With just one week remaining in the 2024 Major League Baseball season, the Chicago White Sox are on the brink of an unfortunate milestone: finishing with the worst record in modern baseball history. Currently sitting at 36-120, the White Sox have already matched the infamous 1962 New York Mets with 120 losses. With six games left to play, surpassing that dubious distinction seems all but inevitable.
The White Sox have struggled across the board this season, highlighted by a paltry team slash line of .220/.278/.339—well below the league average of .244/.312/.400. Their Offensive Performance Score (OPS+) stands at a bleak 76, indicating they are performing 24% worse than the league average when it comes to getting on base and hitting for power. The team has hit just 127 home runs this season, ranking dead last in the league, and not a single player has reached the 20-home run milestone.
Offensive woes are further underscored by their meager average of just 3.07 runs per game, the lowest in Major League Baseball. For comparison, the Tampa Bay Rays, who rank 29th in runs per game, average 3.78 runs. This season, the White Sox have been outscored 799-479, resulting in a staggering -320 run differential.
Andrew Vaughn has been a rare bright spot in an otherwise dismal season, leading the team in both RBIs (67) and runs (54). However, his performance ranks just 103rd out of 130 qualifying players in OPS for the batting title. Defensively, the White Sox have been the worst team in the league with -83 total zone runs. The Miami Marlins, ranking 29th, have -53 total zone runs, highlighting the vast gap in defensive performance. On the other end of the spectrum, the Brewers and Mariners lead the league with 46 total zone runs apiece.
The pitching staff has fared no better. Erick Fedde, the team’s leader in WAR (Wins Above Replacement), hasn’t pitched since July 27. The White Sox’s collective performance in FanGraphs' WAR metric is a dismal -6.8, making them the only team in the league with a negative figure. The Colorado Rockies are the next worst in this category but still manage a positive 4.1 WAR.
The White Sox have also posted the worst road and home records in the league. Their 16-62 road record is the league's worst, with the Rockies again trailing with 24 road wins. At home, the White Sox are 20-58, significantly lower than the Marlins, who have the next fewest home wins with a 30-51 record. Prior to this season, the White Sox had never lost more than 55 road games or 53 home games in a single season.
Lengthy losing streaks have marred the White Sox's season, including slumps of 21, 14, and 12 straight losses. They have also endured additional losing streaks of seven, six, and two separate five-game losing stretches, the latter of which is currently active. Before this season, the White Sox had experienced 12-game or longer losing streaks only three times in their history—in 1924, 1927, and 1967.
Since the All-Star break, the White Sox are just 9-49. No team has ever won fewer than 15 games in a full second half, a record held by the A's, who went 15-61 in both 1915 and 1943. The best months for the White Sox were May and June, each with a 9-19 record, while their worst month was July, where they managed a dismal 3-22 record.
Despite the catastrophic season, the White Sox found some minor victories, posting winning records against five teams: Braves (2-1), Rockies (2-1), Cardinals (2-1), Rays (4-2), and Nationals (2-1). However, against the rest of the AL Central, the White Sox have been outmatched, going 12-41.
To sum up, the 2024 season has been the worst in Major League Baseball history for the Chicago White Sox, plagued by poor performance both at the plate and on the mound. With a week left in the season, they stand on the precipice of setting a new standard for futility in the modern era.