MLB Teams Back from the Dead

Photo Credit: CC Composite Editor

It appears President Donald Trump has come through for the Cleveland Guardians in a very big way.

Detroit blew a 5-3 lead on Sunday and were beaten by the Braves, 6-5, while the Cleveland Guardians swept the Twins for their 10th straight win and have now won 15 of their past 16 games. The Tigers, on the other hand, have lost five straight and eight of the past nine.

The Guardians were 12.5 games behind the Tigers on Aug. 25. The Guardians now trail the Tigers by one game.

Both teams begin a critical three-game series in Cleveland on Tuesday.

The reason for the Guardians’ good fortune might stem from No. 47, the uniform number of Donald Trump.

The Tigers are 1-8 since members of the Tigers, including Dillon Dingler, Wenceel Perez, and Gleyber Torres performed the “Trump Dance” at Yankee Stadium on September 11th.

According to the Elias Sports Bureau, there have been five clubs to overcome a deficit of 12 1/2 or more games and finish in first place since the Divisional Era began in 1969.

Here is a roundup of other heroic comebacks since the 1969 “Miracle Mets” finished the season, 100–62, eight games ahead of the Cubs. On August 14, they were in third place, 10 games back.

Some claim a black cat which appeared in front of the Chicago Cubs dugout in a game against the New York Mets, September 9th, 1969, may have jinxed the Cubbies.

Photo Credit: MLB

1978

The Yankees were 14 games back (and in 4th place) in the AL East on July 19, but went 53-21 going forward, including a 20-3 stretch from late August to early September punctuated by the infamous “Boston Massacre,” a four-game sweep of the Red Sox at Fenway Park that moved New York into a tie for first.

The Yankees held a slim lead down the stretch, only for the. Red Sox to catch them on the last day of the season, forcing a Game 163 tiebreaker at Fenway Park to decide the division. The Yankees nipped the Red Sox, 5-4 in the one-game playoff at Fenway, thanks, in part, to a three-run homer by Bucky Dent over the Green Monster.

2012

The A’s were given for dead during the 2012 season when they found themselves 13 games out of first place in the AL West.

When July approached, the A’s caught fire, winning 16 of 18 and finishing the month with a 19-5 record, while first place Rangers went 9-14, leaving them just 3 1/2 games out as August approached. The A’s hot streak continued through August and September, winning nine straight at one point, but still trailed the Rangers by two games going into the season finale against Texas. The A’s won the first two games of the series to draw even with the Rangers. Down 5-1 in the final game of the series, the A’s erupted for 11 unanswered runs, winning 12-5 to takes the division and advance to the ALDS against the Detroit Tigers.

1995

The Mariners found themselves three games under .500 on August 2. The Angels had an 11-game lead in the West and a whopping 13 game lead on the Mariners. But when the calendar flipped to September, the Mariners caught fire, and went 19-8 that month and surged into first place as the Angels collapsed like a house of cards, which included two nine-game losing streaks down the stretch.

The Angels and Mariners found themselves tied at the end of the shortened season (144 games), setting the stage for a one-game tiebreaker in Seattle. Randy Johnson was practically unhittable, and the Mariners cruised to a 9-1 win to earn their first division crown.

2006

In May, the Twins needed a pair of binoculars to see first place their deficit was so large. Despite going 37-15 in June and July (winning 11 straight at one point) and surging from eight games under .500 to 19 games over, the Twins still sat 10 1/2 games behind the AL Central-leading Tigers on Aug. 7.

The Twins remained hot down the stretch before tying for the division lead on September 28th. They remained tied heading into the last day of the season before the Twins beat the White Sox, 5-1 while the Tigers fell to the Royals for their fifth straight loss, giving Minnesota the division crown.

1973

The terrible Mets were in last place on July 8 and trailed the first-place Cubs by 12 1/2 games in the NL East. They were also eight games under .500 as late as Sept. 1.

Enter Tug McGraw who issued a famous “Ya gotta believe” dictum.

And lo and behold, the Mets responded. New York went 20-8 in September/October and used a seven-game winning streak to leap over the Pirates and into first place with a 1 1/2-game lead. They went on to lose the next two games before bouncing back and winning the last two games of the season against the Cubs, 1 ½ games over the Cardinals to finish the season.

-Bill Lucey
WPLucey@gmail.com
September 21, 2025

Other Heroic Comebacks

914 Braves: 15 GB

1978 Yankees: 14 GB
3-T. 2012 A’s: 13 GB
3-T. 1995 Mariners: 13 GB
3-T. 1951 Giants: 13 GB

Source: MLB Press Office