The 2011 Major League Baseball season is over. Once again, the Pittsburgh Pirates have another losing season to add to the franchise’s woes. They are known for having the most losing seasons in a row in MLB.
Here is an examination of other futile losing streaks in professional sports for the most losing seasons in a row:
Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates won 15 more games this season than in 2010. They still finished 2011 with a record of 72-90 after being in a tie for first place in the National League Central on July 25. The losing season kept the Pirates’ streak of 19 consecutive losing seasons going. They had three great years from 1990-1992 when they were in the National League Championship Series but have done nothing since.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers started out their first NFL season in 1976 by going 0-14. The team didn’t get any better when they had 14 straight losing seasons as an expansion team from 1983 to 1996. If not for three winning seasons in the first seven years of their history, Tampa Bay would have had 21 straight losing seasons in the NFL.
Kansas City/Sacramento Kings
The Sacramento Kings had 15 straight losing seasons in the NBA dating back to their Kansas City days in 1983. They were 38-44 in the 1983-1984 season and didn’t have a winning season again until the Kings finished 27-23 in the strike-shortened 1998-1999 NBA season. Although some teams have come close, the Kings still have the record for NBA futility on a regular basis.
Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are almost as bad as the Pirates when it comes to Major League Baseball. They had 14 losing seasons in a row from 1918 to 1931. They finished two games over .500 in 1932 before embarking on 16 more seasons of futility from 1933 to 1948. If not for the 1932 season, the Phillies would have a record 31 straight losing seasons.
Tulsa Shock
The Tulsa Shock are one of the worst teams in the WNBA. They set the record for the worst won-lost mark of any WNBA franchise at 3-31 when they won less than 10 percent of their games. The Shock were also the worst team in the WNBA a year ago at 6-28. The WNBA has only been around 15 years and usually expansion teams are the worst, but the Shock’s problem is that key players wouldn’t relocate to Tulsa from Detroit after the 2009 season.