2001 Mariners, 2016 Cubs hold steady in winningest team rankings

The 2001 Mariners remain atop the SI.com power rankings of the winningest teams in baseball history, while the 2016 Cubs also hold their previous spot. However, there is plenty of movement elsewhere, including from the 1998, '27 and '61 Yankees.

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All stats and records through Thursday’s MLB games

With the Cubs on pace for a historically significant number of wins this season, we have decided to track their progress against 10 of the winningest teams in major league history. This week’s check in comes at the 71-game mark (excluding ties). Seven games have been played by each team since last week’s initial standings. As a reminder, here are the 10 teams and where they finished their respective seasons:

Team	Record	PCT	Result
1906 Cubs	116–36	.763	Lost World Series
2001 Mariners	116–46	.716	Lost ALCS
1998 Yankees	114–48	.704	Won World Series
1954 Indians	111–43	.721	Lost World Series
1909 Pirates	110–42	.724	Won World Series
1927 Yankees	110–44	.714	Won World Series
1961 Yankees	109–53	.673	Won World Series
1969 Orioles	109–53	.673	Lost World Series
1975 Reds	108–54	.667	Won World Series
1986 Mets	108–54	.667	Won World Series

NOTE: Postseason results were not a factor in the selection or ranking of the teams.

1. 2001 Mariners

PREVIOUS: 1

RECORD: 54-17 (.761), +134 run differential

The Mariners went 4-3 on a road trip down the West Coast from Games 65 to 71, but all three of those losses were close. First, Seattle missed a chance to finish a three-game sweep of the Padres on June 17 with an 11-9 loss in San Diego. The next day they lost the opener of a four-game set in Oakland, 4-3, then dropped another two days later on a walk-off, three-run homer by the A’s Eric Chavez. Seattle salvaged the last game of that series, and the road trip, by winning another slugfest on June 21, beating Oakland 12-10 behind home runs in consecutive innings from Al Martin, Mike Cameron, David Bell and Bret Boone. Also of note that week: John Olerud hit for the cycle in the second game of the Padres series, becoming just the second player ever to hit for the cycle in both leagues..

2. 1969 Orioles

PREVIOUS: 3

RECORD: 52-19 (.732), +163

The Orioles played seven games in just five days, including doubleheaders on both June 20 and 22 in Cleveland. Baltimore split both of those twinbills but won the game in between, before coming home and taking the first two games of a three-game series with the Senators. In the first game against Washington, the O’s got eighth-inning home runs from Frank Robinson and Davey Johnson to win 5-3, and the next night they won on a three-run walk-off homer by Robinson.

3. 1998 Yankees

PREVIOUS: 2

RECORD: 52-19 (.732), +129

Echoing the ’69 Orioles, the Yankees split four games in Cleveland to open this stretch of their season, though these Indians, who were leading the AL Central, are a far more impressive bunch than the 1969 edition that wound up with 99 losses. New York then began a four-game home-and-away set against the Braves, splitting the first two at home before winning the initial game in Atlanta 10-6.

4. 1909 Pirates

PREVIOUS: 4

RECORD: 52-19 (.732), +94

The Pirates capped a July 5 doubleheader sweep against the Reds to start this seven-game stretch. Their only loss in that time came in the opener of a six-game series against the Giants at the Polo Grounds, which they immediately followed with three straight wins. Two of those came in another doubleheader, this one on July 9, that left Pittsburgh eight games in front in the National League race.

5. 1927 Yankees

PREVIOUS: 8

RECORD: 51-20 (.718), +186

New York won all seven of its games in this stretch, starting with the back-end of its doubleheader against the Athletics on June 26. They beat Philadelphia twice more on the 27th and 28th to earn a split of the six-game series. The Yankees then won three in a row against the Red Sox. Babe Ruth, who had left with an injury in the second game of the A’s series, returned to the lineup and went 4-for-5 in the opener against Boston. Lou Gehrig, meanwhile, homered in four straight games, starting with the finale of the Athletics series, and slugged an even 1.000 with five home runs in the New York’s seven-game winning streak.

6. 1906 Cubs

PREVIOUS: 5

RECORD: 50-21 (.704), +130

Just one month after acquiring Orval Overall from the Reds, the Cubs made another crucial addition to their pitching staff, landing 32-year-old veteran righty Jack Taylor from the Cardinals on July 1 for a pair of rookies, righty Fred Beebe and catcher Pete Noonan. Taylor is currently near the end of a record streak of complete games that will be snapped at 187 later this season. Though he has had several relief appearances sprinkled throughout, he has not been removed from a game he has started since 1901.

7. 1986 Mets

PREVIOUS: 7

RECORD: 50-21 (.703), +104

After the Mets won the rubber game of a series against the Cubs on June 22, the second-place Expos came to Shea Stadium and took two of three. A travel day and a rain-out in Chicago may have been just what New York needed, because it won both games at Wrigley Field and then crushed the rival Cardinals 7-0 in the opener in St. Louis, making them 5-0 at Busch Stadium on the season. Off-season addition Bob Ojeda scattered seven hits in the shutout of the fourth-place Cardinals, moving to 9-2 on the season and dropping the reigning National League champions 19 games back.

8. 1954 Indians

PREVIOUS: 6

RECORD: 49-22 (.690), +192

After losing 5-1 to the Philadelphia A’s in Game 65, the Indians welcomed the Yankees to Cleveland and were routed 11-0 and 11-9 in consecutive games. The Indians won the finale against New York to prevent their first four-game losing streak of the season but there was still bad news: starting pitcher Bob Lemon tore a muscle in his side in his first at-bat and had to come out of the game after just two innings of work. The rest of the starting pitchers then stepped up, with Art Houtteman and Mike Garcia domianting a rain-shortened two-game series against the Orioles in Baltimore, and Bob Feller and Early Wynn leading Cleveland to a doubleheader sweep of the Red Sox, giving the Indians four straight complete game victories from their vaunted starting pitching staff.

9. 2016 Cubs

PREVIOUS: 9

RECORD: 47-24 (.662), +162

The Cubs hadn’t dropped more than two straight all year before this week began, but they are currently in the midst of a four-game skid. They were swept by the Cardinals at Wrigley Field, scoring just eight runs in the process, then scored only two runs in losing the opener of a four-game set in Miami.To make matters worse, outfielder Dexter Fowler went on the disabled list with a sore hamstring, where he joins fellow outfielders Kyle Schwarber and Jorge Soler. The good news is that manager Joe Maddon has a flexible roster. Moving Kris Byrant into leftfield has created regular playing time for Javier Baez at third base, and Baez has responded well, hitting .296/.342/.535 since May 27.The Cubs are now on pace to win “just” 107 games, but there’s good reason to expect them to rebound from their current slump, particularly if Fowler can return on schedule a week from Sunday.

10. 1975 Reds

PREVIOUS: 11

RECORD: 44-27 (.620), +109

The most notable of the Reds’ five wins in this week came on June 21 in Houston, when they beat the Astros 7-6 in 14 innings despite blowing leads of 4-0 and, in the 10th inning, 6-4. After dropping the finale at the Astrodome, Cincinnati won the first two games of a three-game set in Atlanta. Johnny Bench drove in four runs in an 8-4 win in the opener, and Pat Darcy out-dueled Phil Niekro in the second game thanks to a three-run home run by Joe Morgan that accounted for all of the scoring.

11. 1961 yankees

PREVIOUS: 10

RECORD: 44-27 (.620), +82

Minnesota’s Camilo Pascual shut out New York on June 23, but the Bronx Bombers scored at least eight runs in the four games surrounding that one. The Yankees beat the Kansas City A’s 8-3 in the finale of that series, then rebounded from Pascual’s blanking to blast the Twins’ 10-7 and 8-4 and take the set at Metropolitan Stadium. From there it was on to Los Angeles, where the Yanks lost two of three to the expansion Angels at Wrigley Field (yes, that was the name) to end a season-long five-city,16-game road trip at 9-7.