Longest winning streaks in MLB history

Arguably more than any other sport, baseball is the one in which any team can beat any other on any given day, which is what makes this list of the longest winning streaks in MLB history so impressive.

As for who holds the record for the longest winning streak in MLB history, that honor belongs to the 1916 New York Giants (now the San Francisco Giants). However, the mark comes with a bit of controversy attached.

The MLB record books say those Giants won 26 games in a row from September 7, 1916, to September 30, 1916 (there were a few doubleheaders in there). However, John McGraw's group needed 27 games to do so.

That's because New York won 12 in a row, then tied the second game of a doubleheader against the Pittsburgh Pirates on September 18, and then won 14 in a row before finally losing to the Boston Braves.

If this were hockey, this would have been called a 27-game unbeaten streak. However, since MLB chose to replay games that ended in a tie instead of just accepting the outcome, it simply didn't count. The Giants and Pirates played another doubleheader the following day, with New York obviously taking both games, thus keeping the streak intact.

What's wild is that despite the 26-game winning streak, the Giants still only placed fourth in the National League standings at 86-66, finishing eight games back of the Brooklyn Robins.

As for the longest winning streak in American League history, the honor there goes to the franchise now known as the Cleveland Guardians, who won 22 straight in the summer of 2017 en route to a 102-60 season.

Longest winning streaks in MLB history

In addition to the marks set by the Giants and Cleveland, there have been five other winning streaks of 20 games or more throughout MLB history. Another two teams won 19 games in a row, while an additional five notched 18 consecutive victories.

Here's a quick look at the longest winning streaks in MLB history.

Stats courtesy of Baseball Reference.