The Yankees' MLB Record 27 World Series Wins

​Since the start of Major League Baseball (MLB) in 1876 (originally called the National League), only eight teams have managed to win the World Series on five or more occasions. Just two of those teams have claimed double-digit World Series victories, but even in this category, the New York Yankees stand apart from the competition. The St. Louis Cardinals have won 11 world championships, most recently in 2011, but this is less than half of the Yankees' MLB-leading 27 World Series titles.

The New York Yankees professional baseball franchise formed in 1903. Over more than 120 seasons, the franchise has recorded nearly 10,900 wins and made 59 playoff appearances. Yankees teams have made 41 World Series appearances, losing only 14 times.

New York's first few decades in MLB's American League produced no World Series titles or appearances. The team enjoyed several winning seasons, including a 92-59-4 regular season record in 1904, a 90-61-4 record in 1906, and a 92-59 record in 1920. Despite these strong results, the team never finished first in the American League and only managed three second-place finishes.

The Yankees broke their post-season drought in 1921 after winning 98 of 153 regular season games. The team established a 2-0 series lead over the crosstown rival New York Giants, but ultimately lost the best-of-nine series in eight games. The Yankees returned to the World Series the following year, but again fell to the Giants, this time in five games.

Baseball historians attribute New York's newfound success to the arrival of Babe Ruth, who played a key role in the team's World Series breakthrough in 1923. The Yankees unseated the Giants in six games. Ruth batted .368, driving in eight runs, hitting three home runs, and drawing eight walks. Ruth remained with the Yankees through the 1934 season. His tenure with the team resulted in three more World Series wins, which came in 1927, 1928, and 1932.

Ruth's departure did not hamper the Yankees' post-season results. In fact, the franchise won four consecutive world championships between 1936 and 1939, a league record at the time. After a subpar 1940 season, the Yankees made three more World Series appearances, winning two. Following a seven-game series victory over the rival Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947, the Yankees had won 11 championships, which would tie the Cardinals for the second-most all-time World Series wins.

But the Yankees had only just begun. Between 1949 and 1953, New York broke its own MLB record by reeling off five straight World Series wins. The victories came in different manners, ranging from a 4-0 sweep of the Philadelphia Phillies in 1950 to a come-from-behind, seven-game series win against the Dodgers in 1952. Between 1955 and 1964, the franchise appeared in nine of the league's championship series, winning four.

The Yankees subsequently entered a championship drought, though they managed to add back-to-back titles in 1977 and 1978. New York enjoyed a modern renaissance starting in 1996, beginning with a six-game series win over the Atlanta Braves. The Yankees posted three of the most dominant World Series victories in league history from 1998 through 2000, dropping just one game in the process. The team's most recent World Series win came in 2009, a six-game series victory over the Phillies.

Michael Fallon

Shop