The Los Angeles Angels are staring at the kind of climb that doesn’t come with many guarantees. Coming off their first 100-loss season, they do at least have one thing going for them: history says a rapid rebound is possible, even if it’s far from common.
That’s the lesson pulled from a recent MLB.com look at 100-loss teams by Manny Randhawa, who examined what happened after those rough seasons in the Expansion Era, beginning in 1961 and leaving out shortened years like 1981, 1994, 1995 and 2020. The numbers are not especially forgiving. Since 1961, 96 teams have lost 100 or more games, and they averaged 68 wins the following season.
Only 14 of those 96 teams managed to finish above .500 the next year, a rate of 14.6%. Even fewer - just three teams, or 3.1% - made it all the way back to the playoffs.
The White Sox offered the freshest example of a turnaround. After dropping at least 100 games in back-to-back seasons, they won 84 games this year and reached the postseason.
Chicago opened by sweeping the Houston Astros in the Wild Card Series, then lost to the Cleveland Guardians in five games in the AL Divisional Series. In the process, they became the first franchise ever to make the playoffs after two straight 100-loss seasons, and they cleared the previous high-water mark for wins after consecutive 100-loss years, which had been 70.
Chicago’s path wasn’t built on one move alone. The blueprint included a deep farm system, a young manager, a few smart trades that hit, veteran additions with something left in the tank, an overlooked Japanese slugger who turned into a prize, and a blockbuster haul that paid off after Garrett Crochet was sent to the Boston Red Sox before the 2025 season. The return - second baseman Chase Meidroth, catcher Kyle Teel and outfielder Braden Montgomery - all became starters on this year’s playoff team.
That kind of model is the one that should catch the Angels’ attention. They’ve already taken a step in that direction by improving their farm system through an active trade deadline that brought in several well-regarded prospects. The managerial situation and the exact shape of the 2027 roster still remain TBD, but the arrival of the new Stan Kroenke-led ownership group is expected early next year, and that has at least nudged the organization toward a more hopeful place.
The historical picture also includes a few notable rebounds. The 1962 Philadelphia Phillies went from 47-107 to 81-80, which remains the biggest year-to-year win jump, at 34 games. The most recent team before Chicago to win at least 80 games after a 100-loss season was the Kansas City Royals, who went 86-76 in 2024 after finishing 56-106 in 2023.
The biggest single-season win total after a 100-loss year belongs to the 1967 Chicago Cubs and the 1989 Baltimore Orioles, both of whom won 87 games. The Orioles’ case came with its own slice of infamy, since they lost their first 21 games in 1988.
There’s also the 2017 Minnesota Twins, who followed a 59-103 season in 2016 with an 85-77 finish and a playoff berth. That puts the Angels in a familiar but unforgiving category: history says a comeback can happen, but it takes the right people, a little luck and a lot of things breaking in the same direction.
And Los Angeles does have one possible opening. The AL West is not exactly packed with monsters, and this year the Astros became the first team in MLB history to win a division title with a non-winning record, finishing 81-81.
In Other News...
Angels Still Have One Costly Problem To Fix This Winter
After a 100-loss season, the Angels enter the winter with one of the clearest needs in the sport: better infield help. Zach Neto and Nolan Schanuel give the club young pieces to build around, but the group around them still needs more steadiness, especially on the defensive side. For a team trying to stop the bleeding, the infield cannot be a place where development and survival are asked to overlap too much.
That is why the free-agent market has become so important for Los Angeles, with Jazz Chisholm Jr., Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Ramon Urias among the names being tied to the club as possible answers. Each brings a different kind of fit, from athletic upside to veteran reliability, and Urias in particular comes with the added wrinkle of an injury-shortened season that makes it harder to know how much weight to put on his recent numbers. The Angels do not need a splash so much as they need stability, and this winter will tell whether they are willing to buy it. [Read more 🡒]
Angels Gold Glove Drought Keeps Exposing A Bigger Roster Problem
Major League Baseballs Gold Glove finalists list offered another reminder of how thin the Angels defensive profile has become. Jos Soriano got the clubs lone nomination, a bright spot in a season when the group around him struggled to make routine plays and keep games tidy behind the pitching staff.
The larger issue is bigger than one award cycle. The Angels ranked near the bottom of the sport in outs above average and piled up 91 errors this season, continuing a pattern that has left them with few Gold Glove contenders in recent years. Many of the players who once gave the team at least some defensive representation are no longer in the organization, and the drought now feels like part of a broader roster problem. [Read more 🡒]
Jose Soriano Gives Angels Fans One More Reason To Revisit That Trade
Jose Soriano spent part of the 2026 season becoming a reminder of what the Angels once had in their rotation, and now he has added another layer to that conversation. The right-hander, dealt from Los Angeles to Toronto at the trade deadline, has been named one of the three American League finalists for the Rawlings Gold Glove Award at pitcher, a nod to the kind of athleticism and clean work on the mound that often gets overlooked when teams talk trade returns.
Sorianos case is built on more than reputation. He handled his fielding chances without an error across 32 starts, adding 21 assists along the way, and he also did a strong job controlling the running game with a caught-stealing rate well above the league average. Tanner Bibee and Jacob deGrom are the other finalists, leaving Soriano in distinguished company and giving Angels fans one more reason to revisit the deal that sent him north. [Read more 🡒]