Longest playoff losing streaks in sports, ever

Twins fans can rejoice. When Minnesota beat Toronto in Game 1 of the 2023 AL Wild Card Series, it ended an MLB-record 18-game playoff losing streak that extended back to 2004.

That wasn’t just the longest playoff losing streak in the Majors -- it was the longest streak in all four of the major professional sports leagues in North America. How does it stack up against the others? Glad you asked.

Here are the six longest streaks in baseball history:

1. Twins, 18 games
Years: 2004-2020

It’s almost hard to fathom how long the Twins’ playoff losing streak was. When they took the opening game of the ‘23 Wild Card Series against the Blue Jays, it ended a near two-decade winless streak in the postseason.

After winning the first game of the ALDS in 2004, the Twins lost 18 straight games that included series sweeps in 2006, 2009-10 and 2019-20 -- as well as the '17 AL Wild Card game. Here's a brief summary of what those 18 straight losses looked like.

Oct. 5, 2004. That was the last day the Twins won a game in the postseason prior to their losing streak starting, as Johan Santana and the Twins bullpen shut out the Yankees, 2-0. It was a big victory -- it gave the Twins a 1-0 lead in the ALDS, after being bounced by the Yankees the year before.

Instead, the losing started. The series was close, even though New York won the next three games. Game 2 went 12 innings, with the Yankees coming from behind in the bottom of the 12th. Game 4 went 11 innings, with the Yankees winning on a wild pitch.

Two years later, the Twins were swept by the A’s -- the only time in the "Moneyball" era that Oakland advanced past the Division Series.

The Yankees then swept the Twins (again) in 2009 and ‘10. The Twins didn’t reach the postseason for six whole years -- an entire roster cycle in the sporting world -- but it was more of the same when they made it back.

They lost to the Yankees in the 2017 Wild Card Game, despite taking a 3-0 lead in the top of the first.

Two years later, they entered the playoffs after winning 101 games and were swept by the Yankees. Again.

That led to a two-game sweep in the Wild Card Series by the Astros in 2020.

18 games over 16 years, with zero wins to show for it. In that time, Johan Santana retired, reached Hall of Fame eligibility, and fell off the ballot after not receiving enough support. Joe Mauer retired. Manager Ron Gardenhire retired. 10 different teams have won the World Series. The Red Sox broke an 86-year-old curse, and won 4 World Series titles (2004, 2007, 2013, 2018). The Cubs ended their 108-year drought in 2016.

The '23 Twins decided that it was time to end this streak. Backed by Pablo López -- a Venezuelan-born pitcher who idolized Santana -- and rookie Royce Lewis' multi-home run game, the Twins took the first game of the AL Wild Card Series against the Blue Jays.

2. Red Sox, 13
Years: 1986-1998

Naturally, Bill Buckner gets the blame for this one. Buckner was a solid Major League player (who could grow one heck of a mustache), but all anyone remembers is the ball that rolled through his legs in Game 6 of the 1986 World Series.

But that was just the start of the losing. The Sox lost Game 7 to lose the Series to the Mets -- you all know that -- and were then swept by the A’s in the 1988 ALCS, as Dennis Eckersley saved every game and the Red Sox bullpen struggled.

Two years later, the Red Sox had a rematch with the A’s, who once again swept Boston thanks to plenty of homers and solid work from series MVP Dave Stewart, who gave up only two runs in 16 innings of work.

The Sox returned to the postseason in 1995 to face the Cleveland Guardians/Indians. They nearly ended their streak in Game 1, as Tim Naehring gave Boston the lead in the top of the 11th, only to fall in the 13th. They then dropped the next two games, getting shut out in Game 3.

It took until 1998, when Boston again faced Cleveland and won Game 1 of the ALDS, 11-3, behind seven strong innings from Pedro Martínez and two home runs from Mo Vaughn. They would lose the next three games to lose the series, but at least the streak was over.

3. Phillies, 11
Years: 1915-77

It shouldn’t be a surprise that the Phillies are on this list. Philadelphia was one of the worst teams in sports history in the first half of the century. From 1918-1948, they had one winning season -- which explains why this streak lasted for so many decades.

The Phillies went to their first World Series in 1915 and defeated the Red Sox in Game 1, 3-1. Philadelphia then lost the next four games, but the margins were razor-thin. Boston won each of the following three games by a 2-1 score, and then won the clincher, 5-4, with three runs scoring in the final two innings on home runs by Duffy Lewis and Harry Hooper.

It would take the Phillies 35 more years before they played in the postseason again. This time, they faced the Yankees in the 1950 World Series. Once again, they could have easily stolen a game -- getting shut out 1-0 in the first game, losing 2-1 in 10 innings in the second, and going down 3-2 in the third.

The Phillies were back in the postseason 26 years later, only to be swept by the Reds in the 1976 NLCS. They lost the third and final game, 7-6, after giving up back-to-back home runs to start the bottom of the ninth, with Ken Griffey Sr. singling in the winning run.

The Phillies finally broke the streak the next year when they played the Dodgers in the NLCS. They entered the top of the ninth of Game 1 tied, 5-5, but a Mike Schmidt single and a balk gave them the win. They’d lose the next three games to lose the series, but the streak was over.

While the Twins have the longest games streak, the Phillies get the nod for the sheer number of years. Just imagine -- if you were born the day the Phillies won that first World Series game in 1915, you would have been 62 years old before you saw them win a postseason game -- and still never have seen them win a series.

4-T. Braves, 10
Years: 1958-91

This losing streak spanned two whole cities! After winning the 1957 World Series in seven games, the then-Milwaukee Braves were back in it the next year against the Yankees. It looked like they were set to become back-to-back champions after getting out to a 3-1 series lead, but New York stormed back to win the next three games. That included defeating Warren Spahn in the 10th inning in Game 6, forcing him to exit and take the loss after pitching 9 2/3 IP.

The Braves were then swept by the 1969 Miracle Mets in the NLCS, despite Hank Aaron hitting .357 with three home runs.

13 years later, Atlanta was swept in the 1982 NLCS by the Cardinals, as Darrell Porter took MVP honors behind 5-for-9 batting, and Braves pitchers posting a 6.04 ERA.

Finally, they ended their streak during their run to the World Series in 1991. After Tom Glavine took the loss in Game 1, Steve Avery pitched 8 1/3 shutout innings to defeat the Pirates, 1-0, and end the streak.

4-T. Royals, 10
Years: 1980-85

Given Philadelphia’s long run of futility, it’s only fitting that the Royals started their streak playing the Phillies. After tying the 1980 World Series at 2-2, Philadelphia won the next two games to win its first championship.

The Royals were then swept in the ALDS the next season by Oakland, mustering only two runs in the three-game series. Despite hitting just .182, Rickey Henderson outscored the Royals on his own, crossing the plate three times.

Three years later, Kansas City returned to the postseason, where the Tigers swept them in the ALCS. Once again, the KC bats were silenced, scoring only four runs and recording only two extra-base hits with no home runs.

Things didn’t look great the next season. Kansas City quickly fell behind Toronto, two games to none, in the 1985 ALCS. But the Royals ended their streak and started their run to their first World Series title in Game 3 when Steve Balboni broke a 5-5 tie in the bottom of the eighth with the game-winning RBI single. Because the Royals' streak was relatively short, much of their core from the 1980 team was still with the club in '85, including stars George Brett and Dan Quisenberry.

4-T. Orioles, 10
Years: 2014-present

Although the Orioles are known more for long playoff droughts than October losing streaks, they've managed to be tormented by both in near-equal measure over the past decade.

Baltimore ended a 15-year playoff drought in 2012; two years later, they won the AL East for the first time in 17 years, a real high note for a franchise that had endured such unbelievable lows in the meantime. But in a real "this is why we can't have nice things" turn of events, that was where the trouble started.

The Orioles stormed through their first-round matchup against the Tigers before running into the buzzsaw that was the 2014 Royals, who opened that postseason with an eight-game winning streak. In 2016, the Orioles returned to the postseason as a Wild Card team -- you may remember the 2016 AL Wild Card Game as the Zack Britton Game (so dubbed because the man in question didn't pitch.) That brought the losing streak to five in a row.

It'd be seven years before they returned to the postseason, and by then, the roster had been completely overhauled and a new energy had taken hold in Baltimore. But perhaps it's true that the more things change, the more they stay the same, because the new-look Orioles, despite everything, are still fighting this uphill battle. In their return to playoff baseball in 2023 -- as the 101-win AL East champs, no less -- they were swept in the Division Series by the Rangers. The same thing happened in 2024, when, relegated to a Wild Card berth, they were swept by the Royals (again), bringing the run to an even 10 consecutive postseason losses.

But it’s not just baseball teams that have long postseason losing streaks. Here are the five longest losing streaks for teams in the other three major pro sports.

1. Blackhawks (NHL), 16
Years: 1975-79

After finishing first in the Smythe division in 1975, the Blackhawks were swept in the postseason by a superpowered Canadiens team, which went on to win its second of three straight Stanley Cups. Chicago followed this up by getting swept in the two-game preliminary round to the Islanders the next season, losing in the quarterfinals to the Bruins in 1977, and getting swept by the Islanders again in '78. They ended their streak by beating the St. Louis Blues in the preliminary round in 1979.

2. (tie)Pistons (NBA), 14
Years: 2008-present

The Pistons had tied the Eastern Conference Finals at two games apiece with the Celtics in 2008, and were just two wins shy of reaching the NBA Finals. Instead, since their 106-102 loss in Game 5, the Pistons have yet to win again. They lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2008-09 and 2015-16, and the Milwaukee Bucks last season.

2. (tie) Kings (NHL), 14
Year: 1993-2001

With Captain Wayne Gretzky leading the way, the Kings reached their first Stanley Cup Finals in 1993. They even took a 1-0 series lead over the Canadiens. Unfortunately, they then lost the next four games, were swept by the Blues in 1997-98, were swept by the Red Wings in 1999-00, and were down 2-0 to Detroit the next season before coming back to win the series.

4. Knicks (NBA), 13
Years: 2002-2012

Of course the Knicks are on here -- how could they not! After losing their final two games of the series to the Raptors in 2002, the Knicks were swept by the Nets in 2004 and the Celtics in 2011 before finally winning two games against the Miami Heat in the 2012 playoffs.

5. (tie) Bobcats/Hornets (NBA), 12
Years: 2002-11

After losing the final two games of the Eastern Conference semifinals to the Nets in 2002, the Bobcats were swept by the Magic in 2010 and the Heat in 2014. After reverting back to the Hornets, they finally got a victory in Game 3 of the 2016 first round against Miami.

5. (tie) Grizzlies (NBA), 12
Years: 2004-11

The Grizzlies' first three postseason appearances were all sweeps: They were swept by the Spurs in 2004, the Suns the next year and the Mavericks the year after. Talk about a three-year run. It would take until 2011 for the Grizzlies to return to the postseason, but they advanced past the Spurs that season before falling to the Thunder in the semifinals.

5. (tie) Maple Leafs (NHL), 12
Years: 1979-83

After advancing past the preliminary round in 1979, the Maple Leafs were swept by the eventual champion Canadiens. They were then swept the next season in the preliminary round by the North Stars, had the Islanders do the same to them the year after, and after missing the postseason entirely in 1981-82, lost the first two games of the 1983 preliminary round series to the North Stars before ending their streak in Game 3.