{"id":6458,"date":"2026-06-09T09:30:00","date_gmt":"2026-06-09T09:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/?p=2101"},"modified":"2026-06-08T16:46:53","modified_gmt":"2026-06-08T16:46:53","slug":"mlb_team_rankings_1980s_10_6","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/2026\/06\/09\/mlb_team_rankings_1980s_10_6\/","title":{"rendered":"1980s MLB Team Rankings Countdown: 10 through 6"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Welcome to the third countdown post in our series of MLB team rankings for the 1980s. As a reminder, the teams are ranked from #20 through #1 based on aggregate WAR162. For the 1980s (1980-1989), a total of 280 team-seasons were eligible, so the top 20 teams are a rather exclusive group &#8211; the top 7% for the decade. We&#8217;ll summarize each team, including portions of their dashboards, and explain how they attained their rankings. So, without further ado, here are the teams ranked #10 through #6.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Here&#8217;s the interactive dashboard at Tableau Public: <a href=\"https:\/\/public.tableau.com\/views\/Top20MLBTeams1980-1989\/Dashboard1?:language=en-US&amp;publish=yes&amp;:sid=&amp;:redirect=auth&amp;:display_count=n&amp;:origin=viz_share_link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">1980s Top 20 MLB Teams Dashboard<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-acb19303498ec8f9ae2c80eac11b522f\" style=\"color:#2a35ff\">#10: 1988 Oakland Athletics, 50.5 WAR162<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The 1988 Athletics cruised to the AL West title by 13 games over the Twins and then swept the Red Sox in four games to claim the AL pennant. Then they ran into an upstart Dodgers team that upset them in a five-game World Series.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"698\" height=\"184\" src=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-18.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6589\" srcset=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-18.png 698w, https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-18-300x79.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 698px) 100vw, 698px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The A&#8217;s boasted a strong, but not dominant offense in 1988. Their 800 runs scored ranked second to the Red Sox, and they placed 4th or better in BA, OBP, and OPS. The team&#8217;s 156 home runs were just two shy of the Blue Jays for the top AL spot. Oakland also had a talented mound staff, with the AL&#8217;s top ERA and 3rd-best WHIP, and easily led the AL with 64 saves.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"713\" height=\"416\" src=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-19.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6590\" srcset=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-19.png 713w, https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-19-300x175.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 713px) 100vw, 713px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/c\/cansejo01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Jose Canseco<\/a> posted some big offensive numbers to lead the team, bashing an AL-best 42 homers with 124 RBI while also stealing 40 bases. Canseco claimed AL MVP honors for his exploits. <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/h\/hendeda01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Dave Henderson<\/a> had a career year with a .304 BA, 24 homers, and 94 RBI, and <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/m\/mcgwima01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Mark McGwire<\/a> added 32 home runs and 99 RBI. <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/s\/stewada01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Dave Stewart<\/a> was the A&#8217;s top pitcher, recording 21 wins with a league-best  14 completed games, and <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/w\/welchbo01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Bob Welch<\/a> added 17 wins. <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/d\/davisst02.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Storm Davis<\/a> won 16, and closer <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/e\/eckerde01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Dennis Eckersley<\/a> topped the AL with 45 saves, finishing second in <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/y\/youngcy01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Cy Young<\/a> voting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-dcf4bd5e40acf35e962346824bf4924f\" style=\"color:#2a35ff\">#9: 1983 Detroit Tigers, 51.0 WAR162<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Tigers were a year away from dominating the AL, but were clearly on the way to the top in 1983. While they finished six games behind the Orioles, they were the better team based on WAR162.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"711\" height=\"184\" src=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-28.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6601\" srcset=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-28.png 711w, https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-28-300x78.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 711px) 100vw, 711px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Tigers&#8217; offense was very good, finishing a close 4th with 789 runs, and ranking third in BA and second in OPS on the season. Their 156 home runs ranked 4th, just 12 behind the AL-best Orioles. The Tigers&#8217; pitching was solid, placing 4th in ERA and 2nd in WHIP, benefiting from strong defense across multiple positions.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"708\" height=\"414\" src=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-21.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6592\" srcset=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-21.png 708w, https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-21-300x175.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 708px) 100vw, 708px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/w\/whitalo01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Lou Whitaker<\/a> helped ignite the Tigers&#8217; offense, batting .320 with 40 doubles, and also claimed a Gold Glove Award at second base. Center fielder <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/l\/lemonch01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Chet Lemon<\/a> flashed exceptional defense while stroking 24 homers, and Gold Glove shortstop <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/t\/trammal01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Alan Trammell<\/a> batted .319 with 30 stolen bases. Catcher <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/p\/parrila02.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Lance Parrish<\/a> also earned a Gold Glove, and stroked 27 homers with 114 RBI. <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/h\/herndla01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Larry Herndon<\/a> batted .302 with 20 homers to round out the team&#8217;s offense. <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/search\/search.fcgi?pid=morrija02,morris013jac,morris016jac&amp;search=Jack+Morris&amp;utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Jack Morris<\/a> was the ace on the mound, winning 20 games and leading the league in innings and strikeouts. After Morris, there was some drop-off, although <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/p\/petryda01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Dan Petry<\/a> won 19 games and <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/l\/lopezau01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Aurelio Lopez<\/a> was  effective as a late-inning reliever.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-a2caf705cef83f60ea40e8c35d21ed81\" style=\"color:#2a35ff\">#8: 1982 California Angels, 51.6 WAR162<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The 1982 Angels won the AL West title by three games over the Royals before losing a five-game ALCS to the Brewers, denying them a shot at their first World Series.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"711\" height=\"186\" src=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-22.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6593\" srcset=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-22.png 711w, https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-22-300x78.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 711px) 100vw, 711px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Angels featured a strong offense that accounted for 814 runs, second to Milwaukee. Their 186 home runs also ranked second, and they ranked 1st in OBP, 2nd in OPS, and 3rd in BA on the season. They also had solid pitching, trailing only the Tigers in ERA while leading the league in WHIP. <\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"711\" height=\"411\" src=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-23.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6594\" srcset=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-23.png 711w, https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-23-300x173.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 711px) 100vw, 711px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Third baseman <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/d\/decindo01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Doug DeCinces<\/a> had a career year, batting .301 with  30 homers, 97 RBI, 94 runs scored, and strong defense. <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/search\/search.fcgi?pid=downibr01,downin002bri&amp;search=Brian+Downing&amp;utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Brian Downing<\/a> batted .281 with 28 homers, and <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/l\/lynnfr01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Fred Lynn<\/a> batted  .299 with 21 home runs. <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/c\/carewro01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Rod Carew<\/a> (.319 BA, 88 runs) and <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/g\/grichbo01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Bobby Grich<\/a> (19 homers, 82 walks) helped round out the team&#8217;s offense. On the mound, <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/z\/zahnge01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Geoff Zahn<\/a> won 18 games while 21-year-old <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/w\/wittmi01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Mike Witt<\/a> posted an 8-5 record. <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/k\/kisonbr01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Bruce Kison<\/a> (10) and <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/f\/forscke01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Ken Forsch<\/a> (13) combined for 23 more wins.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-313c0b2081f8c282d167ed077ce4a62e\" style=\"color:#2a35ff\">#7: 1985 Toronto Blue Jays, 51.6 WAR162<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The 1985 Blue Jays won the franchise&#8217;s first AL East title, topping the Yankees by two games before falling to the Royals in a seven-game ALCS.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"705\" height=\"185\" src=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-24.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6595\" srcset=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-24.png 705w, https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-24-300x79.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 705px) 100vw, 705px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Toronto featured a good offense, scoring 759 runs, 4th in the 14-team American League. Their 144 stolen bases ranked second, as did their .269 team BA. The Jays ranked 4th in OPS and 5th in OBP for the season. Toronto had a very effective pitching staff, with an AL-best 3.31 ERA. They also led the league in WHIP and finished second with 47 saves.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"708\" height=\"416\" src=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-25.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6596\" srcset=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-25.png 708w, https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-25-300x176.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 708px) 100vw, 708px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Right fielder <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/b\/barfije01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Jesse Barfield<\/a> had a big season, batting .289 with 27 home runs and 22 steals, and providing excellent glove work. Shortstop <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/f\/fernato01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Tony Fernandez<\/a> batted .289 with 31 doubles, and <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/search\/search.fcgi?pid=bellge02,bellge01&amp;search=George+Bell&amp;utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">George Bell<\/a> swatted 28 homers with 95 RBI and 21 steals. <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/m\/mosebll01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Lloyd Moseby<\/a> (92 runs, 37 steals) and <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/m\/mullira01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Rance Mulliniks<\/a> (.383 OBP) also contributed offensively. On the mound, <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/s\/stiebda01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Dave Stieb<\/a> had a stellar campaign, winning 14 games with a league-best 2.48 ERA. <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/a\/alexado01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Doyle Alexander<\/a> posted a 17-10 record, and lefty <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/k\/keyji01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Jimmy Key<\/a> went 14-6 on the season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-377433c4d0c970264333d4c44385c0d1\" style=\"color:#2a35ff\">#6: 1985 New York Yankees, 52.1 WAR<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-black-color\">The <\/mark>1985 Yankees lost out by a scant two games to the Blue Jays in a competitive AL East race.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"703\" height=\"183\" src=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-26.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6597\" srcset=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-26.png 703w, https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-26-300x78.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 703px) 100vw, 703px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Yankees had a very potent offense, with their 839 runs easily topping the league. The team possessed both speed and power, leading the AL in stolen bases and placing 3rd in home runs. The New Yorkers ranked 3rd in BA and 2nd in both OBP and OPS, trailing only the Red Sox. Pitching was also effective, if not to the level of the offense. The Yankees ranked 3rd in ERA and 4th in WHIP for the 1985 campaign.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"708\" height=\"414\" src=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-27.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6598\" srcset=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-27.png 708w, https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/image-27-300x175.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 708px) 100vw, 708px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/h\/henderi01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Rickey Henderson<\/a> had a monster season for New York, scoring an AL-best 146 runs and leading the league with 80 stolen bases. He also batted  .319 with a .419 OBP to ignite the Yankees&#8217; offense. <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/m\/mattido01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Don Mattingly<\/a> (.324 BA, AL-best 48 doubles and 145 RBI) claimed the AL MVP award, and <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/r\/randowi01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Willie Randolph<\/a> (.382 OBP) provided additional offensive support. <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/g\/guidrro01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Ron Guidry<\/a> led the pitching staff with a 22-6 record, aided by a strong bullpen corps. <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/s\/shirlbo01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Bob Shirley<\/a> (2.64 ERA), Dave  Righetti (29 saves, 2.78 ERA), and <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.baseball-reference.com\/players\/f\/fishebr01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=visual-baseball.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-08_br\">Brian Fisher<\/a> (2.38 ERA, 14 saves) led an excellent Yankees bullpen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Summary<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That&#8217;s it for the third entry in our MLB Team Rankings for the 1980s decade! Stay tuned for the countdown from #5 to #1, arriving in a few days. As always, thanks for reading!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Welcome to the third countdown post in our series of MLB team rankings for the 1980s. As a reminder, the teams are ranked from #20 through #1 based on aggregate WAR162. For the 1980s (1980-1989), a total of 280 team-seasons were eligible, so the top 20 teams are a rather exclusive group &#8211; the top [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[51],"tags":[77,41,66,47,64],"class_list":["post-6458","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-dashboards","tag-1980s","tag-mlb-statistics","tag-rankings","tag-team-war","tag-war162"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>1980s MLB Team Rankings Countdown: 10 through 6 - Visual-Baseball<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"View a countdown through our MLB Team Rankings for the 1980s decade, with teams ranked 10 through 6 featured in this post\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/visual-baseball.com\/wordpress\/2026\/06\/09\/mlb_team_rankings_1980s_10_6\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"1980s MLB Team Rankings Countdown: 10 through 6 - 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