The Chicago White Sox lost their 21st straight game and tied the American League record with a 5-1 loss to the Oakland Athletics on Monday night. Max Schuemann hit a two-run single in the fourth inning.
Chicago has the longest losing streak since the Baltimore Orioles lost 21 straight in 1988. The NL record since 1900 is held by the 1961 Philadelphia Phillies, who lost 23 straight.
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The major league low was set by the 1889 Louisville Colonels, an American Association team that lost 26 consecutive games during a 27–111 season.
“We talk about it every day,” White Sox manager Pedro Grifol said of the streak. “Everybody knows what it is. 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. It’s not for lack of trying. Nobody wants to come out here and lose, so we just have to play a good game and put this behind us.”
Chicago, which last won on July 10 in a doubleheader opener against Minnesota, fell to 27-88 and is on track to finish 38-124, which would be its worst loss since the 1899 National League’s Cleveland Spiders went 20-134. The White Sox have been held to one run or fewer 32 times.
“You just try to turn the page,” outfielder Corey Julks said. “Look forward to the next day, come back, don’t dwell on the loss, just try to learn from it and get better every day. … We just try to pick ourselves up as a team and find a way to win.”
