The New York Yankees entered Sunday seven games back from the Boston Red Sox in the American League East standings. Barring an unexpected collapse by both teams, the Yankees will be playing in the AL Wild Card Game come the postseason. In that light, Yankees fans could consider this season to be a bit of a letdown -- a feeling that would intensify were the Yanks to lose the play-in game.

Yet no matter what happens next, the Yankees and their fans should take solace in the fact that on Saturday they secured a winning record for the 26 consecutive season, giving them the second-longest streak in history -- and yes, of course, they also possess the record, with 39 winning seasons in a row:

New York's financial might has no doubt played a role in their ability to consistently produce winners. But it should be noted that other teams have money, too, and that spending doesn't necessarily equal winning. The Yankees have seen both their top rivals, the Red Sox and New York Mets, deal with losing seasons over the last quarter century -- no one would mistake either team for operating on a shoestring budget.

As such, don't discount how impressive this stretch is -- and don't expect the Yankees' winning ways to end anytime soon.