History of Orioles 100-win seasons

Written by:

Zachary Bucklew

For the first time in 43 years, the Baltimore Orioles have won 100 games in an MLB season, 101 to be exact.

This is the sixth time in Orioles history that the club has won 100 games. But what happened the other five times this happened?

Let’s break down the other five seasons where the Orioles won 100 games and compare and contrast a bit.

1969 (109-53)

The 1969 season is not only the first time that the Orioles won 100 games but is actually the franchise record for most wins in a season.

Managed by Earl Weaver, the 1969 Orioles were a team that dominated all year and never backed down, as they went 65-31 in the first half of the season.

Led by the power bats of Boog Powell (37 home runs) and Frank Robinson (32 HR), the pitching of Mike Cullar (23-11, 2.38 ERA, 182 Ks) and Dave McNally (20-7, 3.22 ERA, 166 Ks) and the defense of Paul Blair, Brooks Robinson and Mark Belanger, the 1969 club was a complete team up and down.

This team swept the Minnesota Twins in the ALCS 3-0 behind home runs from Mark Belanger, Boog Powell, Paul Blair and Frank Robinson and also behind two complete games from Dave McNally and Jim Palmer. The O’s would lose the World Series to the New York Mets, 4-1, as they would win the first game of the series and none after.

Below are the award winners and votes on the 1969 Orioles:

Mike Cuellar – Co-AL CY Young winner, eighth in MVP voting
Dave McNally – Fourth in CY Young voting, 13th in MVP voting
Boog Powell – Second in MVP voting
Frank Robinson – Third in MVP voting
Paul Blair – 11th in MVP voting, Gold Glove winner
Brooks Robinson – Gold Glove winner
Mark Belanger – Gold Glove winner

1970 (108-54)

It took no time, as the 1970 Orioles decided that they too wanted to get into the action of 100+ wins. They had a more balance season, as they won 54 games in both the first and second half, but they did have an 11-game winning streak to end the season and had no losing streak longer than three.

The team was led by 1970 AL MVP Boog Powell (.962 OPS, 35 HR, 114 RBIs) and Brooks Robinson (168 hits, 31 doubles, 18 HR) on offense. The pitching staff had three 20-game winners in Jim Palmer (20-10, 2.71 ERA, 199 Ks), Mike Cuellar (24-8, 3.48 ERA, 190 Ks) and Dave McNally (24-9, 3.22 ERA, 185 Ks). The club even had a strong bullpen arm in Pete Richert (13 saves, 7-2, 1.98 ERA).

The Orioles played a familiar foe in the Twins in the ALCS and swept them once again behind the bat of Robinson (.583 average, seven hits, two RBIs) and Davey Johnson (two home runs). The pitching was led by complete games from McNally (three ER, five Ks) and Palmer (one ER, 12 Ks).

They would play the Cincinatti Reds in the World Series and win the series, 4-1, thanks to Robinson winning World Series MVP (1.238 OPS, two HR, six RBIs) and Paul Blair (.474 AVG, nine total hits, three RBIs) on offense.

It would be the second World Series victory for the Orioles in four years.

Below is a list of award winners and votes for the 1970 Orioles squad:

Boog Powell – AL MVP winner
Brooks Robinson – Seventh in MVP voting, Gold Glove winner, 1970 WS MVP
Frank Robinson – 10th in MVP voting
Mike Cuellar – 11th in MVP voting, fourth in Cy Young voting
Dave McNally – Second in Cy Young voting
Jim Palmer – Fifth in Cy Young voting
Davey Johnson – Gold Glove winner
Paul Blair- Gold Glove winner

1971 (101-57)

Why not go for the three-peat? For the third year in a row, the Orioles won 100+ games, as they won 101 in 1971.

Another season that was more first-half heavy, the Orioles won 55 first-half games and 46 second-half games and had another 11-game winning streak.

Led by the hot bats of Frank Robinson (28 HR, 99 RBIs, .894 OPS) and Merv Rettenmund (11 HR, 75 RBIs, 156 hits), the offense was the second best part of this team, as the pitching staff was elite.

The 1971 Orioles had four 20-game winners in Mike Cuellar (20-9, 3.08 ERA, 124 Ks), Pat Dobson (20-8, 2.90 ERA, 187 Ks), Jim Palmer (20-9, 2.68 ERA, 184 Ks) and Dave McNally (21-5, 2.89 ERA, 91 Ks).

The Orioles finally got to face a different opponent in the 1971 ALCS, as they faced the Oakland Athletics, but the result of a sweep was still the same. Behind Boog Powell (two HR) and Brooks Robinson (four hits, three RBIs) on offense and Mike Cuellar (CG, one ER) and Jim Palmer (CG, three ER, eight Ks), the Orioles were moving on to their third straight World Series. They would unfortunately lose the World Series in seven games against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Below is a list of award winners and votes for the 1971 Orioles team:

Frank Robinson – Third in MVP voting
Brooks Robinson – Fourth in MVP voting, Gold Glove winner
Dave McNally – 11th in MVP voting, fourth in Cy Young voting
Davey Johnson – Gold Glove winner
Mark Belanger – Gold Glove winner
Paul Blair – Gold Glove winner

1979 (102-57)

It would be another eight years before the Orioles would win 100+ games again, and we have some deja vu with this one. It was another season with a strong start, as the Orioles would win 59 games in the first half and 43 games in the second half.

This team would be led by different names than in previous years, as Ken Singleton (35 HR, .938 OPS, 111 RBIs) and Eddie Murray (25 HR, 99 RBIs, 179 hits) would carry the offense.

The pitching staff would be led by Cy Young winner Mike Flanagan (23-9, 3.08 ERA, 190 Ks) and bullpen arm Don Stanhouse (52 games, 7-3, 2.85 ERA, 21 saves).

The O’s would face the Angels in the ALCS and win the series 3-1 and would then face the Pirates in the World Series and once again lose the series in seven, as the Orioles blew a 3-1 lead.

Kiko Garcia (eight hits, six RBIs, 1.029 OPS) and Ken Singleton (.357 average, two RBIs, 10 hits) were standouts offensively. The pitching staff would see Scott McGregor (two games, 3.18 ERA, 17 innings, eight Ks) and Flanagan (three games, 3.00 ERA, 15 innings, 13 Ks) leading the charge.

Below is a list of award winners and votes for the 1979 Orioles club:

Ken Singleton – Second in MVP voting
Mike Flanagan – Sixth in MVP voting, AL CY Young winner
Eddie Murray – 11th in MVP voting
Jim Palmer – Gold Glove

1980 (100-62)

The last time the Orioles won 100 games before this season was in 1980, and they didn’t even make the postseason. The Orioles had a rough first half with only 42 wins but took over with 58 wins in the second half to hit 100 on the season.

The offense was led by Al Bumbry (.318 average, 205 hits, 33 SB, nine triples) and Eddie Murray (.300 average, 32 HR, 36 doubles). This was another multiple 20-game-winning season for Orioles pitching, as Scott McGregor (20-8, 3.32 ERA, 119 Ks) and Cy Young winner Steve Stone (25-7, 3.23 ERA, 149 Ks) carried the staff.

The Orioles came up three games short of the East Division, but we can celebrate the Yankees being swept by the Royals in the ALCS. Also, the Orioles were the second best team in baseball and would have been the top Wild Card with the new postseason format.

Below is a list of award winners and votes for the 1980 Orioles team:

Eddie Murray – Sixth in MVP voting
Steve Stone – Nineth in MVP voting, AL Cy Young winner
Al Bumbry – 13th in MVP voting
Scott McGregor – Sixth in Cy Young voting

Which Orioles 100-game-winning club was your favorite to watch? Let us know in the comments below! Make sure to follow The Baltimore Battery on Facebook, Twitter (X) and TikTok, and use the hashtag #baltimorebattery when sharing our content!

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