White Sox tie 1962 Mets for MLBs modern futility mark with 120 losses
SAN DIEGO — The Chicago White Sox tied the post-1900 MLB record of 120 losses by the 1962 expansion New York Mets on Sunday when the San Diego Padres won 4-2 by rallying for three runs in the eighth inning, capped by Fernando Tatis Jr.’s towering home run.The White Sox (36-120) had taken a 2-1 lead on home runs by Korey Lee and Miguel Vargas off Yu Darvish, but that lead quickly disappeared in the eighth.This defeat came a day after the White Sox tied the American League record of 119 losses set by the 2003 Detroit Tigers.The 1899 Cleveland Spiders hold the major league record for losses at 20-134.Interim manager Grady Sizemore didn’t address the team afterward.“No loss is good,” he said.“It’s not something that we’re focused on.
I think everyone outside this clubhouse is more obsessed with it than us.The way we spin is to put this one behind us and get ready for the series back home.”With one more loss in their final six games, the White Sox will hold the modern-day record outright.
They finish with three at home against the Los Angeles Angels beginning Tuesday night and finish with three at Detroit, which is in the AL wild-card hunt.“I guess when you lose 120 it’s easier to brush it off, but it (stinks) to go through it, but that’s where we’re at,” veteran Andrew Benintendi said.The Padres (90-66) clinched their first 90-win season since 2010, when they finished 90-72 but missed the postseason thanks to a brutal September collapse.The Padres reduced their magic number to one for clinching their third postseason berth since 2020.The Padres control their own destiny going into a three-game series at the NL West-leading Los Angeles Dodgers starting Tuesday night, but would have to win out to clinch the division title.While the Dodgers have a three-game lead over the Padres, San Diego owns the tiebreaker.
San Diego has a three-game lead over Arizona for the NL’s top wild card.The Padres finish with three games at Arizona next weekend....