MINNEAPOLIS -- The White Sox dropped to 3-19 on Monday night. Humble titles like "the worst start in franchise history," faded into the rear view mirror long ago, replaced by the distinction that only four teams have started 3-19 or worse since the outbreak of World War II.
One of them was the 1988 Baltimore Orioles, who fired Cal Ripken Sr. as manager amidst an 0-21 start to the season. Another was the 1992 Kansas City Royals, who recovered for a miraculously ordinary 72-90 record. The 2003 Detroit Tigers, who put together the worst 162-game season of the modern era, also started 3-19.
"We can’t deny what’s happening," said Pedro Grifol postgame Monday night. "Our record sucks. But what are you going to do about it? We have to come out tomorrow and get ready to play. You have to forget about today. You have to. Learn and move on."
Lucas Giolito and Carlos Rodón be damned, I'm usually quick to assume I'm not witnessing history at the ballpark. Baseball has been played for extremely long time. The talent pool is deeper than ever and information gets shared quicker than ever.
And even at this point, where the Sox would have to go 40-100 to match those Tigers, it seems unfathomable to consider, since it would require guys like Andrew Vaughn, Eloy Jiménez and Andrew Benintendi to continue to play massively below their career standards for such a very long period of time. Or for all of Vaughn's bases loaded 104 mph exit velocity liners to get snagged in the infield all year.
"You like to stay optimistic and say 'Hey, it's going to eventually happen,'" said Nicky Lopez postgame. "But sometimes it just doesn't. You've got to just stay positive. You've got to just keep attacking. You can't get these back. They're in the past. You've got to just keep moving on."
But the Sox also became one of two post-WWII teams to score 45 runs or less in their first 22 games after being shut for the eighth time on the year Monday night, and paired it with another evening of overthrowing cutoff men and allowing extra bases to the opposition. Their eight hits Monday matched their fifth-highest total for a game this season, which sounds good but is probably still bad, since they were all singles.
The White Sox had another blizzard of roster moves Monday, typical of a team in a historically awful rut, as slumps have persisted and defensive execution has continued to slip. While Lenyn Sosa found himself optioned a day after being at the center of a botched rundown on Sunday, efforts to make it clear that something is being done to fix are insufficient on two fronts.
The first is that until the White Sox stop looking like not only the worst team in baseball, but one of the worst teams of the last several years, whatever is being done is insufficient. But secondly, Pedro Grifol said he is disinclined against making a public display of holding players accountable.
"I’m not going to throw out there anything that I speak to our players as individuals or as a team," Grifol said. "I’m just not going to do it. That’s how I choose to lead. That’s how I choose to run this club. I can tell you this, rest assured, that everything that happens in this ballclub, on the field, off the field, that affects us being able to win a baseball game or affects the integrity and character of this organization, is being addressed. That’s the only thing I can say. As far as getting into the specifics of it, I’m never going to do this. We can continue to talk about it and you guys can continue to ask those questions and I’ll continue to answer this way. The only thing I can assure you is that everybody here, including myself, is being held accountable. And everything is going to be addressed. There’s nothing that’s not going to be addressed. If we’re talking about rundowns, if we’re talking about cutoffs, talking about whatever happens on or off the field, rest assured that it’s being addressed."
A couple hours later, Trevor Larnach went first-to-third on a Ryan Jeffers two-out single to center in the first inning, and Dominic Fletcher's effort to cut him down sailed both wide of third and allowed Jeffers to cruise into second on the throw. Both runners would score on a Max Kepler double that followed.
Grifol again, pledged to handle the issue in-house after the game.
The throw was a little high but by looking at it, I think [shortstop Paul] DeJong could have been a little deeper on that," Grifol said. "We gave up 90 feet right there. It will be addressed tomorrow."
A towering Edouard Julien solo shot is the only mark against Chris Flexen in his last 6⅓ innings of work out of the bullpen, which is difficult to process.
For one, it largely resembled a collection of lazy fly balls from opposing hitters sleepwalking through the back end of games that have ceased being competitive enterprises. But also, Flexen in his best days of 2021 and 2022 induced a lot of lazy fly balls by offenses that would tend not to look overpowered, but couldn't quite time up his large mix of pitches coming out of an unusually high arm slot. The premise of the Sox signing Flexen in the offseason coming off a poor 2023, was that they would reap the benefits (at a low acquisition cost) of restoring that slot.
"There's still more work to do but the last outing was a step in the right direction," Flexen said pregame Monday. "The attack angle, the arm slot's in a better slot, the body positions are in a better spot and I'm able to be in the zone more."
Grifol planned to keep Flexen in the bullpen during the first couple days in Minneapolis in case he was needed in long relief, but identified him as the likely starter on Friday when the Sox return home to play the Rays. Even after Jonathan Cannon was shelled on Monday, and Flexen used 28 pitches to record seven outs, Grifol indicated a Friday start is still in the cards in the wake of Nick Nastrini being optioned.
Since Mike Clevinger's initial goal was to be major league ready by May 1, and Brad Keller is nearing readiness at Triple-A Charlotte, it's likely nothing nearing a permanent placement for Flexen. Having bounced between the rotation and bullpen each of the last two seasons, he is nothing if not mentally prepared.
"It's definitely not a five-day starting routine," Flexen said. "I try to do some similar things to stay sharp, but I also have a fair amount of experience out the bullpen and trying to figure out a routine there in case they need me back-to-back. We'll figure it out."
Where is Tommy Pham? A great question that one cannot help ask amid a run of historical offensive struggles. Asked about it Monday, Grifol lamented that Pham has only gotten one game in at Charlotte due to Sunday's rainout, but also termed things carefully enough that he wouldn't be contradicted if Pham shows up in the majors right alongside his reported opt-out date.
"He’s seeing the ball pretty good and he’s a veteran guy who’s been around, understands his body and he’ll communicate with us exactly when he’s ready and we’ll take a look at him."
