The modern era of Major League Baseball began in 1900, and while we've seen a slew of great teams in the century-plus since, we've also witnessed some historically dreadful campaigns.
Here we chronicle the 24 worst teams in MLB in the modern era based on the lowest winning percentage. Perhaps we should call it losing percentage?
1 of 24
1916 Philadelphia Athletics
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The 1916 Athletics have the worst winning percentage ever (.235) after going 36-117. They finished 54.5 games out of first place and had 24 fewer wins than any other team.
2 of 24
1935 Boston Braves
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The Boston Braves of 1935 went 38-115 (.248), 61.5 games back. They had a horrendous 7-31 record in one-run games. The team also included Babe Ruth in the final season of his career.
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The legendary 1962 Mets hold the record for the most losses, after going 40-120 (.250). Their pitching staff had four members with 17-plus losses.
4 of 24
1904 Washington Senators
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The Senators finished 38-113 (.252) and 55.5 games back. The entire team hit 10 home runs for the season.
5 of 24
1919 Philadelphia Athletics
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Three years after setting what's still the lowest winning percentage ever, the Athletics went 36-104 (.257). They were led by "ace" Rollie Naylor, who went went 5-18.
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The worst team in recent memory, the Tigers went 43-119 (.265). Despite their horrible record, Detroit still had a winning record in one-run games (19-18). The Tigers had only one regular starting pitcher who finished with an ERA below 5.00.
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The Pirates were 42-112 (.273). The team was particularly terrible vs. left-handed starters (7-26) and scored only 515 runs despite Ralph Kiner's 37 homers.
8 of 24
1909 Washington Senators
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Just five seasons after the Senators' worst year ever, they finished 42-110 (.276). The team scored only 382 runs.
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Following up a season in which they had 43 wins, the Phils were even worse in 1942, going 42-109 (.278). They finished 62.5 games back.
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The Red Sox went 43-111 (.279), finishing 64 games behind the Yankees. Ace Bob Weiland went 6-16. The team still had one great performance, from Dale Alexander who hit .372.
11 of 24
1939 St. Louis Browns
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The Browns had only two fewer losses than the Phillies, finishing 43-111 (.279). They were 18-59 at home.
12 of 24
1941 Philadelphia Phillies
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The Phillies finished 43-111 (.279). They had seven pitchers with double-digit losses.
13 of 24
1928 Philadelphia Phillies
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Finishing 43-109 (.283), the Phils had a team ERA of 5.61.
14 of 24
1915 Philadelphia Athletics
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The A's finished 43-109 (.283) and only 19-53 at home. Ace Weldon Wyckoff threw 20 complete games but finished with a 10-22 record.
15 of 24
1911 Boston Rustlers
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The Rustlers were 44-107 (.291), just one-half game behind the Browns. Ace Buster Brown finished the season with 18 losses.
16 of 24
1909 Boston Doves
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The Doves finished the season an eye-shattering 65.5 games back after going 45-108 (.294). Only one Doves hitter had more than two home runs, and they had two pitchers with more than 20 losses.
17 of 24
1911 St. Louis Browns
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The Browns weren't even the worst team in baseball during 1911, finishing with one more win than the Rustlers at 45-107 (.296).
18 of 24
1939 Philadelphia Phillies
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The 1939 season was another dreadful one for the Phillies, finishing 45-106 (.298). That put them 50.5 games back, with not a single pitcher posting a winning record.
19 of 24
1937 St. Louis Browns
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With a 46-108 record (.299), the Browns finished 56 games back. This came despite some strong offensive campaigns, including five players hitting over .300. However, the pitching let the offense down. Not a single pitcher came close to a winning record, and the staff finished with a 6.00 ERA.
20 of 24
1945 Philadelphia Phillies
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Three years after their worst season in franchise history, the Phillies went 46-108 (.299). Outfielder Vince DiMaggio (Joe's brother) had 19 homers, but no other hitter on the team had more than seven. The team also included Hall of Famer Jimmie Foxx in his final season.
21 of 24
1938 Philadelphia Phillies
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The 1938 Phils finished 45-105 (.300), led by Hugh Mulcahy's 20 losses.
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Just three years after their World Series championship, the Diamondbacks went 51-111 (.315). Incredibly, Randy Johnson still managed to finish second in the NL Cy Young voting after going 16-14 with a 2.60 ERA in 35 starts.
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The Astros' fire sale led them to a 55-111 (.315) record. They had only one starting pitcher (Bud Norris) with an ERA below 4.00.
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The O's finished 54-107 (.335) in 1988 in large part due to their awful pitching. The team finished with a 4.54 ERA. Of course, their 2018 counterpart was even worse, finishing with a 47-115 record (.290) and a team ERA of 5.19.