Written by Mark Bailey
The “magic number” in baseball provides a snapshot of how close a team is to securing a playoff berth or division title. It’s a combination of the first-place team’s wins and the second-place team’s losses. The term gained traction in a 1947 Washington Post article during a pennant race between the Yankees and the Red Sox.
POINTS
- The magic number in baseball is used to discover how close teams are to clinching a playoff spot or division title and was first recorded on Sept. 12, 1947.
- The magic number works by keeping track of the combination of games a first-place team must win, and the second-place team must lose for the team in the first place to win the regular season championship.
- To calculate the magic number, you use this formula: games in a season plus one, minus wins, minus losses by the second-place team.
- A team can reach its magic number by winning as many games as their magic number or combining their wins with losses from the second-place team until they reach that same amount.
What is magic number in baseball?
The magic number in baseball for a team to clinch a playoff spot is determined by a combination of wins and losses. For example, if a team has a magic number of 10, their magic number would decrease by one each time they won a game. Their magic number would also decrease by one every time their closest competitor lost a game. When the magic number for a team reaches zero, the squad automatically clinches a spot in the playoffs.
When was magic number first recorded?
The magic number was first recorded on Sept. 12, 1947, in a Washington Post newspaper article. The New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox were fighting for the American League pennant, and the report stated: “The Yankees reduced the magic number to four. That is the combination of games the Yankees must win, or the Red Sox must lose to ensure the flag for the Yankees.”
The Yankees won their 15th pennant and finished with a record of 97–57, 12 games ahead of the Detroit Tigers, which rallied down the stretch to overtake the Red Sox for second place.
How does magic number work in baseball?
The magic number works in baseball by keeping track of the combination of games a first-place team must win and the second-place team must lose for the team in the first place to win the regular season championship. The team in first place clinches at least a tie for the title when their magic number is one and wins the regular season crown once it reaches zero.
How is magic number calculated in baseball?
The magic number is calculated in baseball using this formula: games in a season plus one, minus wins, minus losses by the second-place team.
How to calculate the magic number to win a division
To calculate the magic number to win a division title, you must use this formula: games in a season plus one, minus wins, minus losses by the second-place team.
For example, if a league plays 40 regular-season games, the formula would be 41 – wins – losses by the second-place team. Thus, if Team A is 22-8 with ten games remaining and Team B, the second-place team, is 15-15, the magic number for Team A could be computed as follows: 41 – 22 – 15 = 4.
Therefore, Team A has a magic number of four with ten games remaining and will clinch the division title with a combination of wins by Team A and losses by Team B, which equals four.
How to calculate the magic number to win a wild card spot
To calculate the magic number to win a wild card spot, which is the team with the second-best record, replace the second-place squad with the other teams behind them in the standings and redo the formula.
An example: Team A has a magic number of six in the Bhutan League over Team B. That means that any combination of six wins by Team A or losses by Team B will give Team A the division title.
But Team B has the best record of any second-place team, which gives them the lead in the wild-card race for the final playoff spot in the Bhutan League. They have 28 wins, and Team C, the next team behind them, has 19 losses. So take the formula (50 + 1 – 28 – 19) and Team B’s magic number to clinch the wild card is four. 50 is the number of games remaining in the regular season.
How can a team reach their magic number?
A team can reach its magic number in baseball by winning the same number of games as its magic number. If a team has a magic number of five, they will reach their magic number by winning five games.
The first-place team with a magic number of five can also reach its magic number by combining its wins with the losses of the second-place team. Thus, if the first-place team wins three games and the second-place team loses two games, the first-place team reaches its magic number and clinches a playoff spot.
The magic and tragic numbers
The magic number in baseball is an exciting way for teams and fans to countdown to a playoff berth or a regular-season championship. Although every team has a magic number at the beginning of a season, the term is prominent in the final weeks when the magic number to clinch a postseason spot or win a division title is highlighted.
The “tragic number” is also the opposite of the magic number. This term is also called the “elimination number” and is a combination of losses and wins by the first-place team that eliminates teams from the playoff and regular-season title contention.