With the 2024 Major League Baseball season entering its final week, the Chicago White Sox find themselves on the brink of an unenviable milestone. At 36-120, they have already matched the infamy of the 1962 New York Mets with 120 losses, and unless they miraculously win all of their remaining six games, they are on course to set a new record for the most losses in modern baseball history.
The White Sox's woes are deeply entrenched in their ineffective offensive performance. As a team, they are hitting a paltry .220/.278/.339, falling significantly short of the league-average slash line of .244/.312/.400. Their lack of power is reflected in an OPS+ of 76, indicating they are 24% below the league average in terms of getting on base and hitting for power. With a league-low 127 home runs, the team's struggles are glaring, particularly considering not a single player has managed to reach the 20-home run milestone.
Andrew Vaughn has been a rare bright spot, leading the team in RBIs and runs with 67 and 54 respectively. However, his ranking of 103rd out of 130 qualifying players in OPS for the batting title underscores the extent of the team's offensive struggles. The White Sox have averaged just 3.07 runs per game, the lowest in the league, starkly contrasting with the Tampa Bay Rays, who rank 29th with 3.78 runs per game.
The White Sox have been historically outmatched, being outscored 799-479, culminating in a staggering -320 run differential. This wide margin highlights both their offensive and defensive deficiencies. On the defensive side, the struggles are just as pronounced. The team has been the worst in the league with -83 total zone runs, significantly behind the second-worst Miami Marlins, who have -53 total zone runs. The Milwaukee Brewers and Seattle Mariners, who are tied for the best, boast 46 total zone runs each.
Pitching has offered little relief, as evidenced by Erick Fedde, the team's leader in Wins Above Replacement (WAR), who has not pitched since late July. The White Sox's collective performance in FanGraphs' version of WAR is a dismal -6.8, making them the only team in the league with a negative figure. By comparison, the Colorado Rockies are second to last but still have a positive 4.1 WAR.
The White Sox's performance on the road has been particularly dismal. Their 16-62 road record is the worst in the league, with the Rockies again trailing at 24 road wins. At home, the picture is just as bleak, with a league-worst 20-58 record. Prior to this season, the White Sox had never lost more than 55 games on the road or 53 at home in a single season.
The team's season has been marred by prolonged slumps. They have endured three lengthy losing streaks of 21, 14, and 12 straight games. Additionally, they have suffered from losing streaks of seven, six, and two stints of five games, one of which is currently active. Historical comparison reveals that before this season, the White Sox had only suffered losing streaks of 12 games or more three times in their history—during 1924, 1927, and 1967.
Since the All-Star break, the White Sox have managed a dismal 9-49 record. No team has ever won fewer than 15 games in a full second half, a record held by the Philadelphia Athletics, who went 15-61 in both 1915 and 1943. May and June were their most 'successful' months with identical 9-19 records, while July was their nadir, seeing them go 3-22.
Despite their struggles, the White Sox did manage to post winning records against a handful of teams: the Braves (2-1), Rockies (2-1), Cardinals (2-1), Rays (4-2), and Nationals (2-1). However, against their division rivals in the AL Central, they have floundered, going 12-41.
The 2024 season has undoubtedly been a historic low for the Chicago White Sox, accentuating both systemic issues within the team and the brutal competitiveness of Major League Baseball. As the season winds to a close, the White Sox will undoubtedly be analyzing and planning how to rebound from what has been a catastrophic year."