Historically Bad: The 2021 Diamondbacks Find Themselves On The Wrong Side Of History

In case you haven’t been paying attention, the Arizona Diamondbacks are having a very bad season, and in the worst possible ways. They’ve set the record for most consecutive road losses in the modern baseball era (1900 to present) at 23, and have had two separate stretches of double digit losing streaks. They’ve also won a measly 6 games in a 46 game stretch to go from 15-13 to 21-53 on the season. Based on the current trajectory, the Diamondbacks are on pace to not only exceed their franchise worst season record of 51-111 achieved in 2004, but also be among the worst finishing teams in baseball history. That’s hard to do.

To understand just how bad this Diamondbacks team is, we have to put it into historical context. Then we have to look at some of the bad luck that has exacerbated the poor performance of this underwhelming team.

Here’s how they stack up against some of the worst teams in baseball history:

• 1899 Cleveland Spiders (20-134)
  • The 1899 Cleveland Spiders are recognized by MLB as having the worst record in the history of Major League Baseball winning a mere 20 games, while losing 134 games in a 154 game season.
  • They went 11-101 on the road, and 9-33 at home. They’re road record of 101 losses will never be broken due to the fact that modern baseball scheduling structure makes teams play a maximum 81 games on the road and 81 at home for a 162 game schedule.
  • I draw a comparison between the 1899 Spiders, and the 2021 Diamondbacks because of the poorly built rosters.
  • The ownership of the Spiders not only failed to invest in the team, but just didn’t care about putting a winning roster together. They transferred the contract of future Hall of Fame players Cy Young, Jesse Burkett, and Bobby Wallace to the St. Louis Perfectos which was the sister franchise to the Cleveland Spiders. As a result, the Spiders became the punchline of a bad joke.
  • The Diamondbacks haven’t had their roster 100% healthy at any point of the current 2021 season, which has been used as an excuse for their poor play. The truth though is that every replacement player brought up from the farm system has a WAR of zero or below, and are batting at or below the Mendoza Line, and the pitchers being brought up have ERAs upwards of 5.00. So the 2021 Diamondbacks are built similarly poorly to the 1899 Cleveland Spiders.
  • The Diamondbacks also have a poor road record of 9-31, and a poor home record of 12-22. So record wise, they aren’t any poorer at this point in the season compared to how the Spiders finished their 1899 season.
  • The only bright spot for the Diamondbacks vs the Spiders right now is that their record currently sits at 21-53, so they avoid tying or breaking the 20-134 record set by the Spiders.
• 1889 Louisville Colonels (27-111)
  • Now we start talking about losing streaks and 100 loss seasons.
  • In 1889, the Louisville Colonels finished their season at 27-111 becoming the first team in major league history to reach 100 losses in a season. During that season, the Colonels also suffered 26 straight losses.
  • The Diamondbacks are on pace to lose well over 100 games this season. They’ve had two different double digit losing streaks this year, with their most recent streak of 17, a franchise record, getting snapped Monday night with a 5-1 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers. It ensured that the Diamondbacks wouldn’t reach the record set by the 1889 Colonels, but with the way the team is playing, it’s possible that the Diamondbacks will hit another bad stretch of games like the one they just had.
  • At 21-53, it seems unlikely they will finish below the Colonels record of 27-111, but it isn’t outside the realm of possibilities given that wins have been few and very far apart for this Diamondbacks team.
• 1875 Brooklyn Atlantics (2-42)
  • This one’s an interesting case considering that the Brooklyn Atlantics only played 44 games in 1875, but it’s a scary thing to think about a team only winning 2 games.
  • The Atlantics had a 31 game losing streak that season.
  • It’s important to note that the 31 game losing streak and 2-42 season isn’t officially recognized by MLB.
  • It should be weirdly comforting for the 2021 Diamondbacks since they will finish far better than the 2 win 1875 Brooklyn team, and that they were still a safe distance away from the longest losing streak ever. Even if it is an unofficially official record.
• 1962 New York Mets (40-120)
  • Now, we start getting into modern day baseball statistics.
  • The 1962 Mets team is probably the closest modern day comparison to the 2021 Diamondbacks.
  • The Mets had losing streaks of 17, 11, and 13 enroute to a 120 loss season in their inaugural year.
  • The Diamondbacks, as mentioned earlier, have had two different double digit losing streaks this year. A 13 game losing streak, which was snapped on Sunday May 30th when they beat the St. Louis Cardinals 9-2, and a 17 game losing streak that was snapped on Monday with a win against the Brewers 5-1.
  • One thing the Mets didn’t do in 1962 was lose 23 straight road games like the Diamondbacks have done in 2021. Those 23 straight losses are the most in the modern baseball era.
  • I hate to say it, but it’s still possible for the Diamondbacks to go on another bad double digit losing stretch, and tie or pass the 1962 Mets for most losses in the modern baseball era.
• 1961 Philadelphia Phillies (47-107)
  • Once again, we’re talking about bad losing streaks, and a 100 loss season.
  • The 1961 Phillies had a losing streak of 23 straight games (modern day baseball era) enroute to a 47-107 record. The Diamondbacks 17 game losing streak came dangerously close to the Phillies, and are also on pace to lose 100 games and possibly pass the 107 loss mark.
• 1988 Baltimore Orioles (54-107)
  • Finally, we get to the 1988 Baltimore Orioles.
  • The Orioles lost 21 games in a row to start the 1988 season, and finished with a record of 54-107.
  • Just like with the 1961 Phillies, the Diamondbacks 17 game losing streak came dangerously close to matching the longest streak in Orioles history. The Orioles matched the 1961 Phillies with 107 losses.
  • As I stated multiple times, the Diamondbacks are on pace to lose upwards of 100 games, and possibly be among the worst finishing teams in baseball history.

It’s possible that the 2021 Diamondbacks can avoid falling into a pit of despair, but a lot of things will have to go in their favor. The lineup will have to be 100% healthy. Missing in the lineup is Kole Calhoun, and Carson Kelly both of whom are on the injured list. Then they need their rotation pieced back together. That means getting Madison Bumgarner, Luke Weaver, and Taylor Widener back from the IL, and in top condition. Gallen is back off the IL, but still needs time to get back to form. Then, they need some Miracles such as the bullpen getting their act together, and being able to execute offensviley with runners in scoring position. Being able to do all of that is highly unlikely.

The Diamondbacks have two more games against the Brewers before an off-day on Thursday, and then they hit the road to face the Padres for three games, and the Cardinals for three games.

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