NL Central Division Regular Season Champions
- Team names link to the season in which each team played
| Year | Winner | Record | % | Playoffs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Cincinnati Reds | 85–59 | .590 | Lost NLCS to Atlanta, 4–0 |
| 1996 | St. Louis Cardinals | 88–74 | .543 | Lost NLCS to Atlanta, 4–3 |
| 1997 | Houston Astros | 84–78 | .519 | Lost NLDS to Atlanta, 3–0 |
| 1998 | Houston Astros | 102–60 | .630 | Lost NLDS to San Diego, 3–1 |
| 1999 | Houston Astros | 97–65 | .599 | Lost NLDS to Atlanta, 3–1 |
| 2000 | St. Louis Cardinals | 95–67 | .586 | Lost NLCS to New York, 4–1 |
| 2001 | Houston Astros & St. Louis Cardinals† |
93–69 | .574 | Lost NLDS to Atlanta, 3–0 Lost NLDS to Arizona, 3–2 |
| 2002 | St. Louis Cardinals | 97–65 | .599 | Lost NLCS to San Francisco, 4–1 |
| 2003 | Chicago Cubs | 88–74 | .543 | Lost NLCS to Florida, 4–3 |
| 2004 | St. Louis Cardinals | 105–57 | .648 | Lost World Series to Boston, 4–0 |
| 2005 | St. Louis Cardinals | 100–62 | .617 | Lost NLCS to Houston, 4–2 |
| 2006 | St. Louis Cardinals | 83–78 | .516 | Won World Series over Detroit, 4–1 |
| 2007 | Chicago Cubs | 85–77 | .525 | Lost NLDS to Arizona, 3–0 |
| 2008 | Chicago Cubs | 97–64 | .602 | Lost NLDS to Los Angeles, 3–0 |
| 2009 | St. Louis Cardinals | 91–71 | .562 | Lost NLDS to Los Angeles, 3–0 |
| 2010 | Cincinnati Reds | 91–71 | .562 | Lost NLDS to Philadelphia, 3–0 |
| 2011 | Milwaukee Brewers | 96–66 | .593 | Lost NLCS to St. Louis, 4–2 |
| 2012 | Cincinnati Reds | 97–65 | .599 | Lost NLDS to San Francisco, 3–2 |
§ - Due to the 1994 Major League Baseball strike on August 12, no official winner was awarded. Cincinnati was leading at the time of the strike.
† - The Houston Astros and St. Louis Cardinals finished the 2001 season tied for first place with identical records and both teams were awarded division championships. Then for the purpose of playoff seeding, the Astros received the NL Central slot and the Cardinals received the Wild Card seeding. 2001 is considered by the MLB administrators to be the first shared divisional championship in MLB history.
Read more about this topic: National League Central
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