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The best of the best: Ranking the 12 winningest teams in MLB history

By Bill Felber

NEW YORK - 1927. (L-R) Babe Ruth, outfielder, Miller Huggins, manager, and Lou Gehrig, first baseman, all of the New York Yankees, take a break at the batting cage before a game in Yankee Stadium before a game in the 1927 season. (Photo by Mark Rucker/Transcendental Graphics, Getty Images)
NEW YORK - 1927. (L-R) Babe Ruth, outfielder, Miller Huggins, manager, and Lou Gehrig, first baseman, all of the New York Yankees, take a break at the batting cage before a game in Yankee Stadium before a game in the 1927 season. (Photo by Mark Rucker/Transcendental Graphics, Getty Images) /
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Owner George Steinbrenner and manager Joe Torre celebrate  the Yankees’ sweep of the San Diego Padres in the 1998 World Series. TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP via Getty Images)
Owner George Steinbrenner and manager Joe Torre celebrate  the Yankees’ sweep of the San Diego Padres in the 1998 World Series. TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP via Getty Images) /

1998 New York Yankees, 114-48, .704

.700 Club rank: T-10

When baseball fans younger than 50 years old think of the great teams they have seen, the 1998 Yankees likely leap right to the front of the list.

Losing four of their first five games for manage Joe Torre, the Yanks did not reach first place until the final day of April. But once they got there, the AL East race was effectively over. From April 29 on, New York won 99 of its final 131 games, a .756 winning pace.

They opened up a double-digit division lead in early June, and formally clinched the division with a 7-5 victory over Boston on Sept. 9.

The Yankees averaged 5.96 runs per game while allowing just 4.05, both of those figures leading the American League. Every member of the starting lineup (plus reserve Shane Spencer) reached double figures in home runs, with Tino Martinez driving in 123 and Paul O’Neill 116.

The Yanks had a team OPS of .825.

On the mound, David Cone was 20-7 while Orlando Hernandez presented a 3.13 ERA and Mariano Rivera ran up 36 saves.

The postseason was a romp as expected. The Yanks polished off the Texas Rangers in three straight division series games, eliminated the Cleveland Indians in six games to win the ALCS, then swept the San Diego Padres in the World Series.

The National League champs never had a chance: New York outscored San Diego 26-13 and trailed for only three innings the entire series. New York’s infield tortured Padre pitchers. Catcher Jorge Posada batted .333, Martinez hit .385, second baseman Chuck Knoblach batted .375, and shortstop Derek Jeter hit .353.

It was the first of three straight World Series wins for the Yanks, making them the only team since the 1970s to claim the title thrice in succession.

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