Titans, Steelers, Saints Notch Key Divisional Wins | Football Outsiders In a crazy week full of upsets and surprises, it was Tennessee (who practically clinched a division title with a victory over the Colts), along with Pittsburgh and New Orleans (who gained ground in the wild-card standings with upset triumphs over Cleveland and Tampa Bay) who may have won the most. The FO staff tries to sort through the insanity.
However, there is no denying that they have been a successful club that shows profits every years, sells a lot of tickets and merchandise, and makes the postseason almost every year.
Winning in the regular season is much more indicative of a team’s true talent level because it is tested over a long sample size.
Playoff baseball involves a bit more randomness and fluky trends.
During regular season play, the Yankees have been outstanding since MLB’s latest expansion in 1998.
This amazing chart shows a different way to assess success (or failure) in baseball: run differential.
It’s often the most accurate way to determine whether a team is good or bad, and how good (or bad).
Since 1998, the Yankees have scored 3,166 more runs than they have allowed, which is frankly very impressive.
That’s almost 1,000 more runs than the second-placed team over the last 25 years, the Boston Red Sox.
And yes, the Yanks haven’t lifted the World Series trophy since 2009, but they were very successful in the 1998-2009 period with four Fall Classic victories and two losses.