Tag / A’s

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Here We Go Again

Stop me if you’ve heard this one before.  In order to jumpstart their latest rebuilding effort, the White Sox have traded their stud left-handed starter to the Red Sox for four prospects.  Hopefully the end result will be different from the Chris Sale deal back in 2016.  This time around, Garrett Crochet is heading east, while the White Sox will receive catcher Kyle Teel, outfielder Braden Montgomery, infielder Chase Meidroth, and right-hander Wikelman Gonzalez.

Crochet was the 11th overall selection by the White Sox in the 2020 draft.  Thanks to the pandemic, he didn’t spend any time in the minor leagues before making his major league debut on September 18, throwing a scoreless inning with two strikeouts against the Reds.  Crochet worked out of the bullpen for the remainder of the year, giving up just three hits without allowing a run to score in five appearances as the White Sox made the post-season for the first time since 2008.  He made a single appearance in the Wild Card round against the A’s, striking out the two batters he faced.

Crochet returned to the bullpen in 2021, going 3-5 with a 2.82 ERA.  He appeared in three of the four games in the ALDS against the Astros, giving up five hits in just two and a third innings without surrendering a run.  An elbow injury and Tommy John surgery wiped out his 2022 season, and he returned to the big leagues in 2023, making thirteen appearances with a 3.55 ERA.

Last year, following the Dylan Cease trade, Crochet moved to the starting rotation full time and was named the opening day starter.  Coming off the injury and having totaled 73 total career innings, he was restricted to save his arm.  After notching his first All-Star, he struggled a little in the second half, finishing the season with 32 starts and a 6-2 record, posting a 3.58 ERA.

Teel, ranked as the #25 prospect in all of baseball, is the centerpiece of the deal.  A 22-year-old left-handed hitter, he was the first round draft choice of the Red Sox in 2023.  He split 2024 between Double A and Triple A and is expected to be ready to reach the major leagues next year.  Montgomery, a 21-year-old switch hitter, is ranked as the #54 prospect and was the top pick for the Red Sox in this summer’s draft.  Meidroth, a 23-year-old right hander, spent last season in Triple A, showing good plate discipline with little pop.  Gonzalez, 22, posted a 4.73 ERA in Double A last season, working mostly as a starter.

Will this deal work out better for the White Sox than the Sale trade did eight years ago?  Only time will tell, as the south siders look to bounce back from the worst season in baseball history.

Crochet’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were: Continue reading →

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The Hall Calls

Sunday night, the results of the Classic Baseball Era Veteran’s Committee vote was revealed, adding two players to the Hall of Fame class of 2025: Dick Allen and Dave Parker.  Parker was named on fourteen ballots from the 16-person committee, while Allen nabbed thirteen votes, the one more than the minimum needed for election.

Allen spent three of his fifteen big league seasons with the White Sox, earning the MVP award in 1972.  He was the Rookie of the Year in 1964 with the Phillies and also spent time with the Cardinals, Dodgers, and A’s.  He hit 20 or more home runs in nine consecutive seasons and finished his career with 351 homers, 1,119 RBI and a .292 career batting average.  Unfortunately, Allen passed away in December of 2020.

Parker, 73, was a seven-time All-Star in his 19-year career, hitting 339 home runs and posting a lifetime .290 batting average.  He won back-to-back batting titles with the Pirates in 1977 and 1978, winning the NL MVP award in ’78.  He earned All-Star MVP honors in 1979 while leading the Pirates to their last World Series championship.  After leaving the Pirates, he bounced around to the Reds, A’s, Brewers, Angels and Blue Jays, winning a second title with the A’s in 1989.

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Which Way To Sacramento

As the 2024 baseball season draws to a close, so too does the era of Major League Baseball in Oakland.  The A’s, who first moved to Oakland prior to the 1968 season, will be spending the next three (or four) years based out of Sacramento while waiting for a stadium to be built in Las Vegas.  I’ve seen the A’s at least 35 times over the years, first at some unknown date at old Comiskey Park and most recently at Guaranteed Rate Field in mid-September.  In between, I saw them at two other ballparks, including trips to their home ballpark in 1999 and 2008.

 

Team Name Won Loss Winning Pctg
Chicago Cubs 3 0 1.000
Detroit Tigers 1 0 1.000
Chicago White Sox 16 14 0.533
Oakland Athletics 15 20 0.429
Baltimore Orioles 0 1 0.000

The A’s, who are going location-less name-wise while they are based in Sacramento, will make their first visit to Chicago in April.  They will open their stay in Sacramento against the Cubs on March 31, while the White Sox make their first visit at the end of April.

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2024 Final Standings

A hugely disappointing season came to an end this weekend, once again leaving both Chicago teams home for October.  The Cubs planned on being a playoff contender this year after poaching manager Craig Counsell from the Brewers but failed to put it all together.  The White Sox, on the other hand, put together an absolutely horrific performance, setting the modern MLB record for most losses in a season and notching the sixth time in franchise history that they’ve lost 100 or more games.  Because of this, I ended up attending just 27 games, my lowest total since becoming a season ticket holder in 2002.  All told, I managed to see 20 of the 30 teams.

2024 Team Records

Team Name Won Loss Winning Pctg
Detroit Tigers 4 0 1.000
Baltimore Orioles 1 0 1.000
Cincinnati Reds 1 0 1.000
Cleveland Guardians 1 0 1.000
Houston Astros 1 0 1.000
Toronto Blue Jays 1 0 1.000
Los Angeles Dodgers 1 0 1.000
New York Mets 1 0 1.000
Pittsburgh Pirates 1 0 1.000
San Diego Padres 1 0 1.000
Seattle Mariners 1 0 1.000
Boston Red Sox 2 1 0.667
Chicago Cubs 3 2 0.600
Oakland Athletics 1 1 0.500
Kansas City Royals 1 1 0.500
Chicago White Sox 6 18 0.250
Los Angeles Angels 0 1 0.000
Atlanta Braves 0 1 0.000
Colorado Rockies 0 1 0.000
Tampa Bay Rays 0 1 0.000
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T Minus 5

Following last night’s loss to the A’s, the White Sox now have 115 loses. just five away from the modern record set by the expansion Mets in 1962.  This was the 18th time they’ve been shut out and their 16th consecutive loss at Guaranteed Rate Field. They would have to go 10-4 over their remaining 14 games to avoid tying the record.  They have won ten games since June 29.

 

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21 Is The Loneliest Number

Following last night’s 5-1 loss to the A’s, the White Sox have now tied the 1988 Orioles for the longest losing streak in American League history with 21 losses.  Only five teams in the history of Major League Baseball have lost more than 21 games in a row and only one of those streaks, by the 1961 Phillies, have come in the modern era.

197 pitchers have notched a win in the 26 days since a White Sox pitcher last won a game.  In the history of Major League Baseball, only seven franchises have had a stretch worse than the season record of the 2024 White Sox, who will try to get back on track tonight against the A’s.

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How Do You Lose 20 Games In A Row?

The White Sox fell 13-7 to the Twins this afternoon, pushing their franchise-record losing streak to 20 games.  They now own the longest losing streak of the Wild Card era and are one of only twelve teams, dating back to 1889, to lose 20 or more games in a row.  They are now just one game away from tying the American League record, set by the 1988 Orioles, and three from the modern record, owned by the 1961 Phillies. Their franchise record falls to just two games over .500.

The White Sox head to Oakland for the final time and will look once again to snap their losing streak tomorrow night against the A’s.  It has now been 25 days since the White Sox last won a game and Pedro Grifol, who is 88-188 in his managerial career, is somehow still employed.

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Looking Ahead To 2025

Last week, on the extra off day in the All-Star break, Major League Baseball released their tentative 2025 schedule while I was away in Amsterdam.  For the third year in a row, MLB is keeping with a balanced schedule, playing 52 games against division opponents, 64 games against non-division opponents in the same league, and 46 interleague games, with series against every team in the opposite league.  With the White Sox about to cement the worst season in franchise history and the Cubs trying to figure out what went wrong on their way back to contention, the 2025 season looks like it could be a long one for the city of Chicago.  So, for one day, at least, let’s turn our attention to next summer for both teams.

The White Sox celebrate the 125th anniversary of the franchise, opening their season on March 27 at home against the Angels, kicking off a six-game homestand that also features the Twins.  They will make their first visit to Sacramento, the new home of the A’s, in the last weekend of April.

The interleague schedule sees the Phillies, Marlins, Cardinals, Brewers, Diamondbacks, and Padres coming to Guaranteed Rate Field, while the White Sox will go on the road to face the Pirates, Reds, Dodgers, Braves, Mets, Rockies, and Nationals.  The rivalry with their north side foes continues with a three-game weekend series at Wrigley Field in mid-May followed by another weekend at Guaranteed Rate Field the last weekend in July.

After wrapping up the home portion of the schedule in mid-September against the Orioles and Padres, the White Sox wrap up the 2025 season on the east coast, battling the Yankees and the Nationals to finish up the year.

On the north side, the Cubs head to Japan to open their season on March 18 with a two-game tilt against the Dodgers in Tokyo.  They return to the US to face the Diamondbacks on March 27 before heading to Sacramento for the first time to face the A’s.  They open up the home portion of the 2025 season on April 4 against the Padres.

Aside from the A’s, the Cubs will head out on the road to face the Twins, Angels, Yankees, Blue Jays, and Tigers, while the Mariners, Orioles, Guardians, Red Sox, and Royals will be coming to Wrigley Field.

Only ten of their 25 games in September are against their NL Central rivals, which could make a difference should the Cubs find themselves in contention.  They end the year with a six-game homestand, facing the Mets and the Cardinals.

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A Half Of Futility

As the 2024 season reaches its midway point, the White Sox are a wretched 21-60.  Assuming they replicate this effort in the second half, they would finish 42-120, which would be the worst season in franchise history and one of the worst in MLB history.  But, with the trade deadline fast approaching on July 30, anyone playing well will likely be shipped off to a contender, making the White Sox even worse down the stretch.

The worst team in White Sox history is, depending on your definition, the 1970 squad, which lost 106 games, or the 1932 team, who lost “only” 102 games but, due to the shorter season, had a lower winning percentage at .325.  The current pace of the 2024 team would blow both of those records away.

Post-1900, the high-level mark for losses in a single season is 120, reached by the expansion Mets in 1962.  The 1916 Philadelphia A’s managed a .235 winning percentage, holding the futility mark in that regard.  The 2024 White Sox currently have a .259 winning percentage, so they do have some breathing room, but not a whole lot.