With his seventh inning home run last night against the Twins, Munetaka Murakami became the first rookie in MLB history to reach the 20-home run plateau before the start of June. The previous rookie mark of 19 was held by Pete Alonso and Mark McGwire. He joins Frank Thomas and Jim Thome as the only White Sox players overall to reach the mark.
The White Sox have four more games scheduled through the remainder of May.
Previously, we’ve looked at the most recent time I’ve seen each of the 30 major league baseball teams play. Three weeks into the 2026 season, I thought it would be worth going into the wayback machine and see when the first time was that I saw each team live and in person, to the best of my knowledge. My records only go back to 1984, so anything before that is as yet unidentified.
Breaking it down by decade, we have twelve teams I saw originally during the 80s, eleven in the 90s, and the remaining seven came in the 2000s. For franchises that have moved, I have lumped them all together.
Earliest Game
| Team Name | Year |
|---|---|
| Texas Rangers | 8/14/1984 |
| Chicago White Sox | 8/14/1984 |
| Toronto Blue Jays | 8/30/1984 |
| Boston Red Sox | 4/19/1985 |
| San Diego Padres | 7/8/1985 |
| Chicago Cubs | 7/8/1985 |
| Baltimore Orioles | 7/26/1985 |
| New York Mets | 8/4/1985 |
| Kansas City Royals | 8/20/1985 |
| Cleveland Indians/Guardians | 7/16/1987 |
| Seattle Mariners | 9/18/1987 |
| California/Anaheim/Los Angeles Angels | 7/28/1988 |
| Detroit Tigers | 4/20/1991 |
| Milwaukee Brewers | 7/18/1993 |
| Pittsburgh Pirates | 8/2/1993 |
| Continue reading → |
After a long winter, the 2026 baseball season got underway yesterday. To celebrate, it is time once again to look at the all-time team records for games that I have identified as having attended dating back to 1984. Last year, I posted my thirteenth highest total, an increase of twelve games from the year before, and managed to see 21 out of the 30 teams, so there should be some nice changes.
The White Sox are coming off their third-straight 100 loss season and are hoping to avoid adding a fourth this year. On the other side of town, the Cubs made it back into playoff contention last year and are hoping to move beyond the NLDS this year. The 2026 season may look completely different on each side of town.
All-Time Team Records
| Team Name | Won | Loss | Winning Pctg |
|---|---|---|---|
| California Angels | 2 | 0 | 1.000 |
| Arizona Diamondbacks | 17 | 4 | 0.810 |
| Florida Marlins | 15 | 8 | 0.652 |
| Cleveland Guardians | 7 | 4 | 0.636 |
| Toronto Blue Jays | 20 | 12 | 0.625 |
| New York Yankees | 20 | 13 | 0.606 |
| Philadelphia Phillies | 13 | 10 | 0.565 |
| Boston Red Sox | 22 | 17 | 0.564 |
| Colorado Rockies | 11 | 9 | 0.550 |
| Los Angeles Angels | 20 | 17 | 0.541 |
| Washington Nationals | 7 | 6 | 0.538 |
| Detroit Tigers | 35 | 30 | 0.538 |
| Cleveland Indians | 31 | 27 | 0.534 |
| Chicago Cubs | 246 | 217 | 0.531 |
| Houston Astros | 27 | 25 | 0.519 |
| Chicago White Sox | 387 | 378 | 0.506 |
| Continue reading → |
To paraphrase from a famous movie, the one constant through all the years has been baseball. As we head into 2026, we continue our look at the all-time leaders in both offensive and defensive categories for all 30 teams. Today, we take a deeper dive into the Texas Rangers.
The Rangers began life in 1961, joining the American League as the second incarnation of the Washington Senators after the original franchise moved to Minnesota to become the Twins. Following the 1971 season, the team moved to Arlington, Texas and became the Rangers. I’ve seen 255 players wearing a Rangers uniform in the 40 of their games that I’ve attended live across two states and four different stadiums.
Home Runs
| Name | Total |
|---|---|
| Hank Blalock | 3 |
| Ian Kinsler | 3 |
| 6 tied with | 2 |
Hits
| Name | Total |
|---|---|
| Michael Young | 19 |
| Elvis Andrus | 17 |
| Ian Kinsler | 12 |
| Mark Teixeira | 12 |
Runs
| Name | Total |
|---|---|
| Michael Young | 12 |
| Elvis Andrus | 8 |
| Hank Blalock | 6 |
| Gary Matthews Jr. | 6 |
RBI
| Name | Total |
|---|---|
| Mark Teixeira | 13 |
| Michael Young | 11 |
| Hank Blalock | 8 |
| Ian Kinsler | 8 |
| Elvis Andrus | 8 |
Doubles
| Name | Total |
|---|---|
| Michael Young | 7 |
| Elvis Andrus | 4 |
| 4 tied with | 3 |
Triples Continue reading →
After fighting back of an 0-2 hole against the Brewers in the NLDS, the Cubs dropped the decisive Game 5 last night, bringing the 2025 Chicago baseball season to a close. Despite blowing an early season lead in the NL Central, the Cubs held on to take the top Wild Card slot and managed to advance to the second round of the playoffs. The White Sox managed to improve on their record-setting season from 2024 and managed to not be the worst team in MLB, but still managed to lose 100 games for the third straight year. Overall, I managed to attend 39 games, tied for my thirteenth highest total. Along the way, I managed to see 21 of the 30 teams.
2025 Team Records
| Team Name | Won | Loss | Winning Pctg |
|---|---|---|---|
| St. Louis Cardinals | 2 | 0 | 1.000 |
| Toronto Blue Jays | 2 | 0 | 1.000 |
| Houston Astros | 1 | 0 | 1.000 |
| Arizona Diamondbacks | 1 | 0 | 1.000 |
| Chicago Cubs | 8 | 2 | 0.800 |
| Cleveland Guardians | 3 | 2 | 0.600 |
| Miami Marlins | 1 | 1 | 0.500 |
| Baltimore Orioles | 1 | 1 | 0.500 |
| Boston Red Sox | 1 | 1 | 0.500 |
| New York Yankees | 1 | 1 | 0.500 |
| Kansas City Royals | 1 | 1 | 0.500 |
| Chicago White Sox | 15 | 18 | 0.455 |
| Continue reading → |
Six months ago, I made my annual predictions as to who would win what in the 2025 MLB season. With the Division Series round in full swing, it is time to revisit those predictions and see what, if anything, I got right.
East: Red Sox
While the Red Sox returned to the postseason as a wild card, the Blue Jays managed to take home their first division title since 2015.
Central: Guardians
The Tigers held first place for most of the season, but a late September surge by the Guardians gave them the crown.
West: Mariners
Hey, that’s two right now. After years of falling short, the Mariners finally held off the Astros to take home their first division title since 2001.
Wild Cards: Rays, Twins, Orioles
Not a single correct guess here. The Twins and Orioles bottomed out, while the Rays hung around the race for most of the season, but couldn’t make a run. Instead, the Yankees, Red Sox, and Tigers topped the wild card standings.
AL Champion: Guardians
Well, their hot run couldn’t last forever. Since the Guardians are out, the field looks to be wide open. What a story it would be for the Mariners to make their first World Series appearance.
Cy Young: Garrett Crochet
While Tiger starter Tarik Skubal looks to be the front-runner, Crochet has a chance to get some support here.
MVP: Julio Rodriguez
It’s going to come down to Rodriguez’s teammate Cal Raleigh or Aaron Judge, who had another monster season.
Eschewing their traditional day after the All-Star Game release, Major League Baseball released their tentative 2026 schedule on a random Tuesday at the end of August. For the fourth 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 a young and improving White Sox team already looking ahead to next year and the Cubs trying to lock down a Wild Card spot, the 2026 season looks like it could be an interesting 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 open their season on March 26, the earliest North American start in league history, under the dome in Milwaukee against the Brewers, followed by a trip to South Beach to face the Marlins. They open up their home schedule against the Blue Jays on April 2.
Aside from the Brewers and Marlins, the interleague schedule sees the White Sox going on the road to face the Phillies, Cardinals, Diamondbacks, and Padres, while the Pirates, Reds, Dodgers, Braves, Mets, Rockies, and Nationals make their way to Rate Field. The rivalry with their north side foes continues with a three-game weekend series at home Wrigley Field in mid-May followed by a weekday series at Wrigley Field in mid-August.
The White Sox wrap up the 2026 season in September with series against the Twins, Guardians, and Tigers, should it matter. The season ends at home with a three-game series against the Rockies.
On the north side, the Cubs kick off their season at home against the Nationals and the Angels before heading out on the road in early April. Aside from the Angels, the Cubs will host the Twins, A’s, Yankees, Blue Jays, and Tigers, while travelling to visit the Mariners, Orioles, Guardians, Red Sox, and Royals.
Twelve of their 24 games in September are against their NL Central rivals, with six coming against the Brewers, which could make a difference should the Cubs find themselves in contention once again. They end the year with a three-game road trip to Boston to face the Red Sox.
The MLB trade deadline has come and gone and neither the Cubs nor the White Sox made the big moves they were expected to make. The Cubs made two late moves, adding utility man Willi Castro from the Twins and reliever Taylor Rogers from the Pirates. The White Sox made a single move, sending Adrian Houser to the Rays.
Castro, 28, is a switch hitter who can play pretty much anywhere. He’s posted a .742 OPS with the Twins this year and will hit free agency at year end. Going back to the Twins are two Double A pitchers: Ryan Gallagher and Sam Armstrong. Rogers, 34, was acquired by the Pirates on Wednesday in the Ke’Bryan Hayes trade before being flipped to the Cubs. His walk rate this year is the highest it has been in his career, but a veteran lefty is always good to have around down the stretch. High A outfielder Ivan Brethowr is headed back to the Pirates. He is 22 and striking out in nearly 30% of his at bats this season.
Houser, 32, joined the White Sox in late May and has had the best stretch of his career. In return, the Rays are sending infielder Curtis Mead, pitcher Duncan Davitt, and pitcher Ben Peoples. Mead, 24, is a former top 100 prospect who has yet to find his way in the big leagues, spending parts of three seasons with the Rays and posting 0.4 career WAR. Davitt, 25, and Peoples, 24, were both in Triple A for the Rays.
Despite those moves, when the bell rang at 5 PM CT yesterday, the Cubs were still lacking a proven starter who can help their beleaguered rotation, and the White Sox still employed Luis Robert, Mike Tauchman, and Aaron Civale. None of which was the expected outcome of the day.
With Vinny Capra and the White Sox falling victim to Clayton Kershaw on Wednesday night, giving him his 3000th career strikeout, I decided to take a look back at the historic games I’ve attended over the years. Here is part one, featuring six games where an individual hit a career plateau or a team clinched a division title.
June 30, 1998 – Diamondbacks 4, Cubs 3
Sammy Sosa had broken the June record for home runs nine days earlier, surpassing the fifteen previously reached by Babe Ruth, Bob Johnson, Roger Maris, and Pedro Guerrero. In the 8th inning of the final game of the month, Sosa connected against Alan Embree for his 20th home run of the month, setting the record not just for June, but for any month of the season.
September 27, 2003 – Cubs 7, Pirates 2
After winning the first game of a double header against the Pirates, the Cubs were in position to clinch at least a portion of their first Central Division title heading into the nightcap. After the second-place Astros lost their game, a victory would give the Cubs the championship. They jumped on Pirates starter Ryan Vogelsong early, scoring six runs in his 1 1/3 innings of work. Dave Veres induced former Cub José Hernández to ground into a double play to wrap up the victory.
July 26, 2005 – Giants 3, Cubs 2
Following a nearly three-hour rain delay, Greg Maddux took the mound against the Giants sitting on 2998 strikeouts for his career. In the third inning, Giants shortstop Omar Vizquel stepped up to the plate. With a 2-2 count, Maddux unleashed a sinker that Vizquel flinched away from, taking a third strike as the ball drifted back over the plate. Maddux, who finished the game with three strikeouts, became just the 13th pitcher to reach 3000 strikeouts and the ninth to also have surpassed 300 victories.
August 5, 2007 – Mets 8, Cubs 3
On a warm Sunday night in Chicago, Tom Glavine took the mound for the Mets, sitting at 299 career victories. The 41-year-old lefty tossed 6 1/3 innings, giving up just two runs to secure the win and his place in history. Glavine became only the 23rd pitcher, and just the fifth southpaw, to reach the 300-win plateau.
September 16, 2007 – White Sox 9, Angels 3
Sitting at 499 home runs, Jim Thome entered the Sunday series finale, which just so happened to be Jim Thome bobblehead day, looking to reach 500 in Chicago. With the score tied at seven in the bottom of the ninth, Thome came to the plate with a runner on first. Having gone 0-4 to that point, Thome took Dustin Moseley to a 3-2 count before launching the walk-off milestone home run. He became the 23rd major leaguer to reach the 500 home run mark and the third to do so in 2007. He was the first slugger to reach the milestone with a walk-off.
September 30, 2008 – White Sox 1, Twins 0
After winning a makeup game against the Tigers to force a tie in the AL Central after 162 games, the White Sox took the field against the Twins in a tiebreaker to determine who would move on to the playoffs. The Twins looked to strike first following a double by Michael Cuddyer to lead off the fifth inning, but a throw home by Ken Griffey Jr. nailed Cuddyer trying to score on a fly out to center field, ending the threat. The game remained scoreless until the seventh, when Jim Thome blasted a home run to straight away centerfield. Bobby Jenks came in to close down the game and the White Sox won their second division title in four years.
As we hit the halfway point of the 2025 season, I’ve seen fourteen teams already this year, just under half of the league. Stretching back to the start of 2024, that number jumps to 25, which leaves a quarter of the teams I’ve not seen in quite some time.
Of the remaining five, the Nationals hold the top stop, as it has been over four years now since I have seen them live and in person. The Twins are the biggest surprise, since going two plus seasons without seeing a division rival is pretty rare. I do have the opportunity to add each of these five teams to this season’s slate in the second half. Anyway, here’s a look at each team and the last time I saw them play.
Most Recent Game By Team
| Team | Date |
|---|---|
| Washington Nationals | 5/19/2021 |
| New York Yankees | 5/15/2022 |
| Minnesota Twins | 10/5/2022 |
| Philadelphia Phillies | 6/29/2023 |
| San Francisco Giants | 9/5/2023 |
| Cincinnati Reds | 4/13/2024 |
| Tampa Bay Rays | 4/28/2024 |
| Cleveland Guardians | 5/12/2024 |
| Atlanta Braves | 5/21/2024 |
| Baltimore Orioles | 5/25/2024 |
| Toronto Blue Jays | 5/28/2024 |
| Los Angeles Dodgers | 6/24/2024 |
| Pittsburgh Pirates | 7/14/2024 |
| Detroit Tigers | 8/25/2024 |
| New York Mets | 8/31/2024 |
| Oakland Athletics | 9/15/2024 |
| Los Angeles Angels | 3/27/2025 |
| San Diego Padres | 4/5/2025 |
| Boston Red Sox | 4/13/2025 |
| Milwaukee Brewers | 5/1/2025 |
| Houston Astros | 5/3/2025 |
| Miami Marlins | 5/10/2025 |
| Seattle Mariners | 5/20/2025 |
| Texas Rangers | 5/24/2025 |
| Colorado Rockies | 5/26/2025 |
| Chicago Cubs | 5/26/2025 |
| Kansas City Royals | 6/8/2025 |
| St. Louis Cardinals | 6/19/2025 |
| Chicago White Sox | 6/24/2025 |
| Arizona Diamondbacks | 6/24/2025 |