BASE-BALL

[Henry]

Looks like the ChiSox will move to a defeat away from tying the '03 Tigers' AL record for most losses ever...

[gonealookin]

Looks like the ChiSox will move to a defeat away from tying the '03 Tigers' AL record for most losses ever...

Down by two and down to their last strike in the top of the ninth, Lenyn Sosa dramatically homers to tie the game.  That has to be one of the great moments of their season.

The Sox fail to score in the top of the 10th, and Fernando Tatis immediately wins it for San Diego on the second pitch of the bottom of the 10th.

36-118.

[mgk920]

As of this typing, the White Sox are 36-120, with six games to go in the season.  This ties the futility record of the 1962 Mets.   

Mike

[1995hoo]

As of this typing, the White Sox are 36-120, with six games to go in the season.  This ties the futility record of the 1962 Mets.   

They're guaranteed not to break the record today, anyway.

[gonealookin]

Even their in-house Twitter account, which may be run by some roadgeek, is bashing them.  Although that admin car appears to be heading for Guaranteed Rate Field, and one wonders why anyone would be going there.

https://twitter.com/whitesox/status/1837984379030696062

[triplemultiplex]

"I'm sorry I cannot pitch this season; I will do my best to contribute somehow"

At this point, he's hall of fame even he if never throws a single pitch in the MLB.

You know, Ohtani reminds me of a 'future historical character' from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.  Captain Sisko loves baseball even though it's not a thing anymore in his present time. And he periodically brings up this stellar player from Japan who would have played in the 2020's.  Buck Bokai.  He's spoken in the same breathe Ruth and Aaron and such.

Ohtani is a real world Buck Bokai.  Except he also pitches.  And plays in LA instead of London. (Eh, the writers extrapolated a little too hard on league expansion from behind their desks in the early 90's.) Also he's way taller.  They portrayed Bokai as a stouter dude, kinda like a Japanese Babe Ruth.  But still, legendary ball player from Japan playing in the 2020's who they'll be talking about for centuries?  Check.

[Henry]

As of this typing, the White Sox are 36-120, with six games to go in the season.  This ties the futility record of the 1962 Mets.   

They're guaranteed not to break the record today, anyway.

IIRC, they're only the third team ever to lose at least 120 games, behind the '62 Mets and 1899 Cleveland Spiders. On the upside, at least everybody in Detroit can breathe a sigh of relief that after 21 years, their team is no longer the AL's worst of all time.

[gonealookin]

"I'm sorry I cannot pitch this season; I will do my best to contribute somehow"

At this point, he's hall of fame even he if never throws a single pitch in the MLB.

That comment will likely turn out to be correct, but it's premature.

Ohtani has thrown 481 innings in MLB, which is trivial compared to the current pitchers who will certainly be elected to the HOF (Verlander 3409, Scherzer 2878, Kershaw 2742).  For this discussion I'll assume his remaining MLB pitching will be limited, at most.

As to hitting, he hasn't even reached 1000 career hits (currently 865), and 224 career home runs ties him for 311th place on the all-time list.

Players aren't eligible for election to the Hall of Fame until they have played in ten MLB seasons; Ohtani is completing his seventh.  Three more years of performance at the level he has produced in 2024 would do it, but 2024 is fairly likely to be his best season ever.  Five more good to very good years seems more likely, and that would get him over 400 career home runs and over 70 career WAR (he's at 42.9 WAR now, 8.4 this season using Baseball Reference's formula); those levels would ensure HOF election.  He seems can't-miss, until you look at how far Mike Trout's production has dropped since Trout turned 30 (Ohtani turned 30 in July).

[gonealookin]

As of this typing, the White Sox are 36-120, with six games to go in the season.  This ties the futility record of the 1962 Mets. 

They're guaranteed not to break the record today, anyway.

IIRC, they're only the third team ever to lose at least 120 games, behind the '62 Mets and 1899 Cleveland Spiders. On the upside, at least everybody in Detroit can breathe a sigh of relief that after 21 years, their team is no longer the AL's worst of all time.

The 1916 Philadelphia A's finished 36-117-1, for a winning percentage of .2353, the worst of the "modern era" (since the American League was established in the 1901 season).  The 1899 Spiders did go 20-134 (.1299), but anything before 1901 is usually considered prehistoric.

If the White Sox lose 4 of their final 6 they would conclude the season at 38-124, a winning percentage of .2346 that would be worse than those 1916 A's and make them indisputably the worst team in modern history.

That should be achievable, although they are playing three meaningless home games against the wretched Angels (63-93) before concluding the season with three in Detroit, where the Tigers could be fighting for a wild card spot right through the final game.  The Tigers lose tiebreakers to both the Royals and Twins, so they need to finish ahead of both of them.

[gonealookin]

The champagne was on ice at the '62 Mets nursing home watch parties, but it will have to wait at least one more night as the Sox come back from a 2-run deficit in the 8th inning to win.

[Hunty2022]

The Houston Astros have clinched their 4th AL West Division title in a row with a 4-3 over the Seattle Mariners last night! They are currently 86-72.

[SEWIGuy]

I was reading about how the hurricane is forcing the cancellation of the last two games of the Mets at Braves series, and that it may be made up as part of a double header on Monday depending on how each of the respective teams, as well as the Diamondbacks, do this weekend.

The Mets are at the Brewers. The Brewers opened their season at the Mets and haven't played since. I wonder if this is the first time in MLB history that two teams played scheduled series to both start and finish the season, with no other games in between.

[triplemultiplex]

Ohtani has thrown 481 innings in MLB, which is trivial compared to the current pitchers who will certainly be elected to the HOF (Verlander 3409, Scherzer 2878, Kershaw 2742).  For this discussion I'll assume his remaining MLB pitching will be limited, at most.

Meant to say 'never throws another single pitch'. 

Based on recent history, I'm pessimistic about my Brewers doing well this post season.  Feels like another wild card round out.  Love to be proved wrong.

[Max Rockatansky]

I'm surprised that my Tigers are making a serious run for a wild card spot. They floated around .500 all year but had a really good ace pitcher in form of Tarik Skubal.  Now I regret not seeing them play in Oakland this year.

[Rothman]

Angels/White Sox = Keystone Kops playing each other.

[Henry]

Angels/White Sox = Keystone Kops playing each other.

For the moment, the Sox managed to stay tied with the '62 Mets as the modern era's losingest team, with a sweep of the Angels, so make that 39-120 for them.

Detroit is going to be a tougher series for them, though, especially with the Tigers looking to make it into the postseason. I'm sure we'll see plenty of 43-119 references throughout that series, and maybe a "thanks for stealing the record from us".

[NWI_Irish96]

Angels/White Sox = Keystone Kops playing each other.

For the moment, the Sox managed to stay tied with the '62 Mets as the modern era's losingest team, with a sweep of the Angels, so make that 39-120 for them.

Detroit is going to be a tougher series for them, though, especially with the Tigers looking to make it into the postseason. I'm sure we'll see plenty of 43-119 references throughout that series, and maybe a "thanks for stealing the record from us".

While still likely to break the loss record, With the sweep of the Angels the Sox did manage to avoid ending with the worst winning percentage (post-1900).

[Flint1979]

I saw the Tigers play four times this year live in person and they are 4-0 in those games.

[epzik8]

A's next three seasons in Sacramento about to be hilarious.

[Max Rockatansky]

A's next three seasons in Sacramento about to be hilarious.

Come see how much so during the 2025 Sacramento Road Meet.

[gonealookin]

The champagne was on ice at the '62 Mets nursing home watch parties, but it will have to wait at least one more night as the Sox come back from a 2-run deficit in the 8th inning to win.

It happened in Detroit tonight, loss #121.

Unfortunately longtime Met Ed Kranepool, who was 17 years old when he made his major league debut in September 1962, passed away earlier this month so he didn't see this glorious moment.

Eight guys who played with the '62 Mets are still alive (current age):
Jim Marshall (93)
Felix Mantilla (90)
Galen Cisco (88)
Cliff Cook (88)
John DeMerit (88)
Rick Herrscher (87)
Jay Hook (87)
Craig Anderson (86)

[epzik8]

Gotta give it to the White Sox' social media team this year.

[Henry]

The champagne was on ice at the '62 Mets nursing home watch parties, but it will have to wait at least one more night as the Sox come back from a 2-run deficit in the 8th inning to win.

It happened in Detroit tonight, loss #121.

Unfortunately longtime Met Ed Kranepool, who was 17 years old when he made his major league debut in September 1962, passed away earlier this month so he didn't see this glorious moment.

Eight guys who played with the '62 Mets are still alive (current age):
Jim Marshall (93)
Felix Mantilla (90)
Galen Cisco (88)
Cliff Cook (88)
John DeMerit (88)
Rick Herrscher (87)
Jay Hook (87)
Craig Anderson (86)

It's quite ironic, and somehow appropriate, that the White Sox had to lose to the same team that had the old record for 21 years. If there's any consolation in this, they'll only be second on the all-time list for most losses in a season, behind the 1899 Cleveland Spiders, who went 20-134, but that was "prehistoric", as someone else pointed out. It certainly doesn't feel good to be the modern era's leader in that category, though, and they're not going to be remembered as the lovable losers that the '62 Mets were, but there's always next season, so there's no way to go but up (hopefully).

[Flint1979]

The champagne was on ice at the '62 Mets nursing home watch parties, but it will have to wait at least one more night as the Sox come back from a 2-run deficit in the 8th inning to win.

It happened in Detroit tonight, loss #121.

Unfortunately longtime Met Ed Kranepool, who was 17 years old when he made his major league debut in September 1962, passed away earlier this month so he didn't see this glorious moment.

Eight guys who played with the '62 Mets are still alive (current age):
Jim Marshall (93)
Felix Mantilla (90)
Galen Cisco (88)
Cliff Cook (88)
John DeMerit (88)
Rick Herrscher (87)
Jay Hook (87)
Craig Anderson (86)

It's quite ironic, and somehow appropriate, that the White Sox had to lose to the same team that had the old record for 21 years. If there's any consolation in this, they'll only be second on the all-time list for most losses in a season, behind the 1899 Cleveland Spiders, who went 20-134, but that was "prehistoric", as someone else pointed out. It certainly doesn't feel good to be the modern era's leader in that category, though, and they're not going to be remembered as the lovable losers that the '62 Mets were, but there's always next season, so there's no way to go but up (hopefully).

The Tigers didn't have the record, the Mets did.

[mgk920]

Also, IMHO, the 'modern era' started in 1920, with several serious rule changes (ball to be kept in as clean and 'new' condition as possible, foul balls are to be counted as strikes up to two, etc).

Mike