BY LARRY STONE, AOL

The tension was nearly unbearable as two teams entered the final weekend fighting it out for the big prize. It was anyone's race, and sure enough, the issue wasn't decided until the final day.

The Mets and Brewers? The Twins and White Sox?

Nope. The Mariners and Nationals, who were battling for the distinction of having the worst record in the major leagues, bringing with it the No. 1 pick in next year's draft.

The Mariners had control of their own destiny, needing only to lose two of three to Oakland to wrap up the Strasburg Sweepstakes, as the race had been dubbed in honor of San Diego State pitcher Stephen Strasburg, the consensus No. 1 pick next June.

But wouldn't you know it? In a miserable season destroyed by defeat, the Mariners chose the most inopportune time possible to start winning, somehow sweeping the A's. The Nats, meanwhile, sank to the occasion, losing all three against Philadelphia to finish at 59-102 (.366), while the M's ended up at 61-101 (.377). It's not known if the Nationals sprayed champagne, but it would have been fitting, since their season has been one of sham and pain.

While this year's best and brightest -- the eight playoff teams, and over-achievers like the Twins, Marlins and Astros -- earn their rightful plaudits, it's only right that someone shines a light on the worst and dimmest. Without further ado (but lots of do-do), here are the 10 biggest flops of 2008:

1. Seattle Mariners. The competition was stiff, but the evidence is indisputable that the M's are the worst of the worst, never mind their .011 edge on Washington. The Mariners became the first team in history to spend more than $100 million in payroll ($118 million, to be exact), and lose more than 100 games.

The scary thing is, they sincerely thought this was a championship-caliber team heading into spring training -- and many analysts (blush) agreed with them. The Mariners gutted the organization to obtain Erik Bedard from Baltimore and declared him the final piece that was going to turn last year's 88 wins into a division title.

Rarely has baseball seen such a gross miscalculation. Long before the season ended, manager John McLaren and general manager Bill Bavasi had been fired, and three members of the Opening Day lineup -- first baseman Richie Sexson, right fielder Brad Wilkerson and DH Jose Vidro -- had been released. Bedard won six games and didn't pitch after July 4, then underwent shoulder surgery last week. The team was undermined by in-fighting that got so bad that, according to the Seattle Times, an unnamed player wanted to "knock out" Ichiro Suzuki. Good times.

Now the Mariners are facing a winter of massive upheaval. The search is on for a new GM, which will be followed by a search for a new manager, followed by reconstruction of the roster. They have 39 games to make up on the Angels. Don't hold your breath.

2. Detroit Tigers. The Tigers achieved their own regrettable financial milestone. They were the 10th team in history to have a payroll above $130 million, and the first of those to finish with a losing record.

And not just a losing record, but a last-place finish, behind even the lowly Kansas City Royals, cementing that distinction by losing to the White Sox in a makeup game on Monday.

Like the Mariners, the Tigers went all-in for 2008 and flamed out spectacularly. Like the M's, they mortgaged a large part of the future in one big trade, sending top prospects Andrew Miller and Cameron Maybin to Florida for Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis.

Cabrera lived up to his end, hitting .292, winning the American League home run title with 37, and driving in 127.

Willis, not so much. In fact, D-Train's 2008 win total was matched by Denny McLain, Ernie Harwell, Al Kaline and Diana Ross. Zilch.

After the Tigers got Cabrera, the buzz immediately began that they could score 1,000 runs with that lineup. They missed by only 179. Something was askew from the start as the Tigers dropped their first seven games, nine of their first 11, and never recovered.

Now Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski faces a re-evaluation, particularly of a pitching staff whose 4.90 earned run average was exceeded in the AL only by Baltimore and Texas. Manager Jim Leyland summed up the state of the Tigers to reporters at the end of the season:

"I'm going to tell you the facts: I stink," he said. "With the year we've had, I stink. But I can tell you one thing: I ain't the Lone Ranger."

3. New York Mets. There they go again. It was deja blew it for the Mets, who collapsed down the stretch for the second consecutive year. And they joined the Tigers (see above) and Yankees (see below) as the only members of the $130 million payroll club not to make the playoffs.

At least the choke wasn't quite as pronounced this time, and owner Jeff Wilpon actually termed his team "over-achievers." That would come as a surprise to fans who watched the Mets lose 10 of their last 17 to squander a four-game advantage over Milwaukee in the loss column.

The Mets' sputtering start cost Willie Randolph his job, but Jerry Manuel earned a new contract for going 55-38. GM Omar Minaya, who also got an extension, will be searching for a new closer this winter now that Billy Wagner is out virtually all next season after elbow surgery. A bullpen breakdown helped seal the Mets' fate, but so did an offense that scored just five runs in losing two of three to Florida over the final weekend.

The Mets are studded with stars, but they haven't yet figured out how to be studs under pressure.

4. New York Yankees. Any season in which the Yankees don't win the World Series is deemed a failure. A season in which they don't even make the playoffs -- something that hadn't happened since 1993 -- is a full-blown crisis.

Expect the Yankees to react in the calm, understated manner for which the Steinbrenners are famous; that is to say, chronic finger-pointing and manic spending. GM Brian Cashman, who some thought would flirt with the Seattle opening, instead is re-upping but is destined to have some power removed after convincing the brain trust not to sell the farm to get Johan Santana.

Such restraint may yet be vindicated, especially if Phil Hughes and Ian Kennedy blossom. But for now, the Steinbrenners are headed for an inevitable overreaction, which could be a boon for the wallets of C.C. Sabathia and Mark Teixeira.

5. Colorado Rockies. Rack your brain and really concentrate, and you might remember the team that got steamrolled by Boston in the World Series last year.

Yeah, it really was the Rockies, even though the 2008 version didn't bear much of a resemblance to the ballclub that staged one of the great finishing kicks in history in 2007: a 20-1 record from Sept. 16 through the clinching game of the National League Championship Series against Arizona.

In a relatively weak NL West, a division-title run seemed reasonable. But the Rockies never clicked and finished at 74-88, hanging within 10 games only because the division lacked a dominant team.

A youthful pitching staff was inconsistent all season. Their .263 team batting average was 17 points down from last year, and their defense, which set a major league record for fielding percentage in 2007, was flawed, not flawless. Injuries hurt, especially to indispensable shortstop Troy Tulowitzki.

Now the Rockies are facing a major dilemma: what to do with superstar Matt Holliday, who will be eligible for free agency after the 2009 season. The Rockies could well investigate trade options involving Holliday if they deem him unaffordable.

6. Washington Nationals. They rank this low for just one reason: No one except perhaps GM Jim Bowden thought they were going to be any good this year.

That said, few thought they would be this putrid. And according to recent media reports, they have the added bonus of a dysfunctional and penurious ownership and front office.

Remember when people in the nation's capital wanted baseball in the worst way? They got it.

7. Arizona Diamondbacks. Way back in late March, I'm not proud to admit, I picked the D-backs to win it all this year. My reasoning was that having added Dan Haren to the rotation, they would have little trouble repeating their NL West title. And then, I figured, the Diamondbacks had the best 1-2-3 punch in baseball for a short series or three -- Haren, Brandon Webb and Randy Johnson.

Nice theory, except for the part about the Diamondbacks blowing a 4 1/2-game lead with 28 games to play. Take away a 20-8 April, and they were lousy much of the season.

The D-backs' burning question is what to do with Johnson, who will no doubt have to agree to a huge pay cut from $16 million to come back for a chance to get the final five wins he needs for 300. The Big Unit will turn 46 next September.

8. Atlanta Braves. The postseason used to be practically a birthright for the Braves, who won the NL East in every completed season from 1991 through 2005.

But now they are working on three years of also-ran status, and for the first time since losing 97 in 1990, they were a legitimately bad team at 72-90.

That's a weird place for a Bobby Cox team to be. While Cox is planning to return in 2009 for his 25th year managing the Braves, they are likely to be without longtime mainstays Tom Glavine and John Smoltz.

GM Frank Wren, who has John Schuerholz's tough act to follow, believes the Braves have a group of prospects on the rise who can return them to prominence, led by outfielders Jordan Schafer and Jason Heyward, first baseman Freddie Freeman and pitcher Tommy Hanson.

But for now, the Braves' dynasty is but a memory.

9. Cleveland Indians. One game away from the World Series last year. One game away from a losing season this year.

The Indians were 37-53 on July 9 and 44-28 thereafter to finish at .500.

Something went radically wrong -- injuries were a big part of it -- for the Indians, who were expected to battle it out with the Tigers and for much of the season did exactly that -- they battled Detroit for third place.

10. Pittsburgh Pirates. It's not exactly a shock that the Pirates finished with a losing record. It's how they roll. They haven't been above .500 since Barry Bonds left following the 1992 season -- a staggering 16 consecutive losing seasons that crowns them as the most consistently unsuccessful franchise in American sports.

That said, there was some modest hope for improvement this year, with a new manager (John Russell) and GM (Neal Huntington).

But, alas, it was the same as it ever was: 68-94 in 2007 became 67-95 in 2008.

To make (bad) matters worse, they weren't bad enough to get the No. 1 pick. Where's the fun in that?

(Larry Stone is the national baseball writer for the Seattle Times.)