With just one week remaining in the 2024 Major League Baseball season, the Chicago White Sox find themselves on the brink of an infamous milestone – finishing with the worst record in the history of modern baseball. Currently standing at 36-120, the White Sox have already matched the dubious mark set by the 1962 New York Mets, known for their 120-loss season. With six games left to play, the Sox have every chance to set a new low.
The underperformance of the team is strikingly evident through various metrics. The White Sox are batting a collective .220/.278/.339, falling significantly below the league-average slash line of .244/.312/.400. These figures are emblematic of their broader struggles at the plate, as evidenced by their paltry OPS+ of 76. This metric suggests the team is performing 24% worse than the league average when it comes to getting on base and hitting for power.
One of the most glaring deficiencies is their home run tally. The team has managed to hit only 127 home runs this season, placing them dead last in the league. Remarkably, not a single player on the team has reached the 20-home run mark. This lack of power has utterly sapped their run-scoring ability, leading to an average of just 3.07 runs per game, the lowest in the league. By comparison, the Tampa Bay Rays, who rank 29th, average 3.78 runs per game.
Defensively, the White Sox fare no better. They are the worst team in the league with regard to total zone runs, registering a dismal -83. For context, the Miami Marlins, who rank 29th in total zone runs, have a significantly better -53. This defensive incompetence has significantly contributed to their substantial -320 run differential, as they have been outscored 799-479 over the season.
The individual struggles of the players further highlight the team's plight. Andrew Vaughn stands as the team leader in both RBIs (67) and runs (54), but even these modest figures place him at a lowly 103rd out of 130 qualifying players in OPS for the batting title. Erick Fedde, who leads the team in Wins Above Replacement (WAR), has been sidelined since July 27, further crippling their already beleaguered roster.
As a team, the White Sox's collective performance in FanGraphs' WAR metric is an astonishing -6.8, making them the only team in the league with a negative WAR. The Colorado Rockies, who are 29th in the league, hold a positive WAR of 4.1, which starkly contrasts with Chicago's gloomy statistic.
Home and away, the White Sox have set new lows. Their 16-62 road record is the worst in the MLB this season, again outpaced only slightly by the Rockies' 24 road wins. At home, things have been no better with a dire 20-58 record, the worst in the league. The Miami Marlins follow with home figures of 30-51. Before this season, Chicago had never lost more than 55 road games or 53 home games within a single campaign.
Their season has been punctuated by lengthy slumps, including three losing streaks of 21, 14, and 12 games each. Additionally, they have experienced seven, six, and two five-game losing streaks, with one of the five-game streaks still active. Historically, the White Sox had only endured losing streaks of 12 games or more thrice before this season—in 1924, 1927, and 1967.
Post All-Star break, the unraveling has continued as the White Sox are an abysmal 9-49. No team in MLB history has won fewer than 15 games in the second half of the season, a record held by the Athletics, who went 15-61 in both 1915 and 1943. Chicago’s best months, May and June, each saw them go 9-19, while their worst was July, with a disheartening 3-22 record.
Despite their overall dismal performance, the White Sox managed winning records against a few teams, including the Braves (2-1), Rockies (2-1), Cardinals (2-1), Rays (4-2), and Nationals (2-1). However, their performance within their own division was dreadful, with a 12-41 record against the rest of the AL Central.
All these factors culminate in what is unequivocally the worst season in the storied history of the Chicago White Sox.