Random Biggest Sports Team Collapses in History (18 items)

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  (#18) 2011 U.S. Open (Tennis)

  Far from the first professional tennis collapse, the choke job put up by Roger Federer at the 2011 U.S. Open is certainly one of the most recent. Federer had a solid performance in the opening rounds to reach the final bracket as a third seed. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga was no challenge in the quarterfinals as Federer swept the round, but the semifinals and Novak Djokovic were a completely different story.

  Federer went up 2-0 on the top-seeded Djokovic in the semifinals, needing just one more win to advance to the finals. He never got that win however as the collapse occurred as Djokovic took the next three to eliminate Federer completely. To rub it in a little bit more, Djokovic went on to win the championship over Rafael Nadal.
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  (#8) 2011 Boston Red Sox

  After leading the American League East Division for most of the second half of the 2011 season, the Boston Red Sox went from heavy favorites to failing to qualify for the MLB Postseason after one heck of a collapse. The Red Sox first fell behind the New York Yankees in the division, but still held a nine-game lead over the Tampa Bay Rays as the season entered September, the final month of the season.

  However, Boston collapsed in September, winning only seven games and entering the final day of the season, September 28, tied with Tampa Bay. A Rays loss and Red Sox win would have put Boston in the playoffs, and that looked pretty likely as Tampa Bay went down 0-7 against the Yankees in their final game. The Rays went on to not only come back, but also win the game in extra innings, while the Red Sox, after a rain delay, fell to the Baltimore Orioles, ending their post-season run before it even began.
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  (#15) 1999-00 Portland Trail Blazers

  Though they entered as the underdog to the Los Angeles Lakers, the Portland Trail Blazers definitely had a shot at pulling a big upset in the 2000 Western Conference Finals of the NBA Playoffs. They had that shot and squandered it all away at the final moment. Through six games, the Lakers and Trail Blazers tied at three games a piece. They would need a game seven to determine which would continue on to the NBA Finals to meet the Indiana Pacers.

  With just 10 minutes to play in the fourth quarter, Portland had built a 15-point lead and nearly punched their ticket to the finals. Yes, generally a 15-point lead is pretty big in basketball, but not big enough that Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant couldn't overcome it and overcome it they did. The duo went on a 15-point run late in the contest to earn the 89-84 victory. Los Angeles carried that momentum in the finals when they topped Indiana for the title. Portland went back home, tails between their legs, after the massive late collapse.
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  (#9) 1996 Masters

  Usually in golf, a six-stroke lead is ginormous. To lose when you're up that much is pretty rare, but as Greg Norman showed at the 1996 Masters Tournament, it's far from impossible. Spoiler: Norman squandered away a six-stroke lead and lost the tournament to Nick Faldo.

  Norman absolutely collapsed during the back nine on the final round of the tournament. He could have golfed at par and still won, but he played just horribly. In holes nine through 12 he recorded three bogeys and a double bogey. That, along with strong play from Faldo, put Norman squarely out of the lead at a depressing six-over 78. Faldo won the Masters with a combined score of -12 for easy win over the -7 Norman.
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  (#16) St. Louis Cardinals

  • St. Louis

  The defending 2011 World Series champions led the San Francisco Giants 3-1 in the NLCS and looked poised to make a return to the World Series in 2011. The Cards went 1-1 in the first two games held in San Francisco and won games 3 and 4 at home, putting them one game away from clinching at home. That game was won by the Giants 5-0 and the series went back to the West coast for game 6 and 7 where the Giants took game 6 with a score of 5-1 and securing their spot in the World Series (which they would eventually win) with a game 7 score of 9-0.
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  (#14) Los Angeles Dodgers

  • Los Angeles

  It was simultaneously thrilling and frustrating to watch the Dodgers post-season run in 2013 as they closed the season testing out bench players and giving up home field advantage during the play-offs. One example of things to come was a home loss to long-time rivals, the San Francisco Giants, who weren't even good enough to make a try for the wild card the year after they won the World Series. The Giants put up the most runs they've ever scored at Dodger Stadium in a 19-3 rout of the Dodgers that saw pitcher Ricky Nolasco give up 7 runs in 1.1 innings.

  In the post-season, they took the NLDS from the Atlanta Braves easily enough, but then crumbled under the pressure applied by the St. Louis Cardinals pitching staff in the NLCS. After hitting .333 as a team in the NLDS with seven home runs and 26 total runs over four games, the Dodgers put up a measly 13 runs over six games in the NLCS against the Cardinals with a .211 team batting average and four home runs (all in game 5) with a shocking .200 (8-40) batting average with runners in scoring position.

  The cherry on the top of the Dodgers' season? They lost the NLCS 9-0 in game 6 in St. Louis, with Kershaw on the mound as starting pitcher. The game may result in the loss of Kershaw's hopes for the Cy Young and Cuban sensation Yasiel Puig's chances for Rookie of the Year.  

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