Skip to main content
Tuesday, November 10, 2026Nov 10
Subscribe
All Sections
Search
More

Wiedmer: If Braves can’t be best, maybe they can be worst

Atlanta Braves' Jeff Francoeur, left, is congratulated by interim manager Brian Snitker after scoring on a single by Nick Markakis during the first inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Dodgers, Sunday, June 5, 2016, in Los Angeles, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
Atlanta Braves' Jeff Francoeur, left, is congratulated by interim manager Brian Snitker after scoring on a single by Nick Markakis during the first inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Dodgers, Sunday, June 5, 2016, in Los Angeles, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill) Atlanta Braves' Jeff Francoeur, left, is congratulated by interim manager Brian Snitker after scoring on a single by Nick Markakis during the first inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Dodgers, Sunday, June 5, 2016, in Los Angeles, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

By Mark Wiedmer 5 min read

Everybody wants to cheer a winner. Everybody wants his or her team to be a champion.

But what if you’re an Atlanta Braves baseball fan this morning? Or a Minnesota Twins fan, which is the American League’s inept mirror image of our Bravos?

What then? Both teams entered Monday with identically wretched 16-40 records, tied for the worst in all of major league baseball. The Braves will stand 16-41 or 17-40 by the time you read this, following Monday’s late game at San Diego.

Either way, it’s all but impossible to imagine any scenario by which either squad could reach the playoffs.

But they could stage a race for worst. After all, NBA teams have been tanking for years to get the No. 1 draft pick. Heck, the Philadelphia 76ers – and George Washington and those guys surely wish they’d change their names out of respect to this country’s most important winners – have pretty much made it their mantra to finish last each season, which is why they’ll have the No. 1 pick in this month’s draft.