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Moments ago, news broke that the White Sox have fired manager Pedro Grifol. Well, the section that was already going to lead this newsletter should explain why. Plus: Bobby Witt Jr. is on a righteous tear, Robinson Canó resurfaces and Chandler Rome joins us for a beat writer Q&A. I’m Stephen Nesbitt, pinch-hitting for Levi Weaver — welcome to The Windup!
WOAT Watch: White Sox headed for history
After ending their AL-record-tying 21-game losing streak Tuesday, the White Sox had a golden opportunity yesterday to win consecutive games for the first time since June 28-29. But the bullpen blew a two-run lead in the seventh, and Chicago lost to the Athletics, 3-2.
The White Sox are 28-89. Let that record sink in. They are on pace to lose 123 games, which would break the modern-era loss record of 120 set by the expansion Mets in 1962.
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Sam Blum was in Oakland this week. He spoke with White Sox GM Chris Getz, (now former) manager Grifol and players about what it’s like being at the center of this mess, and what comes next.
It’s one thing to be bad. It’s another to be so bad you’re remembered.
In 2003, I was a 12-year-old living and dying with one of the worst teams in baseball history. The Tigers started the season 1-17 and had 10 losing streaks of at least six games. They entered the last week of the regular season on a 1-16 slide, having just set the AL loss record (118). Then, miracles. The Tigers, as Cody Stavenhagen and I wrote in a retrospective, won five of their last six games, including two walk-offs, to finish with 119 losses and avoid baseball infamy.
Through 117 games, the 2003 Tigers were 31-86.
That’s three games better than these White Sox, who need to go at least 14-31 the rest of the way to avoid setting the modern-day loss record. Those former Tigers understand that humiliation. As Brandon Inge put it, “It’s like that dream you had as a kid when you’re walking down the school hall naked and there is no place to go.” Matt Walbeck said he looks at the standings each year wondering if another team will come close to 120 losses. He wouldn’t wish it on anyone. “It’s so painful. It was the last year I ever played, so it’s stuck in my DNA now. I think about it all the time,” he said.
When I spoke with former Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski last year, he said, “I’m glad we didn’t completely ruin your childhood.” Here’s hoping young White Sox fans will see better days ahead, too.
Beat Writer Q&A: The Astros’ road ahead
Chandler Rome has covered the Astros since 2018. He was furiously pinging our “MLB breaking news” Slack channel Tuesday night when Framber Valdez had a no-hitter through six innings, then seven, then eight, then … never mind. Chandler is an LSU grad who later covered Alabama football. That explains the header image. He was kind enough to answer three questions …
What is your favorite piece you wrote in the first half (and why)?
Chandler: Before his sixth game as a major-league manager, Joe Espada caught a ceremonial first pitch from his 9-year-old daughter, Viviana. Telling Viviana’s story and why that day meant so much to her and the entire Espada family was fulfilling. Heartfelt messages and comments I received from families in similar situations were so uplifting, a reminder this job can be about much more than minutia or mundane updates about pitch sequencing or swing decisions
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What is the Astros’ top storyline in the second half (beyond whether they make the playoffs)?
Will either Kyle Tucker or Justin Verlander return with the same efficacy as we last saw them? Tucker hasn’t played since June 3 with what GM Dana Brown describes as a “deep” bone bruise in his right shin. Tucker is still not hitting on the field or running the bases, and the team hasn’t guaranteed he’ll return in August. At the time of his injury, Tucker had 3.6 bWAR, a 174 OPS+ and a .594 slugging percentage. Missing almost three months may sap some of that production, but Houston’s shorthanded lineup will benefit from his mere presence.
Verlander (neck discomfort) hasn’t pitched since June 9. He is scheduled to make a rehab start this weekend and could return to the rotation by the time the Astros start a stretch of 18 consecutive games Aug. 16. Provided he does, the team will expand to a six-man rotation; Verlander won’t need to be superhuman — but still must be something close to his vintage self.
You’ve never shied away from criticism of the team, but you don’t come off as having an ax to grind, either. What’s your guiding star in finding that fair balance?
I grew up in Baton Rouge, La., and my favorite baseball team was LSU’s (shoutout Louis Coleman, Mikie Mahtook, Jared Mitchell, Anthony Ranaudo and a million other names I memorized as a kid). Having no early allegiance to any professional team has probably helped. I love my job, but nothing the Astros do — win, lose, cheat, tank, thrive, throw away money — will impact me emotionally. That helps form straightforward objectivity in a media market where that’s rarely seen. It can be easy while covering a franchise’s golden era to focus just on results, but this is a $2.42 billion company, and not covering every aspect of it would be a disservice to readers. I’ve waxed poetic about all of the playoff heroics, seminal moments and homegrown superstars, even if some in the Astros organization forget that during times of frustration. Never make it personal. Pepper people with facts. And finding the balance becomes easy.
More Astros: Tucker has missed 65 days with a bone bruise. Physicians explain why.
Canó’s last stop: Mexico?
Maybe you lost track of Robinson Canó after his second PED suspension, which caused him to miss the 2021 season. The Mets ate $40 million to release Canó early the next season, and the sweet-swinging second baseman who once looked like a prime Hall of Fame candidate — eight All-Star seasons, six top-10 MVP finishes, two Gold Gloves and a World Series ring won with the Yankees in 2009 — became a baseball nomad. Padres. Braves. Winter ball in the Dominican Republic. A brief appearance in Dubai.
Canó hasn’t played pro ball stateside since 2022. Has he hung up his spikes? Hah!
- Canó is playing for Diablos Rojos del México … and raking! The 41-year-old hit a club-record .431 this summer, winning the Mexican League batting title.
- Rustin Dodd flew to Mexico City to ask Canó why, after 17 years in the majors and more than $260 million in career earnings, he’s still grinding. “I love the game,” Canó said. “I still have that in me. I want to keep playing. I get a chance here.”
The Cooperstown question: Canó’s 68.1 career WAR are more than all but seven Hall of Fame second basemen. He’s directly ahead of Ryne Sandberg (67.9 WAR), Roberto Alomar (67) and Craig Biggio (65.5), all of whom have been inducted in this century.
Canó said he hasn’t thought deeply about how the numbers stack up for his Hall of Fame case. Odds are, Canó’s candidacy will rest not on his overwhelming offensive numbers, like the .301/.351/.488 slash line, but how voters feel about a much smaller number: two suspensions.
MVP Moves? Bobby Witt Jr. is giving Aaron Judge company
Before the trade deadline, Levi reheated the debate over whether Gunnar Henderson or Bobby Witt Jr. would win Silver Slugger for the AL shortstop position this season. That may be the wrong hardware altogether. Because it’s time to start talking seriously about whether Witt can make a run at Aaron Judge for the AL MVP award.
Four players have 6+ bWAR and fWAR so far this season:
Player | AVG | OPS | HR | SB | BWAR* | FWAR* |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
0.324 | 1.157 | 41 | 5 | 7.7 | 7.8 | |
0.349 | 1.000 | 22 | 25 | 7.2 | 7.6 | |
0.306 | 1.019 | 28 | 5 | 7.1 | 7 | |
0.287 | 0.931 | 29 | 14 | 6.9 | 6.2 |
On Wednesday, Witt homered, stroked a two-run double, then homered again to stave off a Red Sox sweep in Kansas City. He is, at the moment, the hottest hitter on the planet while also tying for the title of fastest man and best fielder in baseball.
If you’ll allow me an arbitrary starting point, let me take you back to June 30. Witt was batting .307 with an .884 OPS. Having an outstanding season. Since then, Witt has batted .456 (!) with a 1.298 OPS (!!), 10 homers, 23 extra-base hits, 36 runs scored and 31 RBI in 31 games.
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The only players who have eclipsed 10 bWAR in the 2000s: Barry Bonds, Sammy Sosa, Alex Rodriguez, Mookie Betts, Mike Trout and Judge. We could see another name added to that list this year. Judge entered Wednesday’s game tracking toward 11 WAR, and Witt was on pace for 10.1 WAR before going bananas against Boston.
Handshakes and High Fives
Twenty years after his debut, David Wright reflected on the moments that mattered most to him early in his Mets career. Tim Britton has the details.
Kyle Schwarber’s three-homer, seven-RBI game powered the Phillies to a series win against the Dodgers. To quote Nick Castellanos: “He’s very good.”
Gavin Lux went home to Wisconsin last month and decided to swing harder. It’s working.
Joe Ryan exited with triceps tightness, and the Twins could be in trouble. (They should send a thank you card to the en fuego Diamondbacks for sweeping the Guardians in Cleveland.)
The Cubs knew about Isaac Paredes’ hilarious home-run spray chart before trading for him. They don’t think his pull power is a problem at all. They studied how it would play at Wrigley.
George Kirby’s command is so good he’s trying to throw fewer strikes. The Mariners starter and Cy Young candidate told Eno Sarris his key to getting more strikeouts is going outside the zone more often with two strikes.
On The Windup podcast, Grant Brisbee, Andy McCullough and Sam Miller toast the end of the White Sox’s 21-game losing streak — a stretch of baseball futility Grant felt was so cringey and hard to watch he compared it to the “Scott’s Tots” episode of “The Office.” Sam kind of liked it.
Most-clicked in yesterday’s newsletter: Brendan Kuty’s explainer on why Aaron Judge honors Brett Gardner with his kneel-and-flex before games.
Most-read MLB story on the website yesterday: ☝️
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Correction: An earlier version of this article described Jeff Kent as a Hall of Famer.
(Photo: Lon Horwedel / USA Today)