The Twins vs Yankees: is there a more lopsided matchup in sports?

[soxhop411]

We all know about the twins futility vs the yankees since the 2000’s (be it the playoffs or regular season) but did you know that this matchup may be one the most one sided matchups when looking historically? (All time record head to head)
All time the yankees record vs the twins is 1172-789 (which goes back to 1901 according to this)
if we go by yearly h2h records the last time the twins had a winning regular season record vs the yankees was 2001 in which they went 4-2 vs NY
In 2006 and 2007 they split the season series.
Outside of those years the yankees have won every season series vs the twins. Going back 30 years would include 1992 which is the only other year in which the twins won a regular season series vs the yankees.
want to go even deeper and go by “decades”?

You need go go all the way back to the 1960’s for the last time the twins had a winning record vs yankees over a 10 year span 90-87
The next winning “decade”?

The 1910's. Yes. You read that right. And this is not even including the post season futility of the Twins vs Yankees
I honestly cant think of a more lopsided (h2h matchup) in any sport.

 

[Jake Peavy's Demons]

What blows me away, if YES is to be believed with their 114-39 record since 2002 graphic, is that calculates to a .745 winning percentage.

You'd kinda expect a "modest" .667 winning percentage if NY won 2 games out of 3 every series, but no, it's a whopping .745! It's (annoyingly) impressive.

 

[SemperFidelisSox]

The Twins are 2-24 at Yankee Stadium since 2015.

Cincinatti is one of the worst teams in baseball and they managed to win two games in New York this season.

 

[Humphrey]

...and the team that replaced the Twins in DC, the current Texas Rangers, are what we might call "average bad": 128-227, .361at YS.

 

[soxhop411]

What blows me away, if YES is to be believed with their 114-39 record since 2002 graphic, is that calculates to a .745 winning percentage.

You'd kinda expect a "modest" .667 winning percentage if NY won 2 games out of 3 every series, but no, it's a whopping .745! It's (annoyingly) impressive.

Whats insane its that the twins have only won a season series twice in 30 years. You would think with baseball a team would “luck” into more than that. But nope.

 

[NYCSox]

It gets better. In those 30 years they made the playoffs nine times. Six times they were eliminated by NY going a cumulative 2-16 in those 18 games. And the two wins were by Johan Santana.

I would feel better about the chances of some tiny school beating Alabama at football then the Twins ever winning anything against NY. Hopefully this sweep will end their playoff chances so that we don't get to 2-19.

 

[Ale Xander]

Does Globetrotters v. Generals count? That’s more lopsided, I believe . . .

 

[curly2]

I'm 57 years ago and have been a big sports fan since I was a little kid. I've never seen anything like this.

It's one thing in college sports where there are perpetual doormats, but this is the major leagues. And the Twins have had some bad teams, but a lot of good ones, and some very good ones. They won 101 games in 2019 and got meekly swept.

And it seems to me they just HAND a lot of games to the Yankees.

 

[Murderer's Crow]

Not that there are better choices, but I genuinely fear the reverse of this curse happening during the playoffs. My sports belief is that all crazy streaks regress and being on the other side of this is going toooo suck. Look at the Red Sox and Yankees. One series win in 2004 and its a total shift in how the dynamic is perceived.

 

[Lose Remerswaal]

Christians vs. The Lions?

 

[NYCSox]

Not that there are better choices, but I genuinely fear the reverse of this curse happening during the playoffs. My sports belief is that all crazy streaks regress and being on the other side of this is going toooo suck. Look at the Red Sox and Yankees. One series win in 2004 and its a total shift in how the dynamic is perceived.

Johnson, Blyleven, Santana and Kaat could be the playoff rotation and they'd still lose.

 

[jon abbey]

Well, yeah, they’re all pretty old now.

 

[bankshot1]

pre-1972

US Olympic Hoopsters v the World

then the world allowed cheating

 

[Max Power]

It gets better. In those 30 years they made the playoffs nine times. Six times they were eliminated by NY going a cumulative 2-16 in those 18 games. And the two wins were by Johan Santana.

And the Twins had the lead in 10 of those 16 losses. The Twins could be beating the Yankees 10-0 with nobody on and 2 out in the 9th, and I'd still not believe they were actually going to win the game.

 

[cannonball 1729]

It gets better. In those 30 years they made the playoffs nine times. Six times they were eliminated by NY going a cumulative 2-16 in those 18 games. And the two wins were by Johan Santana.

I would feel better about the chances of some tiny school beating Alabama at football then the Twins ever winning anything against NY. Hopefully this sweep will end their playoff chances so that we don't get to 2-19.

Does Globetrotters v. Generals count? That’s more lopsided, I believe . . .

Well, the Generals also have two wins against the Globetrotters, so it's pretty close!

 

[Leather]

The most emblematic game that I have after moving here (which basically coincides with the worst of the slump) is Game 2 of the 2009 ALDS. I remember watching it live and you could 100% see Joe Nathan (an All Star that year!) coming completely unglued as he faced Teixera and A-Rod. He's licking his lips, blowing out his cheeks, rubbing his face... It was like he *knew* what was about to happen and turned it into a self-fulfilling prophecy.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3QnelU4RC1M

 

[Minneapolis Millers]

You guys are killing me with this. I’ve probably gone to 6 Twins-Yankees playoff games. All losses. I won’t buy single game regular season tickets to those games any more. What’s the point??

 

[Leather]

You guys are killing me with this. I’ve probably gone to 6 Twins-Yankees playoff games. All losses. I won’t buy single game regular season tickets to those games any more. What’s the point??

fwiw the Twins have a BOGO ticket offer with the code GAMETIME. Also seem discounted. Just got lower level front row seats for a Friday night game for $28 a pop. I mean…I know the stadium will be 1/2 full but still.

 

[SemperFidelisSox]

The Twins have a 9th inning lead. This is not a drill.

 

[Leather]

Undefeated during the reign of King Charles III!

 

[JOBU]

It’s a miracle.

 

[Brianish]

Does Globetrotters v. Generals count? That’s more lopsided, I believe . . .

Was coming here to post this, but even then a small part of me was like "Well, maybe..."

 

[InstaFace]

Tom Brady vs Buffalo Bills: 33 W, 3 L. Losses were G1 of 2003 (the famous 31-0), G3 in 2011, and G16 / W17 of 2014, where Brady only played the first half. One of those wins was last year on TB, so while playing for NE from 2001-2019, Brady/Belichick were 32-3.

 

[tims4wins]

Tom Brady vs Buffalo Bills: 33 W, 3 L. Losses were G1 of 2003 (the famous 31-0), G3 in 2011, and G16 / W17 of 2014, where Brady only played the first half. One of those wins was last year on TB, so while playing for NE from 2001-2019, Brady/Belichick were 32-3.

G3 in 2011 included a sizeable blown lead IIRC

Edit: 21-0. Yikes.

 

[Al Zarilla]

G3 in 2011 included a sizeable blown lead IIRC

Edit: 21-0. Yikes.

Bills didn't even have Josh Allen at QB yet! Maybe that's why Tom skedaddled...didn't want to face that beast twice a year the rest of his career.

 

[Conigliaro's Potential]

Christians vs. The Lions?

The Lions scored a bunch of early wins 18 and 19 centuries ago, but the Christians have come on pretty strong in recent years, methinks.

 

[Mueller's Twin Grannies]

The Twins were a small ball team for a lot of the early '00s, when they were constantly coming up against the Yankees in the postseason. The Yankees were juggernaut offenses a lot of the time and had lights out bullpen arms, which is really impossible to overcome in a short, or even long, series if you can't score runs in bunches. In one game, you can steal one with small ball, but unless you can match up better, you're going to get destroyed over multiple games. It didn't help that Joe Nathan was basically filling his drawers every time he went out to try to nail down the save. If anyone was ever intimidated by Aura and Mystique, it was closer with two first names.

To this day, he probably watches Major League because it's a comforting fantasy that a small market team from middle America could beat the Yankees in a playoff game/series.

 

[NYCSox]

What’s amusing is that was the same era when Leyland’s Tigers pretty much owned the MFYs in the playoffs. You’d have Todd Jones, Jose Valverde and Phil Coke closing out games with ease including at the Toilet.

 

[jon abbey]

Interestingly NY has done even better against KC since 1998:

View: https://twitter.com/codifybaseball/status/1610301740175486978?s=46&t=cU7bXCbsfIs3UurFXgs_hg

 

[EvilEmpire]

Huh. I would never have guessed that.

I suppose playoff games linger in the memory a bit more.

 

[jon abbey]

I suppose playoff games linger in the memory a bit more.

Absolutely, I am still pissed about that Brett HR off Gossage in the ALCS, and that was 42 years ago.

 

[NYCSox]

Other than a few years in the mid 2010s the Royals have been an awful team. The Twins don't have that excuse.

 

[wilked]

Other than a few years in the mid 2010s the Royals have been an awful team. The Twins don't have that excuse.

Right. An interesting study would be greatest difference in actual vs expected, using season end records or season run differential to determine expected.

 

[jon abbey]

MIN wins the season series for the first time since 2001, up 4-2 with one more tomorrow afternoon.

 

[Marciano490]

Jinx threads giveth, jinx threads taketh away.

 

[soxhop411]

A 2024 Update:
The answer is still a resounding no. This matchup discrepancy is absurd

View: https://twitter.com/aarongleeman/status/1798917562383884775?s=46

#MNTwins are now 44-123 (.263) vs. the Yankees since 2002.

Twins' winning percentage is .514 vs. all other teams since 2002.

All three Twins managers in that time have sub-.270 winning percentages vs. the Yankees.

.269 — Ron Gardenhire
.259 — Paul Molitor
.250 — Rocco Baldelli

 

[Brand Name]

Since there's the 2002 qualifier Gleeman looks at here, let's extrapolate some more. With a .718 W% in that span, only six total matchups H2H in that span have resulted in a higher W%, and all of them are interleague (bet you can't guess #1: Seattle over Cincinnati, at 19-5, .792 W%). The next highest, within intraleague play? It's the Dodgers over the Pirates, at 94-51 (.648 W%).

To me, that's fascinating given how the timing works out, in light of game scheduling this week:
-Dodgers were in Pittsburgh during this last Twins/Yankees series
-Twins will be in Pittsburgh next
-Los Angeles will visit New York this weekend

 

[The Gray Eagle]

Interestingly NY has done even better against KC since 1998:

View: https://twitter.com/codifybaseball/status/1610301740175486978?s=46&t=cU7bXCbsfIs3UurFXgs_hg

The Yankees were about to sweep the Royals, but KC scores 2 in the bottom of the 9th for the walk-off win.
It's like when the Generals beat the Globetrotters!
(This one time, barely, finally.)

 

[jon abbey]

The Yankees were about to sweep the Royals, but KC scores 2 in the bottom of the 9th for the walk-off win.
It's like when the Generals beat the Globetrotters!
(This one time, barely, finally.)

It has been the whole division so far this year. NY took 2 of 3 in CLE early on and then won their next 15 against AL Central opponents before losing just now, so 17-2 currently. They are 82-34 against the ALC since 2021.