The White Sox are on tempo to eclipse the 1962 Mets for probably the most losses in a single season in baseball’s trendy period (since 1901), and that’s the crew that dealt the Yankees a jarring 12-2 loss in Monday’s sequence opener.
At a woeful 29-91, the White Sox’s .242 profitable proportion would translate to a report of 39-123 over the 162-game schedule — or three extra losses than Casey Stengel’s growth Mets (40-120) posted of their inaugural season 62 years in the past.
The 2003 Tigers got here the closest to matching the Mets’ complete with a 43-119 mark.
Such futility by the White Sox — who’ve had separate shedding streaks of 14 and 21 video games this season — obtained me serious about some horrible groups I’ve lined in additional than three many years as a New York sportswriter, some as a beat author and others on a semi-regular foundation.
In fact, I even have skilled the acute reverse finish of that spectrum, most notably because the touring beat author for the mighty 1998 Yankees. They gained 125 video games with solely 50 losses that 12 months: 114-48 within the common season and 11-2 within the postseason, culminating in a four-game sweep of the Padres within the World Collection.
The largest problem of masking such a runaway juggernaut was discovering artistic methods to explain one victory after one other throughout prolonged stretches of success, the last word triviality in what now can be labeled a First World drawback.
The antithesis for me was documenting woebegone native groups such because the 2000-01 Islanders or the 2014-15 Knicks.
That 12 months was all-time low record-wise for the Isles underneath GM Mike Milbury, a league-worst 52 factors and their seventh straight season and not using a playoff look.
Extremely, the Islanders managed a 44-point turnaround the next season underneath first-time coach Peter Laviolette, who took the Rangers to the Japanese Convention Last earlier this 12 months.
The 2014-15 Knicks have been much more disastrous, particularly as a result of teaching legend Phil Jackson was introduced in as crew president to place the franchise again on a championship monitor.
Two seasons faraway from a 54-28 marketing campaign underneath coach Mike Woodson, Jackson changed him with inexperienced Derek Fisher, certainly one of his former championship gamers with the Lakers, after first alternative Steve Kerr spurned the Knicks for the Warriors.
With Carmelo Anthony lacking half the season due to an damage, Fisher’s Knicks completed with a 17-65 report for the bottom win complete in franchise historical past (it was matched a number of years later by David Fizdale’s horrible 2018-19 squad).
Nineteen completely different gamers began video games for the Knicks that season, together with the likes of Lou Amundson, Alexey Shved, Travis Put on and Cleanthony Early.
A minimum of we obtained a visit to London out of the preliminary Fisher season for a January recreation towards the Bucks, however he was canned halfway via the next 12 months and Jackson additionally was fired by James Dolan in 2017.
In fact, there have been loads of different examples of terrible New York groups throughout my almost 50 years as a sports activities fan and reporter.
The NFL groups actually have had their share of forgettable groups, with the mid-70s Giants and the 1-15 Wealthy Kotite Jets in 1996 instantly coming to thoughts. The Jets haven’t made the playoffs because the 2010 season and the Giants have certified simply twice up to now 12 seasons.
The Yankee will publish their thirty second consecutive profitable report as soon as this season is accomplished, however 1990 simply marked their worst 12 months in franchise historical past with 95 losses plus George Steinbrenner’s suspension for paying a gambler named Howard Spira $40,000 to dig up grime on All-Star outfielder Dave Winfield (hear somebody even produced a great documentary about that notorious season).
There even have been quite a few examples involving the Mets because the ’62 lovable losers, most notably the darkish days after Tom Seaver was traded within the late Seventies and the “Worst Group Cash Can Purchase” within the early ’90s.
However there’s a reputable likelihood, not less than, that the White Sox lastly will knock the growth Mets out of the doubtful report e-book.
At present’s again web page
Quote of the day
“We’ve got knowledgeable Haason that we are going to not commerce him, that he’s anticipated to be right here along with his teammates, and that he’ll proceed to be fined per the CBA if he doesn’t report. Because the commerce discussions again in March we’ve been clear, direct, and in line with our place. Our focus will stay on the fellows we’ve right here as we put together for the common season.”
— Jets GM Joe Douglas, on Monday, in response to cross rusher Haason Reddick requesting a commerce, lower than 5 months after he was acquired from the Eagles.
Reddick has been absent from coaching camp throughout a standoff with the Jets as he seeks a brand new contract. The Put up’s Steve Serby advocates for the Jets to name Reddick’s bluff, writing of the 29-year-old Professional Bowler, “He ought to get up and notice that he wants the Jets greater than they want him.”
Rivalry revisited
The Braves’ current swoon — 9-14 because the All-Star break — provides one other juicy subplot to the Mets’ pursuit of an NL wild-card berth, which resumes Tuesday evening towards the A’s at Citi Discipline.
The longtime divisional rivals are separated by one recreation for the ultimate playoff place within the Nationwide League with a head-to-head matchup looming Sept. 24-26 in Atlanta.
Whereas the Mets scored just one run throughout a three-game sweep by the Mariners over the weekend, the Braves’ current points principally have been pitching associated. They’d posted a 5.32 ERA over the previous month coming into Monday’s 1-0 win in San Francisco.
Whereas different groups additionally stay in competition for that last wild-card spot — the Cardinals, Giants, Cubs and maybe nonetheless the Reds and Pirates — a late-September showdown between the Braves and the Mets would supply some further juice to the historical past between the groups.
Considered one of our personal
There are many causes to be completely happy the U.S. girls’s nationwide crew captured the Olympics gold medal in soccer, however native sportswriters have a further purpose to cheer.
Beginning midfielder Sam Coffey is the daughter of Wayne Coffey, a former longtime reporter and columnist at one other New York tabloid and a colleague of mine at that outlet for almost 20 years.
Wayne and I used to commerce tales about our children’ exploits on the pitch, with my son enjoying collegiately at Hofstra a number of years forward of Sam. Wayne even requested me for recruiting recommendation a number of instances earlier than she ended up at Boston Faculty and Penn State after which within the NWSL and as a fixture on the nationwide crew.
One other cool connection right here is that Sam’s sister, Alex Coffey, adopted in her dad’s footsteps and is the Phillies beat author for the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Just a few years in the past, Wayne Coffey additionally wrote an unbelievable e-book concerning the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey crew entitled “The Boys of Winter.”
Sportswriters all over the place, and particularly in New York, are elated that he and his household obtained to expertise “The Ladies of Summer season” on a extra private degree this month in Paris.
What we’re studying 👀
🏈 The Put up printed an interesting excerpt from Ian O’Connor’s forthcoming “Out of the Darkness: The Thriller of Aaron Rodgers” about how ex-girlfriend Olivia Munn figures (and doesn’t) within the Jets quarterback’s estrangement from his household.
⚾ Let’s take one other second to understand Aaron Decide’s historic exploits on the plate this season, writes The Put up’s Jon Heyman.
🏈 The transformation of the Giants’ wideout corps is headlined by rookie Malik Nabers and his “true No. 1 receiver” ceiling.
🏀 The Knicks are booked for a tasty Opening Night time conflict towards the Celtics.
⚾ MLB and the Crimson Sox set the going price for an anti-gay slur.
🏀 Dearica Hamby making an attempt to air the Aces’ laundry is the WNBA scandal we’re not speaking about.
🤸♀️ This entire Jordan Chiles scenario is a travesty.
⛳ Please spare a thought for the golf event volunteers.
📻 Fairly the twist of the dial for New York sports activities radio.
⚾ One-time Mets supervisor Mike Cubbage died after a battle with most cancers. He was 74.
