White Sox lose 21st straight game, tying 36-year-old American League record
OAKLAND, Calif. — Another uncompetitive at-bat. Another hopeless comeback opportunity. Another loss added to a season filled with such losses.
Nick Senzel’s unfortunate 0-2 cut on a three-pitch strikeout officially ended a 5-1 White Sox rout. It was also the moment that sealed an American League record-tying 21st consecutive loss. For a team that has yet to come back from a sixth-inning deficit this season, the moment has long felt inevitable.
It’s been 36 years since the Baltimore Orioles lost 21 straight games to start the 1988 season. They’re no longer alone in the American League when it comes to a prolonged streak of futility.
“We talk about it every day, everybody knows what it is,” White Sox manager Pedro Grifol said. “It’s 21 in a row. It sucks, it’s not fun. It’s painful, it hurts. You name it. Whatever you want to describe it.”
They may not want to lose, but there seems to be nothing the White Sox can do to stop it. And now an even more dubious record looms over the much-maligned manager and his club. A loss on Tuesday would set an AL record. Two more losses would tie the 1961 Phillies, who hold the modern record for 23 straight losses. If the White Sox can’t win a game in Oakland, they’ll have to beat their rival, the Cubs, to avoid the longest losing streak in baseball history.
Starting pitcher Ky Bush was given the unenviable task of ending this pointless stretch in his MLB debut. But after just four batters — three of which he walked — the White Sox bullpen was in turmoil. Bush ended up with five walks in his four innings of work.
A day after Chicago’s offense came to life in an eventual 13-7 loss, the league’s worst-hitting team could not muster much again. Andrew Benintendi drove in the lone run, one of four White Sox hits on the night.
“You just try to turn the page, look forward to the next day,” said Corey Julks, whose run-saving catch was one of Chicago’s only highlights. “Don’t dwell on the losses. Try to learn from them and get better every day.”
Each day, however, brought another loss. And the White Sox are in a different realm than the rest of the league. They are 15 games behind the Rockies, who have the sport’s second-worst record. They are 41 1/2 games behind in the American League Central — creating the possibility of division elimination in the coming days.
The loss came against the backdrop of a relatively bare stadium in Oakland, home to an A’s team that lost 112 games last year and was expected to be back in the league in 2024. Instead, the White Sox have long held the lead.
It’s not just that they’ve lost 21 straight games. It’s that they’ve been blown out regularly in the process. The team has been outscored by 85 points during that span, for an average deficit of more than four runs per game. The aforementioned Orioles were also outscored by 85 points during their streak.
That Orioles team, however, went on to go 54-107. To finish in that range, the White Sox (27-88) would have to finish well above .500 the rest of the way.
It was just three years ago that the White Sox won their division by 13 games, a team full of young players in a season that felt like the beginning of a potential South Side dynasty.
Three years later, they are heading for what could be the worst season ever, with painful nights that seem to never end.
Cameras showed Grifol in the visitors’ dugout for the final pitch of the game, staring at the field before him. It’s a familiar sight for a manager and a team desperate for something to celebrate. Instead, the final strike came. And with it, an infamous record.
“It’s not for lack of effort,” Grifol said. “Nobody wants to come here and lose. We just have to play a good game and put this behind us.”
(Top photo of Andrew Vaughn running: Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
