Top 25 MLB pennant races of all time

7. The Phillies collapse, 1964

Almost every memorable pennant race in MLB history has some element of collapse to it. It’s just very improbable that two teams end up battling it out to the final day with winning streaks. Unfortunately, the losers are almost always remembered more than the winners.

The Philadelphia Phillies had taken control of the National League pennant race at the end of July and built their lead up to 7.5 games by August 20. These Phillies were a scrappy bunch, led by Dick Allen and Johnny Callison who combined for 60 home runs and 195 RBI.

On September 20, the Phillies were 90-60 with a 6.5 game lead. The pennant seemed to be in the bag with only 12 games left. What followed was one of the worst collapses in MLB history. The Phillies lost 10 straight games and handed the pennant to the St. Louis Cardinals. Philadelphia had not been to the World Series since 1950 and would not go back to the playoffs again until 1976.

The Cardinals went into the World Series as the proverbial “hot” team and proceeded to take down one of the last great New York Yankees teams of the 1950s and 1960s. The 1964 Series was a seven-game classic, and the Cardinals outscored the Yankees by a single run over the course of seven games.