About 37 years ago, light-hitting Seattle shortstop Mario Mendoza became the punch line of a light-hearted joke.

In the Mariners clubhouse, players said they didn’t want to get caught with a batting average below the “Mendoza Line,” which came to be known as .200. While Mendoza hit slightly above that mark — .215 over a nine-year career — his name association with futility reverberates today.

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Loons set new record low in 1-0 loss to Sporting Kansas City In a riff off that famous point of demarcation, the Minn-doza Line is the combined winning percentage of Minnesota’s five current pro teams during their first seasons.

With Minnesota United set to join the ranks of top-flight pro teams with its Major League Soccer debut Friday in Portland, here’s a breakdown of the first campaigns for its predecessors in Minnesota. (Hint: their winning percentages register above the Mendoza Line.)

VIKINGS

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Norm Van Brocklin’s team beat down the Chicago Bears 37-13 in the franchise’s first game on Sept. 17, 1961, at Metropolitan Stadium. The Vikings then lost seven straight in a forgettable 3-11 season. Bud Grant took over as coach in 1967 and took the Purple to four Super Bowls over the next decade.

TIMBERWOLVES

.268

Attendance records were set as Minnesotans flocked to see the upstart NBA team during the inaugural 1989-90 season. But head coach Bill Musselman (with assistant Tom Thibodeau) didn’t win many games in a 22-60 debut. Seven years later under Flip Saunders, the Wolves started a streak of eight consecutive playoff appearances. But they haven’t been back since.

WILD

.304

In 2000-01, the legendary Jacques Lemaire had a rough first season leading St. Paul’s NHL team. The Wild (25-39-13-5) endured a 12-game winless streak down the stretch of the season and finished with 68 points, which was only above the (not-so) Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in the Western Conference. By Year 3, Lemaire led the Wild on a startling run to the conference finals.

TWINS

.437

While the Twins don’t count as an expansion franchise — they were the Washington Senators in 1960 — the new-to-Minnesota club went 23-46 under manager Cookie Lavagetto and then 47-54 under Sam Mele for a 70-90 overall record in 1961. Harmon Killebrew hit 46 home runs Year 1 and blasted another 48 when the Twins went 91-71 in Year 2. In 1965, they advanced to the World Series.

LYNX

.468

With some foreshadowing, the Lynx became the most successful Minnesota expansion franchise with a 15-17 record in 1999. In 2011, the Lynx won their first of three WNBA titles.

MINNESOTANS OVERALL

Those five Minnesota teams combined for a introductory winning percentage of .364 — which can be the Minn-doza Line that United is measured against during its first MLS season.

MLS EXPANSION FRANCHISE STANDINGS

Minnesota United has 13 predecessors in MLS expansion, with only three making the playoffs in their first seasons (Chicago, Miami and Seattle). Overall, those 13 clubs have a combined winning percentage of .309, with an average goal differential of minus-12.6.

Year — Team, Record, Goal Differential

1998 — Chicago Fire*, 20-12, +17

1998 — Miami Fusion*, 15-17, -22

2009 — Seattle Sounders, 12-7-11, +9

2012 — Montreal Impact 12-16-6, -6

2015 — Orlando City SC, 12-14-8, -10

2011 — Portland Timbers, 11-14-9, -8

2015 — New York City FC, 10-17-7, -9

2008 — San Jose Earthquakes, 8-13-9, -6

2010 — Philadelphia Union, 8-15-7, -14

2007 — Toronto FC, 6-17-7, -24

2011 — Vancouver Whitecaps, 6-18-10, -20

2005 — Real Salt Lake, 5-22-5, -35

2005 — Chivas USA, 4-22-5, -36

* — MLS settled ties with shootouts from 1996-98