For the first time since the MLB All-Star break, the Chicago White Sox can call themselves winners.
The White Sox finally ended their agonizing search for a skid-snapping victory, as they took down the Oakland Athletics Tuesday night at Oakland Coliseum where nearly 6,000 (5,867 to be exact) fans in attendance saw Chicago score a 5-1 win. With that triumph, the White Sox prevented themselves from taking solo ownership of one of the most embarrassing records in baseball. Their win ended a 21-game winless streak, tied for longest in the American League ever with the 1998 Baltimore Orioles.
Former White Sox star slugger Frank Thomas expressed his relief over Chicago getting over the hump that it had repeatedly failed to clear in the past weeks.
“It was a heck of a ballgame, [White]Sox found a way to win, that's all we wanted in Chicago, just to win,” Thomas said during a postgame show on NBC Sports Chicago.
“It's hard to be laughing stock of baseball, you know, these long losing streaks, everyone talks about it, and the rest of the national news pick up on it. Oh yeah. It's easy conversation, it's easy news. So now turn the page, move on, and try to find a way to win.”
It appears that the South Siders heard what Thomas said following Chicago's 5-1 loss in the series opener versus the Athletics.
“It’s time to snap,” Thomas said after seeing the White Sox tie the Orioles' ignominious record (h/t The Associated Press).
“That’s the only way through the players right now. Snap. I’m serious. I don’t want to hear no more: `We’re trying.′ No more: `They’re working hard every day.′ No, it’s time to snap. It’s time to kick over the spread,” the Baseball Hall of Famer added.
That White Sox's skid started back in the latter portion of the first half of the season. After beating the Minnesota Twins, 3-1, at home on the evening of July 10, the White Sox lost their remaining four assignments prior to the break. Over their 21-game drought, the White Sox hit just .195 and posted a pathetic .245 on-base percentage. They also scored only 49 runs while allowing 136.
White Sox defeat Oakland for first win in second half
The White Sox struck first in Tuesday's game against Oakland, with Andrew Benintendi hitting a two-run home run in the fourth inning to put Chicago ahead, 2-0. Zack Gelof cut the Athletics' deficit in half with a solo home run in the same inning, but that proved to be the last time Oakland scored in the contest, as Jonathan Cannon and Chicago's pitching staff got the job done the rest of the way.
Cannon picked up the win after losing six innings of one-run ball with six hits allowed and five strikeouts.
“I think it’s just a sigh of relief,” Cannon said about his team's long-awaited win, per AP (h/t ESPN). “We’re all major league players, we got a lot of confidence in ourselves to go out and do our jobs every night. Just wasn’t working out for us. Proud we could put it together tonight. It was a team effort all around.”
Dominic Leone, Chad Kuhl, and John Brebbia each pitched a scoreless inning.
The White Sox are mathematically still in contention for a playoff spot but at 28-88, it would take a miracle for them to catch the boat to the postseason. For now, it's all about trying to sustain whatever momentum they got from their success against the A's. Chicago will look to go on a win streak this time around when it faces Oakland in a series finale this Wednesday night.
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