The Colorado Rockies set an all-time MLB record on Sunday, becoming the first team in the league’s history to reach 50 losses in a single season. With the 5-3 loss to the New York Mets, the Rockies fell to a staggering 9-50 record on the season, marking a new benchmark for futility in professional baseball.
Now the first team in MLB history to hit 50 losses, the Rockies find themselves in an unprecedented position. Their 9-50 record has placed them at the bottom of modern baseball’s worst performance. The team has been swept 10 times in 20 series, tying with the 1962 Mets, the 1970 Milwaukee Brewers, and the 1994 Oakland Athletics for the most sweeps through 20 series in history.
With the loss, the Rockies have also set the record for the most games played without earning a 10th win, with only four teams in history – the 1985 Louisville Colonels, 1886 Washington Nationals, 1899 Cleveland Spiders, and the 1904 Washington Senators – having played more than 55 games before claiming their first 10 victories.
The Mets’ victory was powered by a trio of home runs from Pete Alonso, Francisco Lindor, and Juan Soto, who added a dinger to his stat sheet. Lindor’s go-ahead home run was part of a 26-game winning streak for the Mets when Lindor has homered, matching the Brooklyn Dodgers’ 29 consecutive wins during Carl Furillo’s home run streak from 1951 to 1953.
The Rockies’ misfortunes have reached a new level after firing manager Bud Black in May. With the season not getting any easier, the team now faces the Miami Marlins on Monday, with plans to welcome both the Mets and San Francisco Giants to Denver in the coming weeks.