Every team has bad stretches, but a few have endured slumps so long they became part of baseball history. A losing streak that reaches 15, 20, or more games means weeks without a single win, testing the patience of players, managers, and fans alike. So what is the longest losing streak in MLB history, and which teams have suffered the most painful skids of all time?
The all-time record dates back to the 19th century, while the modern-era mark has stood for more than 60 years. The list also includes a very recent entry, as one team matched a record that had stood for decades during a historically bad 2024 season.
The chart below ranks the longest losing streaks in modern MLB history, with the team, the year, and the length of each skid. Take a look, then we’ll get into the stories behind the slumps.
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The Longest Losing Streak in MLB History
The longest single-season losing streak in MLB history belongs to the 1889 Louisville Colonels, who lost 26 games in a row. That came in a very different era of baseball, during a 27-111 season, so it usually carries an asterisk in modern discussions. When fans talk about the record today, they almost always mean the Modern Era mark, set in 1900 or later, and that one has stood for more than six decades.
The Modern Record: 1961 Phillies
The longest losing streak of the Modern Era belongs to the 1961 Philadelphia Phillies, who dropped 23 games in a row from late July into August. The team was already buried in the standings when the skid began, and by the time it ended they had fallen 42 games out of first place. They finally snapped it on August 20 with a 7-4 win over the Milwaukee Braves, and remarkably that win started the team’s longest winning streak of the year. The Phillies finished a dismal 47-107, and no team in over 60 years has matched their futility.
The Record That Was Nearly Broken
For decades the 21-game mark set by the 1988 Baltimore Orioles stood as the American League record. That Orioles team did something especially painful: they lost their first 21 games of the season, not winning until late April. Then in 2024, the Chicago White Sox matched it. After already enduring a 14-game skid earlier in the year, they lost 21 straight over July and August, tying the AL record and falling just two short of the Phillies. That White Sox team went on to lose 121 games, the most by any team in a single season in MLB history.
The Rest of the List
Behind the top three, a cluster of teams sits at 20 and 19 losses, many of them from the early decades of the 20th century. The 1969 Montreal Expos lost 20 in their very first season as an expansion team, and the Philadelphia Athletics appear twice, in 1916 and 1943. More recently, the 2021 Orioles and 2005 Royals both reached 19, showing that even in the modern game, a historically bad stretch can still happen to a struggling club.
The Postseason Record
Losing streaks are not just a regular-season phenomenon. The longest postseason losing streak belongs to the Minnesota Twins, who lost 18 consecutive playoff games across nearly two decades before finally breaking through with a win in 2023. For a franchise that won the World Series twice, the streak became a strange and persistent source of frustration until they finally ended it.
Why These Streaks Happen
Long losing streaks usually require a perfect storm of bad pitching, a cold offense, and often a rebuilding or injury-depleted roster. Unlike a hot streak, where everything clicks, a losing skid tends to feed on itself, as pressure mounts and a young or struggling team presses harder with each defeat. The teams on this list were almost all having historically bad seasons overall, which is what separates a true record skid from the normal rough patches every team goes through. For the opposite side of this story, see our list of the longest MLB winning streak.
The Bottom Line
The longest losing streak in MLB history is the 1889 Louisville Colonels’ 26 games, with the 1961 Phillies’ 23 standing as the Modern Era record. The 1988 Orioles and 2024 White Sox share the next spot at 21, with the White Sox skid coming during the losingest season any team has ever had. Streaks like these are the low points of baseball history, but they are also a reminder of how hard the game can be, and how even a single win can feel like a triumph.