# 2024 Chicago White Sox's 121st loss

The 2024 Chicago White Sox's 121st loss, referred to colloquially as Loss No. 121 or Loss #121 during the game, in local and national sports media, and by sports fans, is a historic Major League Baseball game played on September 27, 2024, that saw the visiting Chicago White Sox clinch the largest number of losses in a major league baseball season since the 1899 Cleveland Spiders' 134 losses. In doing so they surpassed the 1962 New York Mets modern record of 120 losses, with the Mets playing 160 games that year and the 121st Sox loss coming in their 160th game. With the win the home team Detroit Tigers clinched a playoff berth for the first time since 2014.
The game was played in Comerica Park in Detroit. The 121st loss was the last White Sox loss of the season, who won their last two games to finish at 41-121.

## Background

The 2024 Chicago White Sox season broke several franchise records for losses after beginning their season with their worst start in franchise history at 3–22, which also tied the worst start in the wild card era.
On June 6, following a 14–2 defeat to the Boston Red Sox, the White Sox established a franchise record for the most consecutive losses at 14. During this losing streak, the White Sox had their "first winless homestand of at least seven games in franchise history", going 0–7. The franchise record for consecutive losses was broken again on July 29 when the White Sox dropped their 15th straight game, losing 8–5 to the Kansas City Royals. The streak continued, and on August 5, the White Sox lost their 21st consecutive game, falling 5–1 to the Oakland Athletics. This marked the first time since the 1988 Baltimore Orioles that a team endured a 21-game losing streak.
The team also broke league-wide losing records including for the quickest assurance of a losing season by losing 82 of their first 109 games, surpassing the 2003 Detroit Tigers, who lost 82 of their first 111 games.

### 120th loss

On September 22, 2024, the White Sox lost 4–2 to the San Diego Padres, earning their 120th loss, surpassing the American League record set by the 2003 Tigers and tying the Major League record set by the 1962 expansion New York Mets. Following the game, several sports and news outlets ran articles discussing the potential for the White Sox to lose one of their remaining six games of the season to the Los Angeles Angels at home or the Tigers in Detroit to break the modern single-season loss record.
As a result, many White Sox fans bought tickets to White Sox home games against the Angels, hoping to witness the historical game where the team surpassed the modern loss record. Mixes of cheers and boos came from White Sox fans during the games when their team executed well, while fans yelled phrases such as "Sell the team!" when the team made mistakes. The White Sox won all three home games against the Angels to keep their record at 120 losses, resulting in fans throughout the stadium booing the White Sox. White Sox outfielder Andrew Benintendi acknowledged the fans' reaction after the game by saying: "People here tonight were trying to see history. They're going to have to wait one more day. Maybe."
During the games, White Sox fans held signs mentioning the historic significance of the potential loss, including one sign bearing "121" in the font of the White Sox logo. The White Sox swept the Angels, winning their final home game of the season 7–0 score, resulting in a standing ovation from most of the White Sox fans in the stadium.

## Game

Prior to facing the Tigers, Interim White Sox manager Grady Sizemore stated that despite the frustration surrounding their exceptional win-loss record, the White Sox players were ultimately professionals who would not be shaken by it, and trusted that they would play to compete and to win. He further stated that since the Tigers were attempting to clinch a spot in the playoffs, the White Sox wanted to do their best to spoil it. The game's outcome marked a significant prospect for the Tigers' comeback season after having only an estimated 0.2% chance of getting into the playoffs on August 5 when their record was 53–60, which matched the equally improbable playoff comeback of the National League Champion 1973 New York Mets.

### Recap

The September 27 game remained scoreless through the first four innings, with both teams' starting pitchers performing effectively. The Tigers' broke the deadlock in the bottom of the 5th inning, with Jake Rogers scoring from third base on a wild pitch thrown by Jared Shuster. Matt Vierling hit a sacrifice fly two pitches later, scoring Parker Meadows to put Detroit up 2–0.
The White Sox responded in the top of the 6th inning, with Zach DeLoach hit a 401-foot home run to right field, the first of his major league career, to cut the lead to 2–1. The Tigers extended their lead in the bottom of the 7th, when Andy Ibáñez led off with a double to right-center and reached third base due to a fielding error by center fielder Dominic Fletcher.
Riley Greene hit a 412-foot double, scoring Ibáñez and extending Detroit's lead to 3–1. Later in the inning, another wild pitch thrown by Fraser Ellard scored Vierling, pushing Detroit's lead to 4–1.
Detroit relied entirely on their bullpen for pitching, with multiple relievers combining to effectively limit the White Sox to a single run. After Brett Hanifee started the game, rookie Brant Hurter was credited with the win after pitching four innings, while back end relievers Tyler Holton, Will Vest, and Jason Foley pitched the late innings, with Foley picking up his 28th save of the season.
The game's final out came when Andrew Vaughn flied out to right fielder Wenceel Perez (who bumped into Meadows and fell as he made the catch) to end the game, send the Detroit crowd into a frenzy, and seal the White Sox fate in the history books.

### Line score

| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
| Chicago White Sox | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1 |
| Detroit Tigers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | – | 4 | 8 | 0 |
| Home runs: Away: Zach DeLoach (1) Home: None |||||||||||||

## Calls
### Chicago

John Schriffen, who called the game for NBC Sports Chicago, dejectedly announced the historic nature of the game at its end:
   “It’s official, that is loss No. 121. And the 2024 White Sox now have more losses than any team in modern baseball history.”
Chicago color commentator Steve Stone remarked at the on-field celebrations of the Detroit Tigers right after clinching their playoff berth:
   These Tigers will go to the playoffs. They don't know who awaits them. It's either...Baltimore in Baltimore, Houston in Houston. Those are their two choices. We'll see how it plays out...But the Tigers, right now, their whole world is right there in the infield.

### Detroit

Detroit commentator Jason Benetti, who formerly commentated for the White Sox until he was let go in 2023 primarily due to a "contentious relationship" with White Sox Senior vice president Brooks Boyer, ecstatically screamed following the final play:
   “The Tigers, for the first time in 10 years, are going to the playoffs. It’s actually happening!"
After being silent for multiple seconds to capture the stadium's reaction to the playoff berth, he said in a nod to legendary Tiger broadcaster Ernie Harwell:
   “Everyone else stood there like the house by the side of the road and let the Tigers go by.”

## Aftermath
### Chicago White Sox

The White Sox's defeat marked their 121st loss of the season, surpassing the previous modern-era (post-1900) record of 120 losses that was set by the expansion New York Mets in their inaugural 1962 season, and holding the most number of losses of all time since the 1899 Cleveland Spiders, who finished with a 20–134 record.
Interim White Sox manager Grady Sizemore stated that the season was "not the year we wanted" following the game, and expressed that while he began to grow frustrated well before the team was close to the loss record he stated that he was not sure if he would feel different if he had lost only 115 or 110 games instead. Pitcher Garrett Crochet remarked on the record: "Obviously it sucks." and that "We put ourselves in this position early on. We are where we are because of the way we played. But that's just all it is."
Following the game, the official Chicago White Sox Twitter page posted an image of a computer containing a list of "Things we'd rather do than read comments" as well as an image of the White Sox mascot huddled in a dark corner captioned "slams laptop shut 'til tomorrow". Several White Sox fans posted derogatory and sarcastic images and comments mocking the team for making history with their loss record following the game.

### Detroit Tigers

The Tigers' victory—their sixth straight and 10th in 11 games—secured a wild card spot in the American League playoffs, representing a significant turnaround for the Detroit franchise, which had not made in the postseason since 2014.
The game itself encapsulated the Tigers' incredible late-season turnaround that saw them to make the playoffs despite being eight games under .500 (55–63) as recently as August 11, before winning 31 of their next 42 games and passing five teams in the process. They were the first team to rebound from 8 or more games under .500 in the month of August to make the postseason since the 1973 National League Champion New York Mets.
Greene said after the game that “We never stopped believing, and that’s what did it for us.” Regarding the White Sox's performance, first baseman Spencer Torkelson stated that "They were still playing for something” in reference to them attempting to not break the modern major league loss record.