When is the last time every ALDS and NLDS team won the World Series?

Only eight teams remain in the 2025 MLB postseason, with several of the surviving clubs all too familiar with October baseball. Four of the eight — the Detroit Tigers, Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Yankees, and Philadelphia Phillies — reached the playoffs last year, culminating in the Dodgers and Yankees meeting in the World Series.

Of those eight teams, how many have won the World Series before, and when did they last celebrate a championship? You might be surprised at how long it’s been since some of these organizations even appeared in the Fall Classic, much less brought a title home.

For the sake of ease, all teams are ranked alphabetically rather than chronologically. As the title indicates, this list only focuses on the aforementioned eight teams. We will not be discussing the four teams that were eliminated in the Wild Card Round.

Now, let’s go down memory lane, beginning with one of the more memorable World Series in recent memory.

Chicago Cubs: 2016

The key storyline entering the 2016 World Series was that one of two historic streaks would end. Either the Chicago Cubs would win their first championship since 1908, or the Cleveland Indians would end a 71-year title drought. As it turned out, Ben Zobrist and the Cubs overcame a 3-1 series deficit to bring the Commissioner’s Trophy back to the Windy City. 

Baseball fans, especially those in Chicago, got everything that they could have wished for. Game 7 is widely considered one of the greatest games in baseball history, beginning with Cubs outfielder Dexter Fowler’s leadoff home run and featuring the Cubs blowing a 7-4 eighth-inning lead. Light-hitting Cleveland outfielder Rajai Davis tied the game in the eighth, crushing a two-run homer off Cubs All-Star closer Aroldis Chapman. 

Then came an infamous 17-minute rain delay, Zobrist’s 10th-inning go-ahead double, and Mike Montgomery retiring Cleveland’s Coco Crisp on a groundout to clinch the victory. Trust us when we say that words can’t do the epic Game 7 justice. 

Detroit Tigers: 1984

The 1984 Detroit Tigers are a perfect example of a team dominating all season, from Opening Day through the final pitch of the World Series. Detroit started the season 35-5 and, while they eventually ran into some trouble midseason, finished with a franchise record 104 victories. The Padres, meanwhile, won 92 games en route to their first playoff appearance. 

Both teams kept things close, with four of the five games decided by three runs or fewer. Tigers shortstop Alan Trammell won World Series MVP honors after going 9-for-20 with two home runs, six RBIs, and a 1.300 OPS. Kirk Gibson, only four years away from a legendary walk-off homer in the 1988 World Series, went deep twice and added seven RBIs.

“You work together, you sweat together, you bleed together,” Tigers catcher Lance Parrish said during a 40th anniversary celebration in 2024. “You’re working to accomplish a goal, and we were able to do it in ’84. 

“It was very satisfying from that perspective,” Parrish continued, “but it was nice to be able to enjoy that kind of a year with that kind of success with these kind of guys, for me. I always feel extremely close to all of them when we get together.”

Los Angeles Dodgers: 2024

There’s not too much worth saying about the 2024 Dodgers, do we? Shohei Ohtani’s arrival proved to be the final piece needed on a Dodgers team that, while they’d won the 2020 World Series, hadn’t made it back to the Fall Classic despite consistently going all-out in free agency.

Ohtani became the first player in league history to record a 50-50 season, and All-Star sluggers Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman remained among the league’s premier players. It shouldn’t have surprised anyone that, from the moment Freeman ended Game 1 with a walk-off grand slam, the Dodgers handled the Yankees easily. Freeman earned World Series MVP, the latest accolade for a player we expect to be a first-ballot Hall of Famer.

No team has won consecutive World Series titles since the 1998-2000 Yankees. We’ll see whether the Dodgers do so this fall, though they’ll need to defeat the Philadelphia Phillies in the NLDS first.

Milwaukee Brewers: Never

As of 2025, the Milwaukee Brewers have only reached the World Series once, losing to the St. Louis Cardinals in seven games. We don’t blame you for being confused; the Brewers played in the American League from 1969 until 1998, when Major League Baseball expanded to 30 teams.

“It contributed to the history, baseball lure in this community in a way, you guys have already all said it today, in a way that probably couldn’t happen today,” former Brewers owner and longtime MLB commissioner Bud Selig said at a 2022 event honoring the ‘82 Brewers. Selig added that he was “still mad” that the team came up short, especially given the presence of Hall of Famers Robin Yount, Rollie Fingers, Paul Molitor, and Ted Simmons.

Things have gotten better in Milwaukee, though. Although the Brewers have gone over 40 years without winning a pennant, they’ve reached the playoffs seven times in eight years. Can they advance to the NLCS for the first time since 2018?

New York Yankees: 2009

It’s incredible to think that despite regularly fielding one of the sport’s highest payrolls, the Yankees haven’t won the World Series in nearly 20 years. Not only that, but the Yankees went without a pennant from 2010 through 2023 before making it back to the Fall Classic last season.

The 2009 Yankees took down the Phillies in six games, overcoming a Game 1 loss to reigning Cy Young winner Cliff Lee. That fall marked the end of an era, as it was the last time that the Core Four — shortstop Derek Jeter, catcher Jorge Posada, closer Mariano Rivera, and reliable left-handed starter Andy Pettitte — won a championship, the fifth for all but Posada, who ‘only’ won four. 

Jeter and Rivera are already in the Hall of Fame, and Pettitte might eventually join them. Veteran slugger Hideki Matsui earned World Series MVP honors in his final games with the Yankees, and the team remains beloved among a fanbase craving a 28th title.

Philadelphia Phillies: 2008

Somehow, it’s been almost 20 years since Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley, and Cole Hamels defeated the upstart Tampa Bay Rays in the 2008 World Series. Although bad weather repeatedly interrupted the series and even forced a mid-game postponement in Game 5, the Phillies’ veteran core refused to let anything get in their way.

Hamels’ overall numbers (1-0 with a 2.77 ERA and 8-4 K-BB ratio in 13 innings) don’t necessarily pop, especially considering that he won World Series MVP. However, it’s hard to imagine the Phillies, for as talented as their roster was, would have taken care of business in five games without the All-Star lefty.

Looking back, we’re surprised that starting pitcher Joe Blanton didn’t win MVP. Not only did Blanton hold the Rays to two runs over six innings in his lone start, but he became the first pitcher since 1974 to homer in the World Series — and it even marked his first career home run, too.

Seattle Mariners: Never

Of the eight teams still alive in the 2025 MLB postseason, the Mariners are the only ones to never even appear in the World Series. Seattle certainly tried, reaching the ALCS three times from 1995 to 2001. Unfortunately, they ran into a terrific Indians team in 1995 and the dynasty-era Yankees in the latter two seasons.

The FanDuel Sportsbook gave the Mariners +210 odds (a $100 bet would net a $310 payout) to win the American League entering the ALDS. Unsurprisingly, the Yankees (+210) rank higher, and we expect the two to battle in the ALCS yet again. First, though, the Mariners must defeat the No. 6-seeded Detroit Tigers.

“We’ve learned a ton of lessons over the course of the last four or five seasons, and so many players in that clubhouse have experienced the disappointment that we felt in a number of different seasons,” Mariners lead executive Jerry Dipoto said ahead of the ALDS. “And they didn’t let it happen.”

Toronto Blue Jays: 1993

Offense was the story of the 1993 World Series, with the Blue Jays notching 10-3 and 15-14 victories over the Phillies — and both games came in Philadelphia, no less. Paul Molitor rightfully earned World Series MVP honors, going 12-of-24 with two home runs, eight RBIs, two doubles, and an incredible 1.571 OPS.

However, the 1993 Fall Classic is best remembered for veteran outfielder Joe Carter’s three-run, walk-off home run in Game 6. Trailing 6-5 with one out, Carter crushed a 2-2 pitch from Phillies All-Star closer Mitch Williams over the left field wall. In hindsight, maybe we shouldn’t have been surprised consider that Williams posted a 3.54 ERA and a 60-44 K-BB ratio in 62 regular-season innings.

Then again, Williams only allowed three home runs, so maybe it was just an instance of postseason magic. The Blue Jays remain the only Canadian team to win the World Series, as the Montreal Expos never even won a pennant before moving to Washington, D.C., following the 2004 season.