YEARS: 1953 & 1960
SIGNIFICANCE: The Browns move to Baltimore (become the Orioles) & the Senators relocate to Minnesota so DC gets new team
52 years after establishing themselves as the St. Louis Browns, the team was headed east to become the Baltimore Orioles after an eight-year stretch of losing seasons. The Browns long lived in the shadows of the city rivals St. Louis Cardinals, who won five World Titles during the Browns stay in St. Louis.
The Orioles franchise struggled early on, but by their fourth year of existence they had a 76-76 regular season record, a sign that things were changing for the better. By 1966, the Orioles, winners of at least 94 games in the previous three seasons, swept the Los Angeles Dodgers for the first World Series championship in franchise history. That began a nine-year high where the O’s made at least the ALCS in six of those seasons and claimed the 1970 WS as well.
Later in 1960, the Washington Senators moved to Minnesota to become the Twins. Similar to the Browns, the Senators went eight consecutive seasons with a losing record prior to their move to Minneapolis. Unlike the Orioles, however, the Twins found quick success in winning baseball games. Despite an under .500 debut season, Minnesota went on a streak of seven winning season in a span of nine years.
Notwithstanding their regular season success, the Twins struggled to win in October, failing to win in their three postseason appearances; 1965 (lost WS in Gm7), 1969 (swept in ALCS), and 1970 (swept in ALCS). It took them until 1987 to win a series, the World Series where they beat the Cardinals in seven games. Major League Baseball awarded Washington DC a “new” Senators team right after the other team’s move to Minnesota. The new Senators lasted until 1971, when they relocated and became the Texas Rangers. The nation’s capital wouldn’t have an MLB team until the Nationals arrival in 2005.