Zachary Piech and his friends were at Guaranteed Rate Field Tuesday night for a chance to witness history.
It wasn’t for a World Series or a key playoff game. The White Sox are on the brink of owning the worst record in the history of modern baseball. One more loss would clinch that embarrassing title, surpassing the New York Mets’ 120 losses in 1962. The team looked to avoid setting that mark at home against the Los Angeles Angels.
And it was another strange night for the Sox. After a largely scoreless night, the Angels took the lead in the 7th inning and quickly made it 2-0 in the top of the 8th. But the Sox rallied to score three runs in the bottom of the eighth and held on for a 3-2 victory.
For Piech and his three buddies, who drove from northwest Indiana, Tuesday’s game was a chance to at least get a good story from what has turned out to be a historically abysmal season.
“I’m ready to see history, honestly,” said the 22-year-old. “I think it will be something I can tell maybe my kids and grandkids about, so that would be pretty cool. No World Series any time soon, so we’ll settle for this.”
The first pitch was delayed by more than an hour because of the rain.
Even as rain drizzled over the ballpark, Piech and other White Sox faithful tailgated in the parking lot, grilling hot dogs and playing music ahead of a chance to see history.
No matter what happened Tuesday, fans were not optimistic about the team avoiding the record with five games left in the season, and they hoped the mountain of losses would at least spark changes within the organization.
That’s how Ryan Burns, 35, approached the team’s potential record-breaking season. Burns, a lifelong Sox fan, attended the game with his fiancee and two of their young children.
“I hope it’s kind of a wake-up call to them,” he said of the losses, adding the best thing about the season was the time the family spent together at the games. “We had a great time with the kids, that’s about it. It’s always fun coming out. Still, we just want a better team to cheer on.”
Other fans were more visibly frustrated with the team’s record. David Chaves, 35, wore a paper bag over his head with the number 121 to represent how “heartbroken” he was with this year’s White Sox.
“I am obsessed with baseball, and it just breaks my heart,” he said of the team’s performance this year. “Three years ago, I came to the playoff series against the Astros when they won the division, and it’s like, three years later, how did we get to this point?”
Piech and Chaves, who lives in Gilberts and is also a lifelong Sox fan, both blamed owner Jerry Reinsdorf for the team’s struggles, saying he needed to spend more money to improve the team or else sell it.
“I love this team, I will never not love this team, and I hope something changes soon, but I don’t see that happening,” Chaves said.
Andy Kobler, 64, said he has had White Sox season tickets the last four years. But Kobler, who has been a fan since 1970, said he wouldn’t be renewing for next year after this season. He was at Tuesday’s game to experience history, he said.
“I’m here for the record, but I don’t feel good about it all,” Kobler said, adding he doesn’t care whether the team miraculously wins the remainder of its games. “I gave up on them two months ago, probably longer than that.”
Vaughn Roland, 35, who has been a Sox fan “since I was conceived,” said he was devastated by this season.
“Typically, season starts you feel good, right? And then slowly but surely, you start to string losing streaks and things start to change,” he said. “It sucks.”
He thinks the team can do with a change of ownership to provide a spark for the fans and the organization.
Despite the embarrassment of the season, Kobler and other fans said they would never abandon the team.
“I’m going to be here no matter what,” Kobler said. “I love the White Sox.”