The only team on the list to rebound to first place the following season, they rose by 23 games to 88-52 in 1919 and might’ve won the World Series again if not for the fix. They finished second in 1920.
1993 Oakland Athletics, 68-94 (-28). After winning four division titles, three pennants, and one World Series in five years, the Athletics wore out their welcome at the top. A modest seven-game turnaround brought the club to 51-63 and second place in the pathetic American League West of strike-shortened 1994.
To encourage optimism, this is the course of the average team on the list of the 20 biggest improvements since 1901:
1st Year 69-93
2nd Year 59-103 (-10)
3rd Year 91-71 (+32)
The Astros surely didn’t finish 69-93 last season, but 59-103 should be pretty close to the mark this year, and 91-71 certainly would be nice in 2001. Last season the Diamondbacks made the biggest jump since 1901, rising 35 games from 65-97 to 100-62. Other recent teams to make a great leap forward include the 1989 Orioles (+32.5), the 1993 Giants (+31), and the 1991 Braves (+29).
If the Astros can make a comparable rise in 2001, they’ll copy the 1936 Braves as the only team to join the top 20 best turnarounds the season after making the top 20 worst turnarounds. Wish them luck.