The Chicago White Sox joined the wrong side of history on Monday as they lost their 21st straight game, tying an American League record and marking the longest losing streak since the 1988 Baltimore Orioles also lost 21 games in a row.
The National League record is held by the 1961 Philadelphia Phillies who lost 23 consecutive games and the major league record is held by the 1889 Louisville Colonels, which was an American Association team that lost 26 straight games during a brutal season that saw them post a 27-111 record.
The White Sox last won on July 10th during the opener of a double header with the Minnesota Twins, and with the latest strong of losses the team is on pace to finish 38-124, which would be the most losses since the 1899 Cleveland Spiders of the National League went 20-134.
“We talk about it every day, everybody knows what it is,” White Sox manager Pedro Grifol said following the game (h/t ESPN). “It’s 21 in a row, it sucks, it’s painful, it hurts, you name it. … Like I said, it’s not for lack of effort. Nobody wants to come out here and lose.”
“You just try to turn the page,” White Sox outfielder Corey Julks said. “Look forward to the next day, bounce back, don’t dwell on the loss, just try to learn from them and get better each day. … We’re just trying to rally as a team and find a way to get a win.”
“It’s time to snap,” White Sox great Frank Thomas, a Hall of Fame first baseman said during the team’s postgame show on NBC Sports Chicago. “That’s the only way through the players right now. Snap. I’m serious. I don’t want to hear no more: ‘We’re trying.’ No more: ‘They’re working hard every day.’ No, it’s time to snap. It’s time to kick over the spread.”
“I’m not being nice. Kick the door. Slam the door! ‘Get out of here! I’m tired of answering questions,'” Thomas said when describing how he would react if he were the White Sox manager right now. “‘We’ve lost 21 in — we’re the laughingstock of baseball. You think I don’t know that?'”
The White Sox will try to stop the skid as the play the Oakland Athletics, once again, on Tuesday.
