BOSTON — Martin Maldonado had been hitless in his previous 28 at-bats when he came to the plate for the Chicago White Sox with two on and one out in the sixth inning on April 26 against the Tampa Bay Rays.
Zach Eflin’s 0-1 sinker stayed in the middle of the plate, and Maldonado launched it well beyond the left-field wall for his first home run of the season.
Eloy Jiménez hit a two-run home run the next inning as the Sox beat the Rays 9-4 at Guaranteed Rate Field.
“It’s always good when you can help the team,” Maldonado said after the game. “The way we’ve been swinging the bat, coming through like that felt good.”
The victory snapped a seven-game losing streak. It also began a run of 11 wins in 19 games, perhaps the best stretch of the season.
The Sox will need to do something similar if they are going to avoid tying or surpassing the 1962 expansion New York Mets for the most losses in modern-day Major League Baseball history.
The Mets went 40-120 in their inaugural season.
The Sox were 32-110 with 20 games remaining entering Saturday’s matchup against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park, on pace for 125 losses.
Coming into Saturday, the White Sox needed to go 11-9 to avoid tying the ‘62 Mets.
“You’ve got to just take it day by day and every single game is a new game,” starter Jonathan Cannon said, “no matter what the record says up on the scoreboard, we’re just trying to win tonight.”
Those wins have been very tough to come by. The Sox had lost 13 of 14, 17 of 19 and 43 of 48 coming into Saturday and were 5-39 since the All-Star break.
The series against the Red Sox wraps up Sunday. Here’s a look at what remains as the White Sox attempt to steer clear of turning a historically bad season into the all-time worst in terms of losses.
Sept. 9-11: vs. Cleveland Guardians
Season series: Tied 5-5.
Garrett Crochet’s May 10 outing began by striking out Brayan Rocchio. It wrapped up after he struck out Ramón Laureano with two on and two outs in the sixth.
Crochet struck out 11 in a 6-3 win at Guaranteed Rate Field. The Sox took three of four in the series, winning the first three games. That was part of a four-game winning streak — which began May 8 against the Rays — the longest of the season.
The teams last played July 2-4 at Progressive Field, when the Sox lost two of three.
It’s an important series for the Guardians, who lead the American League Central by 4½ games over the Kansas City Royals.
Sept. 13-15: vs. Oakland Athletics
Season series: A’s lead 2-1.
The lone win for the Sox in likely their final series ever at the Oakland Coliseum was a historic one. They snapped the AL record-tying 21-game losing streak with a 5-1 victory on Aug. 6.
Cannon allowed one run and struck out five in six innings. Andrew Benintendi led the way offensively with a home run, two RBIs and two runs.
The Sox dropped the series finale 3-2 the next day in what turned out to be Pedro Grifol’s final game as manager. The Sox made a change the next day with Grady Sizemore taking over on an interim basis.
The A’s are in fourth place in the AL West but are 25-19 since the All-Star break.
Sept. 16-26: at/vs. Los Angeles Angels, at San Diego Padres
Season series: First meetings with both teams.
While the Angels are in last place in the AL West, the Padres are a factor in the National League West race as well as the NL wild-card. They are second in the division, trailing the Los Angeles Dodgers by four games. And they hold the top NL wild-card slot.
The Sox have two three-game series against the Angels — Sept. 16-18 in Anaheim, Calif., and Sept. 24-26 at Guaranteed Rate Field, the final home games of the season. They’ll play the Padres in between, Sept. 20-22 in San Diego.
Sept. 27-29: at Detroit Tigers
Season series: Tigers lead 9-1.
Drew Thorpe was one of the key players acquired in the March trade that sent Dylan Cease to the San Diego Padres. The Sox promoted the right-hander from Double-A Birmingham on June 11, and he made his debut that evening in Seattle.
Thorpe earned his first big-league victory on June 22, allowing two hits in six scoreless innings during a 5-1 win against the Tigers at Comerica Park. It’s the only time the Sox have defeated the Tigers in 2024.
The season began with a 1-0 loss to the Tigers at Guaranteed Rate Field. It will conclude with three games in Detroit.
Sizemore wants the team to not worry about “anything but playing good” during this final stretch.
“If we’re sitting here harping on it all the time and focusing on the record and wins it can be draining,” Sizemore said Saturday. “That’s why I tried to stay away from that message. We’re not in the playoffs, so regardless of the record, who cares, let’s try to compete and win series and win as many games as we can, try to get better and have fun while we’re doing it.
“But also play the game the right way. Play hard, play clean, try to be aggressive, put the pressure on the other team and be competitive.”