Mains: Burning up the track in September
From SABR member Rob Mains at Baseball Prospectus on September 1, 2016:
Lots of things happen in September. Kids who haven’t already gone back to school go back to school. We celebrate Labor Day by wearing white and seersucker for the last time. The autumnal equinox occurs. Retailers set up Halloween displays. Many financial crises commence. And baseball enters the final full month of the season, its stretch drive.
We all like a comeback. Usain Bolt’s 100 at Rio, the Music City Miracle, Texas A&M against Northern Iowa, Truman vs. Dewey. They’re all famous because of the improbable outcome. (Well, maybe not Bolt. But the rest.) What baseball teams have come on strongest in September?
To answer this, I selected every team from 1913 through 2015 that won at least two-thirds of their games in September (and, where appropriate, October.) I used two-thirds as my cutoff…well, because. That’s a pretty good month! It equates to a 108-54 season.
Since 1913, 210 teams have won two-thirds of their September/October games, from the 1913 Cubs, who did not win the pennant, to the 2015 Cubs, who did not win the pennant. (Just trolling you, Cubs fans! But it’s true.) They can be broken into three groups.
Read the full article here: http://www.baseballprospectus.com/article.php?articleid=30259
Originally published: September 1, 2016. Last Updated: September 1, 2016.