As the 2024 Major League Baseball season nears its conclusion, the Chicago White Sox are on the brink of setting an unenviable record: finishing with the worst record in modern baseball history. Currently standing at 36-120, they have already matched the infamous 120-loss season of the 1962 New York Mets. With six games left, the possibility of 126 losses looms large.
The White Sox's offensive struggles have been glaring. As a team, they're slashing .220/.278/.339, significantly below the league-average slash line of .244/.312/.400. They have managed a meager 76 OPS+, indicating their collective performance is 24% worse than the league average in terms of getting on base and hitting for power.
The shortage of power hitting is particularly stark. The team ranks last in home runs with a total of just 127 for the season. Not a single player on the roster has reached the 20-home run mark, underlining the depth of their offensive woes. The White Sox average a dismal 3.07 runs per game, the lowest in the league. For context, the 29th-ranked team in this category, the Tampa Bay Rays, average 3.78 runs per game.
Highlighting the offensive underperformance, Andrew Vaughn leads the team in both RBIs and runs with 67 and 54, respectively. However, Vaughn ranks 103rd out of 130 qualifying players in OPS for the batting title, reflecting the overall challenges the team has faced. Furthermore, the White Sox have been outscored 799-479 this season, resulting in a staggering -320 run differential.
Defensively, the team has also struggled mightily. They have the worst total zone runs in the league at -83. Comparatively, the Marlins rank 29th with -53 total zone runs, while the Brewers and Mariners lead the league with 46 each. The advanced metrics aren't any kinder. In FanGraphs' version of WAR (Wins Above Replacement), the White Sox have a collective figure of -6.8, the only negative in the league. The Rockies, by contrast, are 29th but still manage a positive 4.1 WAR.
The pitching staff has been equally underwhelming. Erick Fedde, who leads the team in WAR, hasn't pitched since July 27, symbolizing the broader difficulties faced by the rotation and bullpen alike. Additionally, both their road and home records are the worst in the league, standing at 16-62 and 20-58, respectively. The Rockies are the next closest with 24 road wins, while the Marlins have 30 home victories. This season has seen the White Sox set franchise records for losses both at home and on the road.
The team's performance is marred by prolonged slumps, including losing streaks of 21, 14, and 12 straight games each. Additionally, shorter streaks of seven, six, and two separate five-game losing streaks have punctuated the season, with one still active. Before this season, the White Sox had only endured losing streaks of 12 games or more three times in their history—in 1924, 1927, and 1967.
Post All-Star break, the White Sox's record stands at 9-49. Notably, no team in baseball history has won fewer than 15 games in a full second half, a record currently held by the Athletics, who went 15-61 in both the 1915 and 1943 seasons.
Reflecting on monthly performances, May and June were their best months, each concluding with a 9-19 record. Their worst month was July, where they went an astonishingly poor 3-22. The overall picture is grim, but there were slight bright spots as the team managed winning records against five teams: Braves (2-1), Rockies (2-1), Cardinals (2-1), Rays (4-2), and Nationals (2-1).
Within their own division, however, the White Sox have struggled significantly, holding a 12-41 record against the rest of the AL Central. It’s clear that the 2024 season marks the nadir of Chicago White Sox’s history, a stark contrast to any previous season since the formation of the modern era of baseball.