Friday, December 5, 2014

Dyansties and Droughts

Even though it's been a month since the World Series, the Royals' run to Game 7 and the Giants' third championship in five seasons have sparked a lot of articles regarding championships, expectations and whether or not the Giants should be considered a dynasty.  One of the more interesting ones I read suggested that the 2014 Royals should be celebrated as a once-in-a-generation team.  Which is true.  And not just because it was literally the first time some Royals fans had ever seen their team in the postseason.

You could actually use the same evidence to support both arguments.  Are the Giants a modern-day dynasty?  Absolutely.  Was the Royals' run special because of how unexpected it was?  Of course.  And it's because of the way sports are set up these days.

A lot was made about the fact that it's been 29 years since the Royals last won a championship, but if you think about it, that has to be the minimum drought for at least one team in each league (31 in the NFL).  So it should be celebrated.  Because it very might be the only time that some Kansas City Royals fans will ever see their team reach the World Series.

Only one team can win a championship each season.  That means it'll take at least 30 years for everybody to win one.  Even if you were to narrow it down to just finals appearances, it'll take 15 years to roll through every team in a conference (don't get me started on hockey's ridiculous 16-14 thing).  And that, of course, is assuming equal distribution, which we know is not the case.

That brings me back to the Giants.  The argument against them as a dynasty is that while they've won the World Series in every even year since 2010, they haven't even made the playoffs in the two odd years.  Well, I ask, would you rather be the Giants or the Tigers, who've reached the postseason every year since 2010, yet haven't won a championship and only reached the World Series once?  (Although, next year will be 31 for Detroit, so you've got to figure they're due.)  The Tigers most certainly are NOT a dynasty.  But three titles in five years?  That absolutely qualifies.  Especially since you can't lose in the playoffs if you don't make the playoffs.  (The two Giants franchises, combined, haven't been eliminated from the playoffs after they already started since 2007, but the New York version's titles come four years apart, so they don't qualify, either.)

Just like the San Francisco Giants, the Los Angeles Kings are in the midst of an every-other-year streak.  The Kings certainly have the makings of a dynasty.  Just like the Miami Heat had a dynasty during the four years LeBron was there and they made the NBA Finals every time.  The New England Patriots were a dynasty when they won three Super Bowls in four years a decade ago.  But it's not like the Patriots have stopped being a dynasty just because they haven't won the Super Bowl since 2004.  They still win their division every year and have won a couple AFC championships since then (and, of course, there was that 16-0 regular season).

Some would probably argue that the Patriots are no longer a dynasty because they haven't won in 10 years.  To those people, I say you have to realize the definition of "dynasty" has changed.  We're not going to see a team win four titles in five years like the 1996-2000 Yankees again.  What the Giants have done is the closest we're going to get.  Sure, somebody's eventually going to win consecutive championships again in one of the four major sports, but the fact that they haven't done so doesn't diminish what the Giants have done over the past five years.  And to judge them by the two non-championship years is just silly.

Speaking of non-championship years, the Chicago Cubs are at 108 straight and counting.  They haven't even been to the World Series since 1945, which was 70 seasons ago.  Just making it the World Series will truly be once-in-a-lifetime for every Cubs fan there is.  They've missed their turn at least three times, and they're still waiting for the chance to celebrate a title again.  When they finally do, it'll be a celebration like we've never seen before.

So, both teams that played in the 2014 World Series should be celebrated.  In this era of free agency with the goal of parity, the whole point is to give everyone an equal chance at winning the title.  Doing so three times in five years is quite an impressive feat.  (The funniest part is that, prior to 2010, the Giants had never won a title in San Francisco and it had been 56 years since their last win, in 1954, in New York.)

The system is designed to have each team have a chance for the championship every season, even though we know that's not going to happen.  And that's why the Kansas City Royals need to be celebrated, too.  It's the same reason we celebrated the Pirates last year.  Because the end of a championship drought is just as special.  Even if it doesn't result in a title.  Especially since, as much as you hope it's not, it truly might be the last time you ever get to see your team play for one.

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