The modern World Series has been played between the National League pennant winner and the American League pennant winner since 1903. The most World Series wins by any team is 26 by -- who else? -- the New York Yankees. Eight teams have never won a World Series.

What is your favorite baseball team? How many World Series has that team won?

And what team is your favorite rival? Have they won more or fewer World Series than your team?

Here are the statistics.

No team has won as many World Series as the New York Yankees. NO team. No team has played in as many World Series as the Yankees. No one has even come close.

The Yankees have won 26 World Series. No one else has even played in 26 World Series. Here are the Yankees' World Series victories:

• 1923: against the New York Giants, four games to two
• 1927: against the Pittsburgh Pirates, four games to zero
• 1928: against the St. Louis Cardinals, four games to zero
• 1932: against the Chicago Cubs, four games to zero
• 1936: against the New York Giants, four games to two
• 1937: against the New York Giants, four games to one
• 1938: against the Chicago Cubs, four games to zero
• 1939: against the Cincinnati Reds, four games to zero
• 1941: against the Brooklyn Dodgers, four games to one
• 1943: against the St. Louis Cardinals, four games to one
• 1947: against the Brooklyn Dodgers, four games to three
• 1949: against the Brooklyn Dodgers, four games to one
• 1950: against the Philadelphia Phillies, four games to zero
• 1951: against the New York Giants, four games to two
• 1952: against the Brooklyn Dodgers, four games to three
• 1953; against the Brooklyn Dodgers, four games to two
• 1956: against the Brooklyn Dodgers, four games to three
• 1958: against the Milwaukee Braves, four games to three
• 1961: against the Cincinnati Reds, four games to one
• 1962: against the San Francisco Giants, four games to three
• 1977: against the Los Angeles Dodgers, four games to two
• 1978: against the Los Angeles Dodgers, four games to two
• 1996: against the Atlanta Braves, four games to two
• 1998: against the San Diego Padres, four games to zero
• 1999: against the Atlanta Braves, four games to zero
• 2000: against the New York Mets, four games to one

And they have been to the World Series and lost more than any other team in the history of baseball. Their losing appearances in the World Series took place in 1921, 1922, 1926, 1942, 1955, 1957, 1960, 1963, 1964, 1976, 1981, 2001 and 2003.

The St. Louis Cardinals come in second, with 10 World Series wins and 7 World Series losses. Here are the Cards' wins:

• 1926, against the New York Yankees, four games to three
• 1931, against the Philadelphia Athletics, four games to three
• 1934, against the Detroit Tigers, four games to three
• 1942, against the New York Yankees, four games to one
• 1944, against the St. Louis Browns, four games to two
• 1946, against the Boston Red Sox, four games to three
• 1964, against the New York Yankees, four games to three
• 1967, against the Boston Red Sox, four games to three
• 1982, against the Milwaukee Brewers, four games to three
• 2006, against the Detroit Tigers, four games to one

And they appeared in the World Series, but lost, in 1928, 1930, 1943, 1968, 1985, 1987 and 2004.

As the Philadelphia Athletics and later as the Oakland Athletics, the A's have been in the World Series 14 times, winning the title nine times. Here are the wins:

• 1910: against the Chicago Cubs, four games to one
• 1911: against the New York Giants, four games to two
• 1913: against the New York Giants, four games to one
• 1929: against the Chicago Cubs, four games to one
• 1930: against the St. Louis Cardinals, four games to two
• 1972: against the Cincinnati Reds, four games to three
• 1973: against the New York Mets, four games to three
• 1974: against the Los Angeles Dodgers, four games to one
• 1989: against the San Francisco Giants, four games to zero

During the 1910, 1911, 1913, 1929 and 1930 Series, the Athletics were in Philadelphia. During the 1972, 1973, 1974 and 1989 Series, they were in Oakland.

The Philadelphia Athletics appeared in the World Series, and lost, in 1905, 1914 and 1931, and the Oakland Athletics in 1988 and 1990.

The Boston Red Sox won the first World Series in 1903. Since then, they have won six others and appeared in the World Series, but lost, four times. Here are the wins:

• 1903: against the Pittsburgh Pirates, five games to three (nine-game series)
• 1912: against the New York Giants, four games to three
• 1915: against the Philadelphia Phillies, four games to one
• 1916: against the Brooklyn Robins (later, the Brooklyn Dodgers), four games to one
• 1918: against the Chicago Cubs, four games to two
• 2004: against the St. Louis Cardinals, four games to zero
• 2007: against the Colorado Rockies, four games to zero

The Red Sox lost the World Series in 1946, 1967, 1975 and 1986. They also won the American League World Series in 1904, the year after the first World Series was played. But the National League pennant winner, the New York Giants, refused to play the upstart American League, so no World Series was played that year.

The Brooklyn Dodgers won one World Series before moving to Los Angeles, where the Los Angeles Dodgers won five more. Here are the wins for the Dodgers:

• 1955: as the Brooklyn Dodgers, against the New York Yankees, four games to three
• 1959: against the Chicago White Sox, four games to two
• 1963: against the New York Yankees, four games to zero
• 1965: against the Minnesota Twins, four games to three
• 1981: against the New York Yankees, four games to two
• 1988: against the Oakland Athletics, four games to one

The Dodgers played in the World Series but lost, as the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1916, 1920, 1941, 1947, 1949, 1952, 1953 and 1956, and as the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1966, 1974, 1977 and 1978.

Three different teams have won five World Series each, the Cincinnati Reds, the Pittsburgh Pirates and the San Francisco Giants (when they used to be the New York Giants).

The Reds victories are:

• 1919: against the Chicago White Sox, five games to three
• 1940: against the Detroit Tigers, four games to three
• 1975: against the Boston Red Sox, four games to three
• 1976: against the New York Yankees, four games to zero
• 1990: against the Oakland Athletics, four games to zero

The Reds played in the World Series but lost in 1939, 1961, 1970 and 1972.

The Pittsburgh Pirates World Series victories are:

• 1909: against the Detroit Tigers, four games to three
• 1925: against the Washington Senators (now the Minnesota Twins), four games to three
• 1960: against the New York Yankees, four games to three
• 1971: against the Baltimore Orioles, four games to three
• 1979: against the Baltimore Orioles, four games to three (again)

The PIrates lost in the World Series in 1903 and 1927.

The Giants had not moved from New York to San Francisco when they won the World Series:

• 1905: against the Philadelphia Athletics, four games to one
• 1921: against the New York Yankees, five games to three (nine-game series)
• 1922: against the New York Yankees, four games to zero
• 1933: against the Washington Senators (now the Minnesota Twins), four games to one
• 1954: against the Cleveland Indians, four games to zero

The Giants lost the World Series when they were still in New York in 1911, 1912, 1913, 1917, 1923, 1924, 1936, 1937 and 1951 and after they had moved to San Francisco in 1962, 1989 and 2002. In 1904, the year after the first World Series was played, they won the National League pennant but they refused to play the World Series.

The Detroit Tigers have won four World Series matches. They are:

• 1935: against the Chicago Cubs, four games to two
• 1945: against the Chicago Cubs again, four games to three
• 1968: against the St. Louis Cardinals, four games to three
• 1984: against the San Diego Padres, four games to one

And they played and lost the World Series in 1907, 1908, 1909, 1934, 1940 and 2006.

Four teams have won the World Series three times each, the Chicago White Sox, Atlanta Braves, Minnesota Twins and the Baltimore Orioles.

Here are the Chicago White Sox victories:

• 1906: against the Chicago Cubs, four games to two
• 1917: against the New York Giants, four games to two

   

• 2005: against the Houston Astros, four games to zero

   

The White Sox infamously lost the World Series in 1919, when several players were accused of throwing games in what is known as the Black Sox Scandal. Those players were acquitted of criminal charges but banned from baseball for life. The Sox also lost the World Series in 1959, under uneventful circumstances.

The Boston, Milwaukee and Atlanta Braves won the following World Series:

• 1914: as the Boston Braves, against the Philadelphia Athletics, four games to zero
• 1957: as the Milwaukee Braves, against the New York Yankees, four games to three
• 1995: as the Atlanta Braves, against the Cleveland Indians, four games to two

The Boston Braves lost the World Series in 1948, the Milwaukee Braves in 1958 and the Atlanta Braves in 1991, 1992, 1996 and 1999.

The Minnesota Twins were the Washington Senators when they won the World Series in 1924, and won twice more as the Twins. The victories:

• 1924: against the New York Giants, four games to two
• 1987: against the St. Louis Cardinals, four games to three
• 1991: against the Atlanta Braves, four games to three

They lost as the Senators in 1925 and 1933 and as the Twins in 1965.

The Baltimore Orioles won the World Series in:

• 1966: against the Los Angeles Dodgers, four games to zero
• 1970: against the Cincinnati Reds, four games to one
• 1983: against the Philadelphia Phillies, four games to one.

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The Orioles were the St. Louis Browns when they lost in 1944. They later lost the World Series as the Orioles in 1969, 1971 and 1979.

Six teams have won the World Series twice -- the Chicago Cubs, the Florida Marlins, the Toronto Blue Jays, the New York Mets, the Cleveland Indians, and now the Philadelphia Phillies.

The Chicago Cubs had back-to-back World Series championships in 1907 and 1908. The 100 years since their last WS victory is a record for longest time played without a championship in major league sports history. Here are the victories:

• 1907: against the Detroit Tigers, four games to zero
• 1908: against the Detroit Tigers, four games to one

   

The Cubs played in but lost the World Series in 1906, 1910, 1918, 1929, 1932, 1935, 1938 and 1945.

The Florida Marlins have won:

• 1997: against the Cleveland Indians, four games to three
• 2003: against the New York Yankees, four games to two

They have never played in a World Series that they haven't won.

The Toronto Blue Jays have won:

• 1992: against the Atlanta Braves, four games to two
• 1993: against the Philadelphia Phillies, four games to two

The Blue Jays have never lost a World Series.

The New York Mets have won:

• 1969: against the Baltimore Orioles, four games to one
• 1986: against the Boston Red Sox, four games to three

The Mets lost the World Series in 1973 and 2000.

The Cleveland Indians have won:

• 1920: against the Brooklyn Robins (later the Brooklyn Dodgers), five games to two
• 1948: against the Boston Braves, four games to two

   

The Indians lost in 1954, 1995 and 1997.

The Philadelphia Phillies have won

• In 1980: against the Kansas City Royals, four games to two
• In 2008: against the Tampa Bay Rays, four games to one

They made it to the World Series but lost in 1915, 1950, 1983 and 1993.

Three teams have won the World Series once.

• The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim won against the San Francisco Giants in 2002 four games to three. They have never lost a World Series.
• The Arizona Diamondbacks won against the New York Yankees in 2001 four games to three. They have never lost a World Series.
• The Kansas City Royals won against the St. Louis Cardinals in 1985. They played in the World Series and lost in 1980.

Eight teams have never won a World Series.

• The San Diego Padres, who played in the WS but lost in 1984 and 1998.
• The Colorado Rockies, who played in the WS but lost in 2007.
• The Houston Astros, who played and lost in 2005
• The Milwaukee Brewers, who played and lost in 1982
• The Tampa Bay Rays, who played and lost in 2008

Of those eight, three have never made it to the World Series.

• The Seattle Mariners
• The Texas Rangers
• The Washington Nationals

The 2008 World Series was played between the Philadelphia Phillies and the Tampa Bay Rays. It was really a World Series between two underdogs. The Phillies won, four games to one.

When the guys in the Phillies jersey finally won a World Series in 1980 -- the only other World Series victory in the history of the franchise -- they were the last of the original sixteen Major League Baseball teams to win the trophy. They are the losingest major league team of any sport, having racked up their 10,000th loss in 2007. They have played in but lost the World Series four times.

The guys in the Rays jersey finished last in the American League East Division in 2007. In fact, they have finished last every year for the first 10 years of their existence, except for 2004, when they finished fourth in the five-team division, and 2008, when they won the Division Championship. 2008 was their first trip to the WS.

There are a couple of historical facts to note when you look at these statistics.

First, the modern World Series has usually been a best-of-seven contest. But in 1903, 1919, 1920 and 1921, nine games were scheduled.

And, since the first World Series was played in 1903, there have been two years in which no World Series was played. In 1904, the New York Giants won the National League pennant and the Boston Red Sox won the American League flag. But the Giants considered the new American League "inferior" and refused to play a World Series contest against them. So no World Series was played in 1904.

A players' strike interrupted regular season play and all post-season play in 1994. So no World Series was played that year.