3 Straight 100-Loss Seasons Later, White Sox Lead ALDS 2-0

The Chicago White Sox lead the Cleveland Guardians 2-0 in the American League Division Series, two years after the franchise set the modern record for losses in a 162-game season, NBC News reported. Chicago plays its first home playoff game since 2021 on Wednesday, needing one more win to reach the American League Championship Series, according to the outlet.

How did the White Sox get from 121 losses to the playoffs?

The count is specific and sourced: the White Sox finished 81-81 in 2022, then lost 101 games in 2023, 121 in 2024, and 102 in 2025, NBC News reported. The 2024 total set the record for losses in a 162-game season. In late September 2024, attendance at Chicago home games was sparse, and some fans in the stands were reportedly hoping to see the team lose and complete the record, per the outlet. The team instead won its final three home games that season before setting the loss record on the road.

NBC News did not report a roster-level explanation for the 2026 turnaround — no trade log, payroll figures, or front-office statement is cited in the source material — so the mechanism behind the shift from 100-loss seasons to a division-series lead remains undocumented in available reporting.

What is the series score, and what happens next?

Chicago leads the best-of-five ALDS 2-0 after two games played at Cleveland's Progressive Field, NBC News reported. Game 3 is scheduled for Wednesday at the White Sox's home park, where a win would clinch the series. The outlet reported that a series-clinching win at home would be Chicago's first playoff series won in front of its home fans since 1906, a gap of roughly 120 years.

How rare is three straight 100-loss seasons followed by a playoff berth?

NBC News reported that the 2026 White Sox are the first team to reach the postseason after two consecutive 100-loss seasons, which also makes them the first team to do so after three straight 100-loss seasons. No other historical instance is cited in the source material, and the outlet does not specify a sample size of teams compared or a time span covered by that claim — a limitation worth flagging for readers, since no league-wide dataset or season range was provided alongside the figure.

What does the 1906 home-series drought figure represent?

The 1906 date, as reported by NBC News, marks the last time the White Sox clinched a playoff series while playing at home. The current ALDS, if Chicago wins Wednesday, would end that streak at roughly 120 years. The report does not detail how many playoff appearances the franchise has made in the interim or how many of those series were decided on the road, so the 1906 figure should be read as a single data point — the most recent home clinch — rather than a full accounting of the team's postseason home record.

What are players saying about the turnaround?

Pitcher Grant Taylor, who recorded saves in both wins over Cleveland, told reporters Monday that fans have been "waiting 120 years, so maybe we can do it this year," according to NBC News. Taylor added: "I think it's going to be unbelievable. Those fans deserve it. They've been with us for three years of 100 losses, and they've been with us a good bit this year giving us a lot of support as we've gone through this. So being able to give them a postseason game is going to be pretty special." That is the only on-record player quote included in the source material; no additional player, coach, or executive comment is cited.

What is not yet known

The reporting establishes the win-loss record, the series score, and the 1906 home-clinch gap, but it does not include underlying roster moves, payroll data, or advanced performance metrics that would explain the statistical shift from a 121-loss team to a division-series leader in two seasons. Readers looking for a causal breakdown — pitching staff changes, lineup turnover, front-office strategy — will need reporting beyond what NBC News published as of Oct. 7, 2026. The series itself remains the clearest data point: Chicago needs one win in three remaining games to advance, with the next opportunity coming at home Wednesday.