White Sox: Favorable Schedule Down The Stretch
By Matt Manetti
With 12 games left this season, the White Sox will play nine games against teams under .500. Would a strong finish build excitement going into the offseason?
The Chicago White Sox can already chalk this season up as a failure. But for a team that was in first place as one of the best teams in baseball, this has been a huge collapse. No one in their right mind would label this a successful season for this team. Not by a long shot.
However, if you look at the schedule down the stretch and see, it’s not too bad. Aside from three games with the Indians, the Sox play two against Philadelphia then three against Minnesota and four against Tampa Bay. What do all three [Philadelphia, Minnesota, Tampa Bay] have in common? They are three of the worst teams in baseball. None of these teams will make the playoffs, and all three will surely have losing records. The White Sox have a better record then all three, as well.
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I bring this up because this team actually has a chance to beat up on some weaker teams. Hopefully they can take care of business and head into the offseason on a high note. The biggest key here is they do not play teams in their division well, especially the Twins. In fact, they are one of the worst teams in baseball against their division. But get this, if the White Sox went 9-3 to finish the season they would finish 81-81. If they went 10-2, they would be 82-80 and have a winning season. A far cry from the losing season they were on pace for.
Now, a strong finish will surely not makeup for the lackluster season fans have had to watch. It has just come to a point where baseball on the South Side is just difficult to watch. Nothing will ever makeup for watching this epic collapse unfold through this entire season. From the front office seemingly not being on the same page to Robin Ventura’s poor in-game management, this team has struggled across the board. And there is no one person responsible for it. It is a complete cluster by all parties involved.
However, a strong finish would give this team something to build off of, and something for the fans to get excited about. White Sox fans won’t have to say “we’ve just endured yet another losing season.” Who knows, fans may even be more willing to come out to Guaranteed Rate Field next season and support this team. A strong finish also shows some improvement. Suddenly, this team might have a promising future.
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This is not out of the realm of possibility. After all, this team started the season as one of the best team’s in baseball. Any sign this team seems to be going in the right direction is a welcomed sight by White Sox fans. Especially since the front office has failed to give direction. They are tired of seeing a team play bad baseball and lose a lot of games. It’s time to return to the glory days and be relevant again. It’s definitely not going to be this season, but any positive signs will go a long way in reshaping this franchise and helping it return to glory.