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10 unbelievable stats about the Chicago White Sox's 2024 season
By David Hill,
2 hours ago
Garrett Crochet.
Virtually nothing has gone right for the Chicago White Sox in 2024.
Little was expected of the White Sox heading into the season. MLB.com had the White Sox 28th in its preseason power rankings , citing the ongoing fire sale as a primary reason. Nonetheless, there was still plenty of talent on the roster.
Garrett Crochet had converted to the rotation and impressed during spring training. Outfielder Luis Robert Jr. had a dominant showing in 2023. Youngsters such as pitchers Nick Nastrini and Jordan Leasure were expected to contribute significantly. Add in several intriguing reclamation projects and the White Sox were an interesting team.
The White Sox are now interesting for a different reason. At 30-102, Chicago is on pace for a historically awful season, needing to go 11-17 down the stretch to avoid infamy. As the White Sox have yet to finish a month with a better record than 9-19, history seems inevitable. Let us take a look at 10 unbelievable stats regarding the White Sox's run of futility.
1. Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press pointed out that the White Sox have the worst record in baseball through 131 games in 108 years. The last team to have a worse record at this point in the season was the 1916 Philadelphia A's , the remnants of a World Series-caliber team that Connie Mack had torn apart for financial reasons. The White Sox's winning percentage entering Tuesday (.235) is tied with that A's team as the worst in the modern era.
2. Historic runs of futility run in the Sheets family . Larry Sheets was the designated hitter for the 1988 Baltimore Orioles who started the season with 21 consecutive losses. His son, Gavin Sheets, is the primary right fielder for the White Sox, who also had a 21-game losing streak this season.
3. The White Sox managed just two wins in a 28-game span between July 6 and Aug. 10. Catcher Danny Jansen played for two teams on Monday , matching the White Sox win total in more than a one-month span.
4. The White Sox offense has been historically anemic. They have averaged 3.1 runs per game entering Monday, tied for the third worst in franchise history. The 1910 and 1968 White Sox both averaged 2.9 runs per game, the latter of which was the last season before the mound was lowered to its present height. Their 411 runs scored are 155 fewer than any other full season in the division era.
5. Given the White Sox's inability to score, it stands to reason that their offense would be putrid. White Sox hitters have combined for -5.9 fWAR in 2024, the fourth-worst mark in a single season in the majors since 1901. Only the 1979 A's (-9.7), 1920 A's (-7.4) and 1977 Braves (-6.5) were worse.
6. White Sox pitching is not immune to these problems either. Chicago relievers have blown 30 saves while successfully converting only 28 chances this season. At least the White Sox no longer have more blown saves than wins (for now).
7. The White Sox have been swept 20 times this season, including their most recent series against the Tigers. They have also been swept five times in a four-game series. Meanwhile, the White Sox have won just five series thus far.
8. White Sox pitching has struggled to prevent runs relative to the rest of the league. Their pitching staff has posted an 87 ERA+, tied for the fifth worst in franchise history. However, White Sox pitchers are worth 7.7 fWAR, the 11th worst in team history. The White Sox's 7.7 fWAR is also better than four other teams this season.
9. As a whole, the White Sox have been worth 1.8 fWAR on the season. A total of 121 hitters and 79 pitchers have either matched or exceeded that mark thus far in 2024. Xavier Edwards (1.9 fWAR), who has appeared in just 47 games this season, is one of those players better than the White Sox. Only two players, Garrett Crotchet (4.0 fWAR) and Erick Fedde (2.2 fWAR), have been better than the team average. Fedde is no longer with the White Sox, having been traded to the Cardinals at the deadline.
10. All of this losing is not going to help the White Sox in the 2025 MLB Draft. With the new lottery system and rules in place to prevent tanking, the White Sox will not be able to pick better than 10th next season. Not only are the White Sox on pace to be historically terrible, but they will have nothing to show for it.
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