Before the season, we did a ranking of every World Series champion, and sorted them into one of five tiers. (The complete methodology is laid out here.) After the Los Angeles Dodgers' win on Tuesday, that piece is out of date because there are now 116 World Series champions.
Where do the 2020 Dodgers fit on this hierarchy of the best of the best? Well, open the window Aunt Minnie, here comes another Tier I champion. This year's Dodgers rank among the truly best champions in baseball history.
It's fair if you want to view that ranking with a bit of skepticism, given that we necessarily have to extrapolate from the 60-game regular season, when each team played only nine other clubs. However, there is no doubt that the Dodgers dominated the schedule they were assigned.
Highest run differential per game,
including playoffs in World Series era (since 1903)
1939 Yankees, +2.71
1927 Yankees, +2.45
1936 Yankees, +2.20
2020 Dodgers, +2.19
1937 Yankees, +2.00
Source: ESPN Stats & Information
All of the clubs on that list won the World Series, and all of them are listed as Tier I World Series champs by this system.
Another factor that works in the Dodgers' favor: The system rewards powerhouse rosters, as measured by my system for rating the best players in the game at any given moment. By this measure, the Dodgers rank 22nd among the champs.
Also, the system rewards teams that are strong for multiyear blocks of time, as determined by a three-year measure of my power ranking. Again, the Dodgers look strong here, ranking eighth. So you can quibble with overemphasizing the truncated season, but it's hard to quibble with the notion that these Dodgers have proved themselves over an extended period of time.
At last, the Dodgers have capped the amazing wave of success they've been riding with a championship, and they are among the best title winners ever.
Here are the updated rankings:
Tier I: 14 teams
Ranked by World Series Tier rating; standard deviation of 1.5 or above
1. 1939 Yankees (106.7)
2. 1927 Yankees (105.1)
3. 1998 Yankees (104.5)
4. 1944 Cardinals (104.2)
5. 1937 Yankees (103.9)
6. 1929 Athletics (103.8)
7. 1936 Yankees (103.2)
8. 2016 Cubs (102.3)
9. 1975 Reds (101.9)
10. 1970 Orioles (101.8)
11. 1986 Mets (101.5)
12. 1942 Cardinals (101.3)
13. 2020 Dodgers (101.1)
14. 1938 Yankees (100.9)
Tier II: 28 teams
Ranked by World Series Tier rating; standard deviation of 1.2-1.49
15. 1932 Yankees (100.7)
16. 1905 Giants (100.1)
17. 2007 Red Sox (99.8)
18. 1910 Athletics (99.3)
19. 1976 Reds (99.2)
20. 1995 Braves (99.2)
21. 1923 Yankees (99.1)
22. 1984 Tigers (98.7)
23. 1953 Yankees (98.7)
24. 1930 Athletics (98.7)
25. 1961 Yankees (98.7)
26. 1999 Yankees (98.6)
27. 1989 Athletics (98.5)
28. 1911 Athletics (98.5)
29. 1958 Yankees (98.3)
30. 1941 Yankees (97.7)
31. 1921 Giants (97.6)
32. 2004 Red Sox (97.6)
33. 1972 Athletics (97.5)
34. 1913 Athletics (97.5)
35. 1922 Giants (97.4)
36. 1977 Yankees (97.4)
37. 1956 Yankees (97.2)
38. 1974 Athletics (97.2)
39. 1951 Yankees (97.2)
40. 1907 Cubs (97.1)
41. 1973 Athletics (97.0)
42. 2009 Yankees (96.8)
Tier III: 46 teams
Ranked by World Series Tier rating; standard deviation of 0.85-1.19
43. 1946 Cardinals (96.8)
44. 1947 Yankees (96.8)
45. 1950 Yankees (96.7)
46. 1917 White Sox (96.7)
47. 1952 Yankees (96.6)
48. 1981 Dodgers (96.6)
49. 1968 Tigers (96.6)
50. 1957 Braves (96.6)
51. 1909 Pirates (96.5)
52. 1928 Yankees (96.4)
53. 1965 Dodgers (96.0)
54. 1912 Red Sox (95.9)
55. 1925 Pirates (95.9)
56. 1971 Pirates (95.6)
57. 1948 Indians (95.6)
58. 1940 Reds (95.6)
59. 1935 Tigers (95.6)
60. 1955 Dodgers (95.5)
61. 1943 Yankees (95.5)
62. 2017 Astros (95.4)
63. 1978 Yankees (95.1)
64. 2018 Red Sox (94.8)
65. 1967 Cardinals (94.6)
66. 1920 Indians (94.6)
67. 2008 Phillies (94.3)
68. 1992 Blue Jays (94.3)
69. 1962 Yankees (94.2)
70. 1903 Red Sox (93.9)
71. 1919 Reds (93.9)
72. 1996 Yankees (93.8)
73. 1908 Cubs (93.8)
74. 1949 Yankees (93.7)
75. 1983 Orioles (93.5)
76. 1960 Pirates (93.4)
77. 1963 Dodgers (93.4)
78. 2001 Diamondbacks (93.4)
79. 1966 Orioles (93.3)
80. 2002 Angels (93.0)
81. 1933 Giants (92.9)
82. 1924 Twins (92.7)
83. 1918 Red Sox (92.6)
84. 1993 Blue Jays (92.3)
85. 2019 Nationals (92.3)
86. 2000 Yankees (92.3)
87. 2013 Red Sox (92.2)
88. 1991 Twins (92.2)
Tier IV: 22 teams
Ranked by World Series Tier rating; standard deviation of 0.5-0.84
89. 1979 Pirates (92.0)
90. 1934 Cardinals (91.3)
91. 1954 Giants (91.3)
92. 2011 Cardinals (91.2)
93. 2010 Giants (91.2)
94. 1990 Reds (91.0)
95. 1988 Dodgers (90.4)
96. 2005 White Sox (90.0)
97. 1926 Cardinals (89.8)
98. 1931 Cardinals (89.8)
99. 1982 Cardinals (89.6)
100. 1980 Phillies (89.6)
101. 1997 Marlins (89.5)
102. 1945 Tigers (89.1)
103. 1915 Red Sox (89.1)
104. 2015 Royals (88.8)
105. 1985 Royals (88.3)
106. 1969 Mets (88.2)
107. 2014 Giants (88.1)
108. 2006 Cardinals (87.9)
109. 1959 Dodgers (87.8)
110. 2012 Giants (87.7)
Tier V: 6 teams
Ranked by World Series Tier rating; standard deviation below 0.5
111. 1906 White Sox (87.0)
112. 1964 Cardinals (86.9)
113. 2003 Marlins (85.8)
114. 1987 Twins (83.7)
115. 1916 Red Sox (78.3)
116. 1914 Braves (78.2)