Philadelphia Phillies knock Atlanta Braves out for MLB record of All-time wins – MLB News
After losing eight games on the trot, it had seemed improbable that the Philadelphia Phillies will set a record for most wins by a ballclub in a single season. It took them eight games to move from 98 to 99 wins for the season and have since not dropped
a game, finishing the season on a four-game winning streak.
Only the Phillies could have managed such a record after experiencing their worst losing-streak in the Majors. 102 is the number every Philadelphia fan will be proud of for many years to come.
This record, however, did not come good with the Atlanta Braves. Needing just one win to qualify for the post-season, the Braves were swept by the Phillies in the three-game series to bring an end to the aspirations of a second-consecutive play-off stint.
Leading the St. Louis Cardinals by 8.5 games in the first week of September, the Braves crashed out of the season in a not-so-fitting manner. They had dominated the Wild Card standings since June and losing it in the last game of the season does hurt.
Cardinals, on the contrary, overcame an 8.5 game lead for the second time in the history of MLB. They did it once in 1964 and went on to win the World Series. Cardinals will not be eyeing anything less this time.
It was a life-size occasion for Phillies’ manager Charlie Manuel as well. He needed just one win to become the most successful manager at this ballclub and his team did not let him down. After having experimented with a second-string side during a lifeless
eight-game stretch, Manuel fielded a regular line-up in the last four games and the result was not much different from what it had been in the entire season.
"I think that was very fitting," Manuel said. "We have a big season, but at the same time we still have a lot of work to do. Our ultimate goal, of course, is to go to the World Series and win. I think we're sitting in a pretty good position and it's up to
us to go get it."
Manuel had earlier expressed that he will not settle for anything less than a World Series title this year after having lost in the post-season five years running. How long this craving lasts will be imperative to the outcome.
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