With the Minnesota Twins defeating the Kansas City Royals on Friday night, they joined the Los Angeles Dodgers, Houston Astros and New York Yankees in making MLB history as it marked the first time four different teams have won 100 games in the same season.
Perhaps the biggest surprise of that bunch is the Twins as they only won 78 games and missed the postseason a year ago. They have been powered by the long ball, as have all four of the 100-win teams considering they are the top four teams in home runs on the season.
The Dodgers, in particular, went into the 2019 campaign with high expectations. Although they struggled in some regard last season and won 92 games, so no one could have predicted they would be on the verge of setting the franchise record for wins.
Seemingly everything has gone right for the Dodgers this season, which is not only a testament to their talent and depth on the field, but also their coaching staff and front office for putting together a roster capable of winning 100-plus games.
After defeating the San Francisco Giants on Friday night, the Dodgers improved to 104-56 on the season. That tied the L.A. franchise record they set in 2017 and is one away from matching the overall franchise record of 105 wins set by the Brooklyn team in 1953.
Barring a collapse by the Astros this weekend, they will have home-field advantage throughout the World Series. The Dodgers are a game ahead of the Yankees for the second-best record while the Twins are firmly locked in the fourth spot.
The Dodgers and Yankees are also intertwined this year as having one of the most-watched ESPN Sunday Night Baseball broadcasts.
The Atlanta Braves lost to the N.Y. Mets on Friday, meaning the most wins they can finish with is 99, or else they could’ve helped extend the MLB record to five teams with 100 victories in the same season.
With so many dominant teams, it should make for an exciting month of October. Luckily for the Dodgers, they would only have to face one of the other 100-win teams if they reached the World Series.
