Stats corner: Longest current World Series droughts by players and teams

The Dodgers are headed to the postseason again, looking to win their first World Series since 1988. Here’s a look at the last time each MLB team won the World Series.

Never

Texas Rangers (franchise began play in 1961)

Milwaukee Brewers (1969)

San Diego Padres (1969)

Washington Nationals (1969)

Seattle Mariners (1977)

Colorado Rockies (1993)

Tampa Bay Rays (1998)

1948

Cleveland Indians

1979

Pittsburgh Pirates

1983

Baltimore Orioles

1984

Detroit Tigers

1986

New York Mets

1988

Dodgers

1989

Oakland A’s

1990

Cincinnati Reds

1991

Minnesota Twins

1993

Toronto Blue Jays

1995

Atlanta Braves

2001

Arizona Diamondbacks

2002

Angels

2003

Miami Marlins

2005

Chicago White Sox

2008

Philadelphia Phillies

2009

New York Yankees

2011

St. Louis Cardinals

2014

San Francisco Giants

2015

Kansas City Royals

2016

Chicago Cubs

2017

Houston Astros

2018

Boston Red Sox

Active players who have appeared in the most regular-season games without playing in a World Series (through Thursday’s games):

Nick Markakis, Braves, 2,114

Edwin Encarnacion, Yankees, 1,916

Adam Jones, Diamondbacks, 1,821

Ryan Braun, Brewers, 1,726

Joey Votto, Reds, 1,715

Justin Upton, Angels, 1,697

Russell Martin, Dodgers, 1,692

Ryan Zimmerman, Nationals, 1,687

Asdrubal Cabrera, Nationals, 1,658

Shin-Soo Choo, Rangers, 1,616

The active reliever leader is the Astros’ Joe Smith, who has appeared in 781 regular-season games without pitching in a World Series. Among starting pitchers, the Astros’ Zach Greinke leads with 447 starts.

The all-time leader among position players is Rafael Palmeiro with 2,831 games.
Among relievers: Dan Plesac, 1,064
Among starting pitchers: Phil Niekro, 716