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NOTE: This text was first printed on-line at The Sports activities Column on Sunday, September 1, 2024.
There’s no enjoyable baseball being performed on Chicago’s South Aspect, because the White Sox are closing in on the 120-game loss document held by the 1962 New York Mets. They already misplaced over 100 video games, and on August eighth their supervisor Pedro Grifol, bench coach Charlie Montoyo, third-base coach Eddie Rodriguez and assistant hitting coach Mike Tosar all have been fired.
White Sox common supervisor Chris Getz instructed the media on the time of the firing that “clearly there was one thing that was damaged.”
The 120 video games loss document by the 1962 Mets is one thing that no crew needs their title tied to, and a number of other groups got here actually shut: the 2003 Detroit Tigers misplaced 119 video games, the 2018 Baltimore Orioles misplaced 115, and once more the 2019 Tigers misplaced 114. Getz additionally mentioned that concerning the 120-loss mark, it’s “definitely one thing that we want to keep away from… Nobody needs to be related to a document like that,” he mentioned. “Now, with that being mentioned, it has not been the very best precedence — being that we simply went via a commerce deadline and moved on from gamers that clearly have been enticing to different golf equipment.”
White Sox followers are sporting brown paper luggage over their heads at video games to suggest how dangerous the season is. In addition they took to social media, venting their frustration on the embarrassment that the White Sox are displaying on the sphere. To entice followers to come back to the ballpark, the crew additionally dropped the worth of tickets to $7.00 and, in the direction of the tip of the season, to $1.00. The Mets in 1962 noticed the other, as 922,530 followers nonetheless went to see them play. That attendance mark ranked them sixth within the Nationwide League that 12 months, which was stunning for such a bad-playing crew with a shedding document. In New York, it was the primary season for the brand new Mets franchise, which didn’t have a Nationwide League crew because the Giants left for San Francisco in 1958.
The headlines within the native Chicago newspapers and on-line media shops additionally show how dangerous it’s for the White Sox.
A number of the headlines learn:
Chicago Tribune: “Chicago White Sox GM Chris Getz is attempting to maintain his head when everybody else is shedding theirs,” and “A troublesome baseball month is forward in Chicago as Cubs tease and White Sox wheeze.”
South Aspect Sox: “The disappointment of being a White Sox fan.”
Chicago Solar Occasions: “White Sox simply as dangerous beneath Grady Sizemore, however gamers love him — and the sensation is mutual.”
The followers at Assured Charge Area additionally confirmed how dangerous it’s for them, holding up indicators like, “C’mon guys, simply win one. Please,” and “Promote The Staff.”
How dangerous it was for the 1962 Mets and their followers, the identical will be mentioned for the White Sox. Final season, they completed with a document of 61-101 in fourth place, and in 2018, they completed in fourth place with a document of 62-100. The one indicators of hope have been again in 2021 beneath supervisor Tony La Russa once they completed in first place with a document of 93-69 and made it to the ALDS the place they misplaced to the Houston Astros. Their final World Collection Championship was with supervisor Ozzie Guillen again in 2005, once they beat the Houston Astros in a four-game sweep. They completed the season in first place with a document of 99-63.
Sports activities Illustrated even had a narrative on how the followers are noticing how dangerous it’s for the White Sox. In a single recreation, whereas warming up, second baseman Lenyn Sosa didn’t see the ball thrown to him and acquired hit within the face. The followers took to X with one fan posting: “I’ve by no means seen a professional sports activities crew this dangerous. Nailed within the face and robbed of a walk-off HR in the identical day. By which enormously rising the percentages of being the worst crew in MLB historical past. I don’t know what the followers did to deserve this. Can’t even decide above 10 this 12 months. Atrocious.”
With that mentioned, it just about sums up the 2024 White Sox season.
