n8rngtd.topLast season, one of the longest postseason droughts in MLB finally came to an end after the Tigers reached the playoffs for the first time since 2014. Now, the Angels stand alone as the owners of the longest active playoff drought.
It's not looking likely that the Halos will be playing into October this season, either, so their league-leading streak of 10 straight seasons without a postseason berth could increase to 11. We'll take a look at some of the longest playoff droughts in the league history.
Longest Postseason Droughts in MLB History
Throughout MLB history, there have been some extremely long postseason droughts, though none of the recent stretches have been longer than that of the Montreal Expos, who's playoff drought eventually transferred to the Washington Nationals when the franchise relocated. From 1982 to 2011, the Expos/Nationals were held out of the postseason, a streak that lasted 29 years. Prior to 1969, the teams with the best record in American League and National League met in the World Series, without any expanded postseason play.
That drought remains the longest ever in MLB's divisional era, and we'll compare how it stacks up against some of the other lengthy droughts throughout league history, as well as since the introduction of the divisional era in 1969.
Longest Playoff Droughts in MLB History (All Time)
|
Team |
Length of Drought (seasons) |
Years Between Appearances |
|---|---|---|
|
St. Louis Browns |
41 |
1903 to 1943 |
|
Cleveland Guardians |
40 |
1955 to 1994 |
|
Oakland Athletics |
39 |
1932 to 1970 |
|
Chicago White Sox |
39 |
1920 to 1958 |
|
Chicago Cubs |
38 |
1946 to 1984 |
Longest Playoff Droughts in MLB's Divisional Era (Since 1969)
|
Team |
Length of Drought (seasons) |
Years Between Appearances |
|---|---|---|
|
Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals |
29 |
1982 to 2011 |
|
Kansas City Royals |
27 |
1986 to 2013 |
|
Texas Rangers |
26 |
1969 to 1995 |
|
Cleveland Guardians |
24 |
1969 to 1993 |
|
Milwaukee Brewers |
24 |
1983 to 2007 |
Longest Active Playoff Droughts in MLB
|
Team |
Length of Drought (seasons) |
Last Playoff Appearance |
|---|---|---|
|
Los Angeles Angels |
10 |
2014 |
|
Pittsburgh Pirates |
9 |
2015 |
|
Colorado Rockies |
6 |
2018 |
|
Washington Nationals |
5 |
2019 |
|
Chicago Cubs |
4 |
2020 |
|
Cincinnati Reds |
4 |
2020 |
|
Oakland Athletics |
4 |
2020 |
Of the teams with the longest active droughts, only the Cubs are currently on pace to reach the postseason. The Reds are still in the hunt for a wild card spot, but would need a tremendous month of September to snap their four-year long drought.