# 2016 Major League Baseball season
The 2016 [Major League Baseball](https://www.edgepedia.org/major-league-baseball) season was the 141st season of organized play between the [National League](https://www.edgepedia.org/national-league) and the [American League](https://www.edgepedia.org/american-league), and it ended with the Chicago Cubs defeating the Cleveland Indians 4 games to 3 in the World Series, capturing the franchise's first championship since 1908 and ending a 108-year drought[1](https://time.com/4555453/cubs-win-world-series-how-chicago-broke-the-curse/). The season also produced new playing rules agreed between MLB and the players' union and a new five-year collective bargaining agreement signed in December 2016[2](https://www.mlb.com/press-release/mlb-mlbpa-adopt-slide-rule-on-double-plays-pace-of-game-changes-165428686) • [3](https://www.mlb.com/news/mlb-owners-players-agree-to-new-labor-deal-c209969472). It was the seventeenth season in which the two leagues operated as a single entity under Commissioner Rob Manfred[4](https://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/2016_Major_League_Baseball).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Best record | Chicago Cubs, 103-58 (.640), with a +252 run differential and the best record in the National League[5](https://www.mlb.com/standings/2016) |
| Other division winners | Texas Rangers (95-67), Cleveland Indians (94-67), Washington Nationals (95-67), Boston Red Sox (93-69), Los Angeles Dodgers (91-71)[5](https://www.mlb.com/standings/2016) |
| World Series | Cubs over Indians, 4-3; Game 7 ended 8-7 in 10 innings after a rain delay[1](https://time.com/4555453/cubs-win-world-series-how-chicago-broke-the-curse/) |
| Droughts broken | The Cubs' first World Series title since 1908, ending a 108-year drought; Cleveland had not won since 1948[1](https://time.com/4555453/cubs-win-world-series-how-chicago-broke-the-curse/) • [6](https://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/2016_World_Series) |
| Series MVP | Ben Zobrist, who drove in the winning run in Game 7[7](https://www.theringer.com/2016/11/03/mlb/2016-world-series-chicago-cubs-theo-epstein-analytics-war-9f1248c44eb7) |
| Comeback | The Cubs recovered from a 3-1 World Series deficit, the first such comeback in more than 30 years[8](https://www.theringer.com/2016/11/03/mlb/chicago-cubs-2016-world-series-champions-c5ad10e5b6c) |
| New rules | A slide rule on possible double plays and two pace-of-game changes took effect for the 2016 regular season[2](https://www.mlb.com/press-release/mlb-mlbpa-adopt-slide-rule-on-double-plays-pace-of-game-changes-165428686) |
## Regular season
__The Cubs owned the regular season.__ They began 27-8, baseball's best start since the 1984 [Detroit Tigers](https://www.edgepedia.org/detroit-tigers) opened 30-5, and finished with a Major League-best 103 wins[1](https://time.com/4555453/cubs-win-world-series-how-chicago-broke-the-curse/). Their final standings line of 103-58, a .640 winning percentage with 808 runs scored and 556 allowed, made them the only team to clinch its division and its league's best record[5](https://www.mlb.com/standings/2016). They averaged 5.0 runs per game, the third-most in MLB, and carried the best record in baseball essentially wire to wire[9](https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-cubs-ended-their-108-year-drought-the-hard-way/) • [10](https://www.theringer.com/2017/07/14/mlb/chicago-cubs-mlb-all-star-break-struggles-978ff8eb33ac).
The other division winners were the Texas Rangers (95-67) in the AL West, Cleveland (94-67) in the AL Central, Washington (95-67) in the NL East, and Los Angeles (91-71) in the NL West; Boston (93-69) and Toronto and Baltimore (89-73 each) took AL East and wild-card berths[5](https://www.mlb.com/standings/2016). Washington's 95-67 mark came with a balanced attack averaging 15.8 wins per month[11](https://content.mlb.com/documents/9/2/6/275087926/2018_media_guide.pdf).
**Rules in effect for 2016.** Before the season, MLB and the [Major League Baseball Players Association](https://www.edgepedia.org/major-league-baseball-players-association) adopted a rule governing slides on possible double plays and two additions to the pace-of-game program, changes the union framed as enhancing player safety while preserving genuine hustle plays[2](https://www.mlb.com/press-release/mlb-mlbpa-adopt-slide-rule-on-double-plays-pace-of-game-changes-165428686).
## The Cubs' postseason
Chicago entered October as the heaviest postseason favorite since the 1998 Yankees, and nearly stumbled immediately[12](https://www.si.com/mlb/2016/10/12/cubs-comeback-giants-nlcs-dodgers-nats). Leading the [San Francisco Giants](https://www.edgepedia.org/san-francisco-giants) 2 games to 1 in the best-of-five Division Series, the Cubs trailed 5-2 going into the ninth inning of Game 4 and rallied for four runs to win 6-5, closing the series[1](https://time.com/4555453/cubs-win-world-series-how-chicago-broke-the-curse/) • [12](https://www.si.com/mlb/2016/10/12/cubs-comeback-giants-nlcs-dodgers-nats).
In the [National League Championship Series](https://www.edgepedia.org/national-league-championship-series) the Cubs beat the [Los Angeles Dodgers](https://www.edgepedia.org/los-angeles-dodgers) to reach their first [World Series](https://www.edgepedia.org/world-series) since 1945, a first pennant in 71 years[1](https://time.com/4555453/cubs-win-world-series-how-chicago-broke-the-curse/) • [13](https://time.com/4551024/mlb-baseball-chiacago-cubs-world-series-cleveland-indians-game-5/). Relief pitcher Aroldis Chapman finished Game 6 of the NLCS with 1.2 hitless innings to send Chicago to the Fall Classic[14](https://img.mlbstatic.com/mlb-images/image/upload/mlb/lolryzefgbctppdejdju.pdf).
## World Series: Cubs over Indians
The Series matched the two teams with the longest active championship droughts in the majors: Cleveland, winless since 1948, and Chicago, whose last title came in 1908[6](https://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/2016_World_Series). Cleveland took Game 1, 6-0, before the Cubs evened the Series in Game 2 behind [Jake Arrieta](https://www.edgepedia.org/jake-arrieta)[15](https://www.mlb.com/postseason/history/2016). After the Indians moved ahead 3 games to 1, the Cubs, facing elimination, won Game 5 at [Wrigley Field](https://www.edgepedia.org/wrigley-field) 3-2 and then took Game 6 in [Cleveland](https://www.edgepedia.org/cleveland)[13](https://time.com/4551024/mlb-baseball-chiacago-cubs-world-series-cleveland-indians-game-5/).
__Game 7 became the season's defining night.__ Chicago took a 6-3 lead into the bottom of the eighth, but Cleveland tied it 6-6 on a two-run home run by Rajai Davis against Chapman. A brief rain delay followed, and after extra-inning hits from [Ben Zobrist](https://www.edgepedia.org/ben-zobrist) and Miguel Montero the Cubs held on for an 8-7, 10-inning win[1](https://time.com/4555453/cubs-win-world-series-how-chicago-broke-the-curse/). Zobrist, the Indians' best opposing hitter a year earlier with Kansas City, drove in the Series-winning run and earned MVP honors[7](https://www.theringer.com/2016/11/03/mlb/2016-world-series-chicago-cubs-theo-epstein-analytics-war-9f1248c44eb7). Only three teams before, and none since the 1979 Pirates, had overcome a 3-1 World Series deficit to win the championship on the road[16](https://www.si.com/mlb/2016/11/03/world-series-cubs-indians-game-7). The 3-1 comeback was the first in more than 30 years[8](https://www.theringer.com/2016/11/03/mlb/chicago-cubs-2016-world-series-champions-c5ad10e5b6c).
**By the numbers.** The Cubs' offense, which had scored 5.0 runs per game during the regular season, managed only 1.8 per game across Games 1 through 4 before roaring back in the final three[9](https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-cubs-ended-their-108-year-drought-the-hard-way/). Cleveland's late-inning superiority made the comeback steeper still: since acquiring Andrew Miller on July 31, the Indians were 44-2 (.957) when leading in the sixth inning or later, the best such record in MLB including the postseason[17](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/fancy-stats/wp/2016/10/31/three-keys-to-a-chicago-cubs-world-series-comeback/). In the Series, Cleveland aces [Corey Kluber](https://www.edgepedia.org/corey-kluber) and Andrew Miller had allowed four runs in 47.1 playoff innings before the Cubs solved them for six runs in 6.1 innings[8](https://www.theringer.com/2016/11/03/mlb/chicago-cubs-2016-world-series-champions-c5ad10e5b6c).
The matchup drew a wide audience: the 2016 World Series averaged 22.9 million viewers, the only World Series to top 20 million since Boston's 2004 championship averaged 25.4 million[18](https://apnews.com/article/17043d088b4f9330cb816f81de0d09c5).
## Off-season labor agreement
On November 30, 2016, MLB and the MLBPA agreed on a five-year collective bargaining agreement covering the 2017 through 2021 seasons[3](https://www.mlb.com/news/mlb-owners-players-agree-to-new-labor-deal-c209969472). Among its terms, home-field advantage in the World Series moved from the All-Star Game outcome to the higher regular-season winning percentage, the 15-day disabled list was replaced by a 10-day version, and beginning in 2018 the schedule gained four additional off-days[3](https://www.mlb.com/news/mlb-owners-players-agree-to-new-labor-deal-c209969472). Competitive Balance Tax thresholds were set at $195 million for 2017, rising to $210 million by 2021[19](https://www.mlb.com/news/details-of-mlb-mlbpa-labor-agreement-c210125462), and the Major League minimum salary was set to rise from $507,500 in 2016 to $535,000 in 2017[19](https://www.mlb.com/news/details-of-mlb-mlbpa-labor-agreement-c210125462).
## Aftermath
The championship did not become a dynasty. Three years later the Cubs were eliminated from the 2019 playoffs after a late-season collapse, having won no further World Series[20](https://www.axios.com/2019/09/27/baseball-mlb-dynasties-chicago-cubs). [The Game](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-game) 7 rain delay and Jason Heyward's locker-room speech remained central to the team's lore, with a ten-year reunion of the 2016 squad scheduled for the 2026 Cubs Convention[21](https://www.axios.com/local/chicago/2026/01/15/cubs-convention-2016-world-series-rizzo-lester-heyward-maddon).
## References
1. [World Series: Chicago Cubs Win Game 7 Over Cleveland Indians, TIME](https://time.com/4555453/cubs-win-world-series-how-chicago-broke-the-curse/)
2. [MLB, MLBPA adopt slide rule on double plays, pace of game changes, MLB.com](https://www.mlb.com/press-release/mlb-mlbpa-adopt-slide-rule-on-double-plays-pace-of-game-changes-165428686)
3. [MLB owners, players agree to new labor deal, MLB.com](https://www.mlb.com/news/mlb-owners-players-agree-to-new-labor-deal-c209969472)
4. [2016 Major League Baseball, BR Bullpen, Baseball-Reference](https://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/2016_Major_League_Baseball)
5. [2016 MLB Standings and Records: Regular Season, MLB.com](https://www.mlb.com/standings/2016)
6. [2016 World Series, BR Bullpen, Baseball-Reference](https://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/2016_World_Series)
7. [The Curious Have Won, The Ringer](https://www.theringer.com/2016/11/03/mlb/2016-world-series-chicago-cubs-theo-epstein-analytics-war-9f1248c44eb7)
8. [The Best Team and the Best Story Won, The Ringer](https://www.theringer.com/2016/11/03/mlb/chicago-cubs-2016-world-series-champions-c5ad10e5b6c)
9. [The Cubs Ended Their 108-Year Drought The Hard Way, FiveThirtyEight](https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-cubs-ended-their-108-year-drought-the-hard-way/)
10. [The Cubs' Magic Has Gone Missing, The Ringer](https://www.theringer.com/2017/07/14/mlb/chicago-cubs-mlb-all-star-break-struggles-978ff8eb33ac)
11. [Washington Nationals History and Records, 2018 Media Guide, MLB.com](https://content.mlb.com/documents/9/2/6/275087926/2018_media_guide.pdf)
12. [Cubs answer doubts with historic comeback, Sports Illustrated](https://www.si.com/mlb/2016/10/12/cubs-comeback-giants-nlcs-dodgers-nats)
13. [Chicago Cubs Snatch Tense Win Over Cleveland Indians in Game 5, TIME](https://time.com/4551024/mlb-baseball-chiacago-cubs-world-series-cleveland-indians-game-5/)
14. [2016 Chicago Cubs postseason player notes, MLB.com](https://img.mlbstatic.com/mlb-images/image/upload/mlb/lolryzefgbctppdejdju.pdf)
15. [2016 Postseason Recap, MLB.com](https://www.mlb.com/postseason/history/2016)
16. [Reign Men: The storm, the speech and the inside story of the Cubs' Game 7 triumph, Sports Illustrated](https://www.si.com/mlb/2016/11/03/world-series-cubs-indians-game-7)
17. [Three keys to a Chicago Cubs World Series comeback, The Washington Post](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/fancy-stats/wp/2016/10/31/three-keys-to-a-chicago-cubs-world-series-comeback/)
18. [Yankees-Dodgers is MLB's marketing Dream Series, Associated Press](https://apnews.com/article/17043d088b4f9330cb816f81de0d09c5)
19. [Details of MLB, MLBPA labor agreement, MLB.com](https://www.mlb.com/news/details-of-mlb-mlbpa-labor-agreement-c210125462)
20. [There are no dynasties in modern baseball, Axios](https://www.axios.com/2019/09/27/baseball-mlb-dynasties-chicago-cubs)
21. [Cubs Convention: 2016 World Series team reunites in Chicago, Axios Chicago](https://www.axios.com/local/chicago/2026/01/15/cubs-convention-2016-world-series-rizzo-lester-heyward-maddon)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Other team and ball sports › Baseball and related bat sports › Professional baseball in the Americas › MLB seasons and year-in-baseball chronology › MLB seasons and team seasons*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license