The Pirates 2015 season was amazing with the Pirates ending up with the second best record in baseball with 98 Wins.
Here is a very short list of other teams that have had 98 wins or more and NOT made the playoffs.
1942 Dodgers 104
1993 Giants 103
1954 Yankees 103
1962 Dodgers 102
1961 Tigers 101
1980 Orioles 100
1978 Red Sox 99
1928 A’s 98
1962 Reds 98
1964 White Sox 98
1974 Reds 98
1985 Mets 98
The Pirates were on a high all season, reaching the playoffs for the third straight year after going 20 seasons without a winning season. They notched 98 victories in 2015, the second highest total in MLB and their highest win total since 1991. They did so by being remarkably consistent. The Pirates did not have a losing month this season, and had three winning streaks of at least seven games.
Unfortunately, 98 wins was only good enough for second place in the NL Central, which meant Pittsburgh was back in the wild-card game for the third straight season. Like 2014 when they ran into Madison Bumgarner, Pittsburgh squared off against the game’s hottest pitcher in Chicago’s Jake Arrieta. The results were unfortunately the same, as they were shutout and sent home early. We can’t imagine a lower low after such a great season.
