The MLB season is a long road, which inevitably leads to incredibly high highs but also some brutally low lows.
The best example of this perhaps comes with teams that seemed on the verge of making the playoffs before collapsing late in a season. Throughout MLB history, there have been many teams that played like playoff teams through the middle of the season only to blow a chance at playing October baseball that year.
There is a reason why the saying "it's a long season" applies to baseball, as the arduous schedule requires teams to keep their focus for a full six month's worth of games. Here's a look at nine teams who blew chances to make the playoffs with infamous collapses down the stretch.
MORE: Every MLB pitcher in the 3,000 strikeout club
9. San Diego Padres, 2010
Paul Chinn/The San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images
Playoff format: Eight teams, four in each league
Key players: Adrian Gonzalez, Miguel Tejada, Mat Latos, Jon Garland, Heath Bell
Building the lead: The 2010 San Diego Padres were not the most talented team, but they did surprise people when they ran with the lead in the NL West for most of the season. Led by a strong pitching staff and bullpen, the Padres had as much as a 6.5-game lead in the division in August, as it appeared that they would return to the playoffs for the first time since 2006.
The Collapse: San Diego's playoff chances were doomed at the end of August and beginning of September when the team lost 10-straight games to blow the division lead. That concluded with a four-game series against the San Francisco Giants, in which the Giants won three of four games to tie San Diego for the division lead.
While the Padres did take slight division leads over the Giants after, San Francisco took the lead for good within the last week of the season. When the two teams met for the final series, the Giants were up by two games and needed one win to clinch the division. San Diego won the first two, but San Francisco won the third, ending the Padres' season.
MORE: Who are the oldest players to compete in a game in MLB history?
8. Toronto Blue Jays, 1987
Gray Mortimore/Getty Images
Playoff format: Four teams, two in each league
Key players: George Bell, Fred McGriff, Tony Fernandez, Jimmy Key
Building the lead: In 1987, the Toronto Blue Jays had a solid start but got hot in June, winning 14 of 15 games to take a three-game lead in the AL East. Led by George Bell, whose 47 home runs and 134 RBIs helped him earn MVP honors, and Jimmy Key, who led the league with a 2.76 ERA, Toronto had one of the top offenses and top pitching staffs in all of baseball.
However, Toronto didn't keep that lead, instead falling behind in the division in July while they jockeyed with other teams for the top of the division. It appeared as Toronto got hot at the right time, winning seven-straight games to take a 3.5-game lead with seven games to play while taking three games from the second-place Detroit Tigers in the process.
The collapse: Beginning with the final game of a four-game set against the Tigers, Toronto lost seven-straight games to end the season. After taking three of four games against Detroit, the Blue Jays got swept by the Milwaukee Brewers to shrink the lead to just one game.
Toronto's final series of the year was in Detroit to essentially decide the division, and the Tigers swept the Blue Jays to cement the collapse. All three games were decided by one run, including a Tigers walk-off in Game 161 and a 1-0 shutout in Game 162.
MORE: 16 NFL stars you never knew were also drafted by MLB teams
7. Detroit Tigers, 2009
Jamie Squire/Getty Images
Playoff format: Eight teams, four in each league
Key players: Miguel Cabrera, Curtis Granderson, Magglio Ordonez, Justin Verlander,
Building the lead: The 2009 Detroit Tigers, led by Miguel Cabrera and Justin Verlander, were in the AL Central lead for most of the season. Verlander led the league in innings-pitched and wins, while Cabrera's 34 home runs and 103 RBIs set the tone for the offense.
At their height, the Tigers had a seven-game division lead on Sept. 6, as they were 14 games above .500.
The collapse: From Sept. 6 on, Detroit went 11-15 and allowed the Minnesota Twins to get back into the division race. Those two teams faced off six times in that stretch, with the Twins winning four, and Minnesota officially tying for the division lead in the final weekend of the regular season.
As both teams had the same record, the Tigers and Twins played a Game 163 in Minnesota to decide the division. The Twins walked off Detroit in that game, sending the Tigers home and advancing to the ALDS.
MORE: Where Cal Raleigh ranks for most home runs in a single MLB season
6. Boston Red Sox, 1978
Walter Iooss Jr./Sports Illustrated via Getty Images
Playoff format: Four teams, two in each league
Key players: Jim Rice, Fred Lynn, Carl Yastrzemski, Carlton Fisk, Dennis Eckersley
Building the lead: There was a point in 1978 where the Boston Red Sox's success was on a historic pace, as they were 30 games above .500 before the All-Star break. Jim Rice produced one of the best seasons in Red Sox history, leading the league in most categories by season's end and earning the AL MVP award.
At their height, the Red Sox had a 10-game lead in the AL East on July 8 and were on a pace to win over 110 games.
The collapse: Boston slowed down through the summer, as the division lead dropped to four games by the beginning of September. However, the heart of the collapse was when the New York Yankees swept the Red Sox in four games in September, outscoring Boston 42-9 in the series and earning a tie of the division lead.
While the Red Sox lost the lead entirely the following week, they did force a one-game playoff at home against New York after the season ended. However, Bucky Dent's infamous home run in that game sent the Red Sox packing at 99 wins.
MORE: Complete Red Sox-Yankees postseason history
5. Atlanta Braves, 2011
Scott Cunningham/Getty Images
Playoff format: Eight teams, four in each league
Key players: Chipper Jones, Freddie Freeman, Brian McCann, Tim Hudson, Craig Kimbrel
Building the lead: The Atlanta Braves were looking to build off of a wild card appearance in 2010, trying to take advantage of Chipper Jones' final few seasons. While they were never a real threat to take the NL East from the Philadelphia Phillies, Atlanta was in great position to make the NL Wild Card.
The Braves got hot in the middle of the season, getting to 25 games above .500 by the end of August. Atlanta had a balanced team with reliable options both on offense and on the pitching staff that seemed destine to return to the playoffs.
The collapse: The Braves struggled in September, going 9-18 in the final month of the season and allowing the St. Louis Cardinals to get back into the playoff race despite initially being 8.5 games back. This race came down to Game 162, when Atlanta lost to the Phillies in heartbreaking fashion while the Cardinals defeated the Houston Astros.
MORE: How many World Series have the Phillies won?
4. Boston Red Sox, 2011
Rob Carr/Getty Images
Playoff format: Eight teams, four in each league
Key players: Dustin Pedroia, David Ortiz, Jacoby Ellsbury, Jon Lester
Building the lead: After missing the playoffs a year prior, the 2011 Boston Red Sox had a loud offseason, trading for Adrian Gonzalez from the San Diego Padres and signing Carl Crawford to a huge contract. And while they got off to just a 2-10 start in their first 12 games, the Red Sox turned it on and took the lead in the AL East by getting 25 games above .500 by August.
The Collapse: Boston entered September with a half-game lead in the division and with a comfy lead in the AL Wild Card at nine games. They proceeded to go 8-20 in September, allowing the New York Yankees to win the division and Tampa Bay Rays to catch them in the wild card. That also included, arguably, the best final day in MLB regular season history, when Tampa Bay walked off the Yankees and Boston lost to the Baltimore Orioles to cement the collapse.
After the season, Boston fired manager Terry Francona and general manager Theo Epstein left to join the Chicago Cubs. The collapse, which is now known for the Red Sox propensity for fried chicken and beer, remains one of the worst in MLB history.
MORE: Most home runs in a single MLB season
3. New York Mets, 2007
Chris Trotman/Getty Images
Playoff format: Eight teams, four in each league
Key Players: Carlos Beltran, David Wright, Carlos Delgado, Jose Reyes, Tom Glavine
Building the lead: Coming off an NLCS appearance, the 2007 New York Mets were a star-studded team with championship aspirations. Carlos Beltran, David Wright and Jose Reyes led a strong lineup, while future hall-of-famer Tom Glavine was the leader of the pitching staff.
For most of the season, the Mets had the NL East lead, which reached as high as seven games a few times during the season. In a wide-open National League, New York was a World Series favorite.
The collapse: With 17 games left in the season, the Mets blew a seven-game division lead to the red-hot Philadelphia Phillies. New York went 5-11 to close out the season, which included a three-game sweep to the Phillies and several series losses to the lowly Washington Nationals and Florida Marlins.
Still, all the Mets needed to do to make the playoffs was win the last game of the year against the Marlins. However, Glavine allowed seven runs in the first inning, ending New York's chances before they even got a chance to bat.
MORE: Who are MLB's 50-50 club members?
2. New York Mets, 2025
Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images
Playoff format: Twelve teams, six in each league
Key players: Juan Soto, Francisco Lindor, Pete Alonso
Building the lead: Coming off a surprise appearance in the 2024 NLCS, the 2025 New York Mets made a splash in the offseason by adding Juan Soto to the biggest contract in MLB history. With Soto on the team, the expectation was for the Mets to at least return to the final four and, potentially, win the World Series.
The Mets got off to a hot start, riding strong pitching to an MLB-best 45-24 record by the middle of July despite Soto starting slowly. Pete Alonso, who re-signed in the offseason, was the team's best hitter early in the season, while Francisco Lindor made the All-Star team for the first time as a Met.
The collapse: Over the final 93 games, New York went 38-55, in large part due to pitching regression and injuries. While Soto heated up to produce 43 home runs and 105 RBIs, leading a strong offense, the Mets pitching failed to keep up even though the team added reinforcements at the trade deadline. The Mets finished the year 83-79, losing out on the final NL wild card spot to the Cincinnati Reds, who had the same record but won the tiebreaker.
MORE: The list of most home runs ever hit before the MLB All-Star break
1. California Angels, 1995
J.D. Cuban /Allsport
Playoff format: Eight teams, four in each league
Key players: Tim Salmon, Jim Edmonds, Garrett Anderson, Chuck Finley
Building the lead: Following the 1994 strike, the California Angels looked primed to end a decade-long playoff drought. California had a strong offense, as seven players in the lineup had an OPS over .800, including Tim Salmon's 1.024 number. From July 14 to Aug. 1, the Angels grew their division lead from one game to 11 games, and they had a double-digit division lead for over two weeks.
The Collapse: California blew an 11-game division lead over the course of the final two months, as the team went 14-28 in the final 42 games. It was such a steep fall that on Sept. 20, just over two months removed from being up 10.5 games, the Angels were tied with the Seattle Mariners for the AL West division lead.
As California struggled, Seattle was red hot and took the division lead for the final few weeks. Still, though, the Angels won their final five games to force a one-game playoff with the Mariners, but California lost 9-1 in Seattle to be end their season.
MORE: Most home runs in an MLB Game, from Lou Gehrig to Kyle Schwarber