Tag / White Sox

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2026 Predictions Revisited

Way back in March, when the 2026 season was just about to get underway, I made my annual predictions as to who would win what. With the Division Series round kicking off this afternoon, it is time to revisit those predictions and see what, if anything, I got right.

American League

East: Blue Jays

Well, despite adding Dylan Cease to a team that nearly won the World Series last year, the Blue Jays could not put things together and the Rays re-took the top spot in the division.

Central: Tigers

The White Sox had a surprising, long run atop the Central but, in the end, the Guardians won out.

West: Mariners

The Astros ended up “winning” this division, becoming the worst playoff team by record in a full season in the history of the sport.

Wild Cards: Yankees, Red Sox, Astros

Two out of three ain’t bad, with the surprising White Sox taking the final spot.

AL Champion: Tigers

Well, that’s obviously not going to happen.  My guess is whoever wins the ALDS series between the Rays and the Yankees will take the pennant.

Cy Young: Tarik Skubal

Skubal got hurt and then was traded to the Dodgers, so it seems unlikely he will win his third in a row.  At this point, I’m going to guess Yankees hurler Cam Schlitter will win.

MVP: Julio Rodriguez

Despite the Astros struggles, it looks like Yordan Alvarez is the front runner to take home this award.

National League

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Playoff Pitching Leaders

As the calendar turns to October, one Chicago team remains alive in the postseason, and it is not the one anyone would have expected when the season kicked off back in March.  The White Sox took care of business yesterday, dispatching the Astros to win their Wild Card series and will be heading to the ALDS against the Guardians this weekend.  Meanwhile, the Cubs once again fell to the Padres, ending their season.  While we wait for the next round, it’s time to take our updated look at the pitching leaders from the now 35 post-season games I’ve attended since the White Sox won the AL Central in 2000.

Wins

Name Total
Mark Buehrle 2
Jon Lester 2
Jake Arrieta 2
29 tied with 1

Losses

Name Total
Matt Clement 2
33 tied with 1

ERA (> 6 IP)

Name Total
Aroldis Chapman 0.00
Stephen Strasburg 0.00
Kyle Freeland 0.00
Johnny Cueto 1.13
Chad Billingsley 1.35

Strikeouts

Name Total
Jon Lester 25
Jake Arrieta 22
Mark Buehrle 13
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Playoff Batting Leaders

A mixed bag for the local teams following the start of their respective Wild Card Series yesterday, with the White Sox taking a one game lead against the Astros while the Cubs were blown out by the Padres.  With both series potentially wrapping up today, it’s time to take an updated look at the offensive leaders from the now 35 post-season games I have attended since 2000.  So, without further ado, we start off with:

Home Runs

Name Total
Kris Bryant 4
Javier Baez 3
Paul Konerko 3
B.J. Upton 3
Dexter Fowler 3
Enrique Hernandez 3

Hits

Name Total
Kris Bryant 11
Javier Baez 11
Dexter Fowler 10
Anthony Rizzo 10
Moises Alou 9
Jason Heyward 9

Runs

Name Total
Dexter Fowler 7
Kyle Tucker 7
Paul Konerko 6
Daniel Murphy 6
A.J. Pierzynski 5
Kris Bryant 5
Javier Baez 5
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All Time Playoff Team Records

We’ve made it through 162 games and, for the first time since 2020, both the White Sox and the Cubs are in the post-season.  After faltering down the stretch, however, both teams open up on the road in the Wild Card series, with the White Sox headed to Houston to face the Astros, their foe in the 2021 ALDS, while the Cubs go west to San Diego in a rematch of last year’s series against the Padres.

It’s time to take an updated look at the team records for the now 35 playoff contests I have attended. These contests come from the 2018 Wild Card game, the ALDS in 2000, 2005, 2008, and 2021, the NLDS in 2003, 2007, 2008, 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2025, the NLCS in 2003, 2015, 2016, and 2017, the ALCS in 2005, and, of course, the 2005 and 2016 World Series.

Post-Season Team Records

Team Name Won Loss Winning Pctg
Florida Marlins 3 0 1.000
Seattle Mariners 2 0 1.000
New York Mets 2 0 1.000
Colorado Rockies 1 0 1.000
Arizona Diamondbacks 1 0 1.000
Chicago White Sox 6 5 0.545
Los Angeles Dodgers 3 3 0.500
Atlanta Braves 1 1 0.500
Cleveland Indians 1 1 0.500
Los Angeles Angels 1 1 0.500
Washington Nationals 1 1 0.500
Tampa Bay Rays 1 1 0.500
Chicago Cubs 11 13 0.458
Houston Astros 1 2 0.333
Milwaukee Brewers 0 2 0.000
San Francisco Giants 0 2 0.000
St. Louis Cardinals 0 1 0.000
Boston Red Sox 0 2 0.000
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Clinched

With their 9-1 victory over the Royals in Kansas City yesterday, the White Sox clinched a postseason berth, their first since 2021.  They became just the fourth team to make the playoffs a year after losing 100+ games and the first to ever do so after two straight years of 100+ losses.  They also became the first team in MLB history to notch a winning record following two 100+ loss seasons.  With three games to go in the regular season, they remain one game behind the Guardians for the AL Central title and hold the tiebreaker.

Mere minutes later, the Cubs followed suit, officially wrapping up their spot in the postseason with a 2-1 win over the Marlins at Wrigley Field.  The Cubs currently sit one game behind the Padres for the top Wild Card seed in the NL and face a tough weekend in Boston (and maybe Tampa?) to wrap up the season.

This is just the fourth time both Chicago teams have made the postseason in the same year and the first, with fans allowed in the stands, since 2008.

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Falling Apart

The White Sox were 307-2 at home in the 21st Century when leading by six or more runs coming into yesterday’s game.  Sadly, they are now 307-3.  Blowing an 8-2 lead, the White Sox lost 11-8 to the Tigers last night, which, combined with a Guardians victory over the A’s earlier in the evening, pushed them back down to second place.

That leaves the White Sox with a tenuous single game lead over the Rangers for the third Wild Card spot as they struggle to become the first team to ever make the post-season after two straight 100-loss seasons.

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Back To First

After falling out of first place on Wednesday for the first time since early July, the White Sox rebounded yesterday, defeating the Tigers 3-1 and moving back into a tie for the AL Central lead with the Guardians.  Since they won the season series, the White Sox do hold the tiebreaker.  The White Sox continue their series with the Tigers tonight as the Guardians open a three-game tilt with the A’s in Cleveland.  With just over a week to go in the regular season, things are coming down to the wire.

The 2026 White Sox sit with 78 wins, the most in MLB history for a team coming off of at least three straight 100-loss seasons.  They are looking to become the first team to ever make the post-season after two straight 100-loss seasons.

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Falling Out Of First

After holding, at least, a share of the AL Central lead since July 4, the White Sox lost the division lead yesterday, losing to the Guardians 6-3 and falling a half game behind.  On the plus side, they are still tied in the loss column and do hold the tiebreaker with the Guardians, so it is not completely bleak.  With just ten games remaining in the regular season, they will look to turn around a losing trend that has lasted over a month now, going 19-24 since the start of August.  They start a four-game series at home against the Tigers tonight, while the Guardians start a three-game set at home against the A’s on Friday.

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Taking Charge

In danger of falling out of first place with a loss, the White Sox struck first in their crucial series with the Guardians last night, winning 7-3 and dropping their magic number to clinch the AL Central division to eleven.  The victory also gave the White Sox the season series, meaning they also have the advantage should the two teams end the season in a tie.  The series continues this afternoon in Cleveland for game two.

The 2026 White Sox sit with 77 wins, the most in MLB history for a team coming off of at least three straight 100-loss seasons.  They are looking to become the first team to ever make the post-season after two straight 100-loss seasons.

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Fitbit 12 – Week 34

Another great week as I once again surpassed my daily goal twice and finished above 40,000 steps for the thirteenth straight week.  Things got off to a nice start on Sunday thanks to a morning walk and a trip to Rate Field to see the White Sox pick up a victory. pushing me up to 9100 steps.  The Labor Day holiday on Monday finished with 6300 steps.  A quiet Tuesday again finished with 6300 steps, a mere 8 less than Monday’s total.  Wednesday was the low day of the week, ending with 4800 steps.  Thursday saw a slight improvement, going up to 4900 steps.  Things picked back up on Friday, ending 14 steps shy of 6000.  A return to Wrigley Field on Saturday wrapped up the week with 7600 steps.

Total steps: 45,191

Daily average: 6455.9