For the second consecutive month, the White Sox went 9-19. Based on the way the month ended -- with the White Sox failing to beat the Colorado Rockies on Sunday despite five extra innings to do so -- meaningful, noticeable progress is so painstakingly earned that there can't possibly be any reward in the doing.
When you run down the individual performances, the White Sox weren't ghastly, at least relative to April and May. They actually forged a little bit of an identity on both sides of the ball. They finished seventh in homers with 35, and their 3.99 staff ERA in June was good for a top-10 ranking as well. Those are normally two decent metrics to start forming an estimate of a team's formidability.
Here, they mislead. The White Sox still had a bottom-five offense in terms of runs scored because they struggle to reach base, and had the league's worst performance with runners in scoring position when they had chances. The sub-4.00 ERA looks all well and good until you realize that White Sox pitchers allowed a league-high 18 unearned runs in 28 games. The sequencing of those runs also failed the Sox, as they went 2-8 in one-run games, which are allegedly Pedro Grifol's favorite.
To a player, the White Sox weren't horrible. As a team, "horrible" is fair. They continue to show why they're on pace to be the worst in franchise history with room to spare.
The next couple weeks could provide a little bit of relief. The schedule eases up considerably,. Luis Robert Jr. is starting to round into form while Andrew Vaughn has never played better, and the starting rotation has been effective more often than not. Any upswing just might not last the entirety of July, because the better the roster performs, the more Chris Getz should be able to tear it apart by the deadline.
WHITE SOX TEAM PERFORMANCE
- Record: 9-19
- Standings: Fifth, 30 GB
- Longest winning streak: 3, June 27-29
- Longest losing streak: 14, May 23-June 6
- Largest margin of victory: 8, June 29
- Largest margin of defeat: 12, June 6
HITTING LEADERS
- Batting average: .337, Andrew Vaughn
- On-base percentage: .371, Vaughn
- Slugging percentage: .561, Vaughn
- wRC+: 161, Vaughn
- Home runs: 7, Luis Robert Jr. and Paul DeJong
- RBI: 20, Vaughn
- Walks: 14, Tommy Pham
- Strikeouts: 33, Robert
- Stolen bases: 4, Danny Mendick and Duke Ellis
- fWAR: 0.8, Vaughn
PITCHING LEADERS
- Wins: 2, Drew Thorpe and Tanner Banks
- Losses: 3, Steven Wilson
- ERA: 1.91, Garrett Crochet
- Innings: 37⅔, Crochet
- Strikeouts: 56, Crochet
- Appearances: 15, John Brebbia
- Relief innings: 14, Michael Soroka
- fWAR: 2.0, Crochet
COMING AND GOING
- White Sox debuts: Duke Ellis, Drew Thorpe, Chad Kuhl
- White Sox departures: Ellis, Jake Woodford, Shane Drohan, Tim Hill
- Going up: Oscar Colás, Ellis, Zach DeLoach, Jonathan Cannon, Sammy Peralta
- Going down: Ellis, Zach Remillard, Nick Nastrini, DeLoach, Jordan Leasure, Colás, Peralta
#SOXMORGUE
- Andrew Benintendi: Left achilles tendinitis
- Dominic Fletcher: Left shoulder strain
- Tommy Pham: Left ankle sprain
White Sox Honors
Most Valuable Player: Andrew Vaughn
Vaughn can call June the best month of his career. His .933 OPS ties April 2022 for his highest-ever monthly mark, but he played nine more games this time around. It's hard to know whether it's reassuring that he managed to produce that well around a sprained finger that almost sent him to the IL, or whether it'll continue inspiring the White Sox to play less capable players through their own injuries due to a lack of better options.
Least Valuable Player: Martín Maldonado
On one hand, Maldonado is the clear backup catcher to Korey Lee, whose production backslid in June, so his role doesn't seem like it's prominent enough to warrant LVP status. On the other, I think it's easy to become numb to the historical depths Maldonado is plumbing. Through three months, the guy Pedro Grifol said is "not a .100 hitter" has hit .100, .051 and .100. You can't let this season shatter your capacity to stand in awe.
Most Valuable Pitcher: Garrett Crochet
If Crochet didn't carry general concerns about an unprecedented workload, there'd be no criticisms, no notes. He throws hard, he throws strikes, he only needs two pitches to be successful, and he repeats it every time out. He came up one out short of throwing six quality starts in six chances, and he settled for 5⅔ scoreless innings against the Dodgers in the exception.
Least Valuable Pitcher: Nick Nastrini
Nastrini only made two starts before losing his spot in the rotation to Jonathan Cannon due to an inability to throw strikes, so it feels a little excessive to slag him while he's in Triple-A, because the White Sox rectified the situation for the time being. This speaks more to the current stability of the five-man rotation than anything else.
Fire Man: John Brebbia
One weird trick -- in this case, lowering the height of his glove hand during his delivery -- restored Brebbia ability to locate, particularly with his breaking balls. After a bumpy start, he finished the month by striking out 20 batters against 11 baserunners over 13⅔ innings.
Gas Can: Jordan Leasure
Toward the end of a largely successful first two months, Leasure's command started getting away from him, and he paid the price for it in June. He was on the hook for losses against the Cubs and Mariners, serving up a walk-off grand slam in the latter game. The White Sox optioned him to Charlotte, selling it as more of a way to clear his head -- and lighten his workload -- than a punishment for looking like a rookie.
Bench Player: Oscar Colás
The problem with identifying a bench player for a team like the 2024 White Sox is that anybody who is excelling as a bench player usually gets thrust into everyday (or most-day) action, and everybody gets reacquainted with the Peter Principle. That wasn't the case for Colás, who hit .281/378/.281 with four RBIs, but remained glued to the bench because he's one of the few players Pedro Grifol holds to actual standards.
Stench Player: Danny Mendick
You could point to Martín Maldonado and his 3-for-30 performance at the plate -- he won the LVP, which is like a pitcher winning MVP but not the Cy Young. However, I'm sparing him here because he's a backup catcher who had at least one RBI and finally provided some easily detectable veteran presence (on the basepaths of all places). Mendick hit .182/.217/.205, including 0-for-11 with runners in scoring position. With Zach Remillard outrighted to Charlotte and Lenyn Sosa providing the kind of occasional offense that he's seemed capable of, Mendick's time on the 26-man roster could be limited.
Gold Glove: Tommy PHam*
The pickings continue to be slim on a team where every position is underwater except second base, and Nicky Lopez doesn't play every day. So let's go with Pham, with an asterisk denoting the right fielder who made a couple of running catches on the warning track that have been so few and far between in that corner.
Hands of Stone: Paul DeJong
Lenyn Sosa merits consideration, because his decisions confused DeJong a few times on the left side of the infield, but DeJong committed a handful of misplays along with three errors, including a couple of plays where his tempo didn't seem to match the speed of the game. The veteran breaks the tie because he should know better.
Timeline
A literal Achilles heel: Andrew Benintendi departs a game against Milwaukee after homering due to an aggravation of Achilles tendinitis, which had been a problem since the start of the season. It's the second consecutive year that Benintendi has played ineffectively through an injury nobody acknowledged for months. (June 1)
Phight club: After getting thrown out at home on a bad send by Eddie Rodriguez, Tommy Pham and William Contreras exchange words and benches clear. Pham's frustration was evident well before it became known that he sprained an ankle on the play, and it inspired another incredible quote. (June 2)
CHSN SZN: After months of mystery, the White Sox, Bulls and Blackhawks announce the establishment of the Chicago Sports Network as the new broadcast home starting in October. Details remain sparse. (June 3)
Tangentially scandalous: Former White Sox prospect José Rodríguez, DFA'd by the White Sox in April, is suspended for one year for placing 31 baseball bets from 2021-22, seven involving the White Sox while he was a member of the Birmingham Barons. (June 4)
Duketastrophe: Making his MLB debut in the role he was born to play, Duke Ellis enters as a pinch runner with one out and the White Sox trailing the Cubs 7-6 at Wrigley Field. He steals second, only to be picked off trying to time a steal of third. (June 4)
Balks, then a walk-off: The White Sox once again blow a 5-1 lead en route to a 7-6 loss against the North Siders, but this one involved two critical balks and a game-winning homer by Mike Tauchman off Michael Kopech. (June 5)
HISTORY: With a 14-2 loss to the Red Sox, the White Sox lose their 14th consecutive game, setting a new franchise record for longest losing streak. Danny Mendick becomes the 22nd pitcher used by the White Sox this season, which tops the number of total pitchers used in 2023. (June 6)
True stopping: The White Sox end that record losing streak in style, as Garrett Crochet strikes out 10 batters over six innings and Jonathan Cannon records the first three-inning save since Chris Beck in 2018 as the White beats Red, 7-2. (June 7)
A satisfying swing: Gavin Sheets belts the first White Sox grand slam of the season to Bryan Bello's immense frustration, propelling the Sox to a second consecutive victory. (June 8)
He can't hide: A chance to take the series against Boston goes by the boards with a 6-4 loss in 10 innings, during which Martín Maldonado hit for himself in close-and-late situations multiple times. Pedro Grifol, whom Bob Nightengale said earlier in the day wasn't likely to be fired midseason, defends Maldonado, and somehow Oscar Colás ends up catching a stray. (June 9)
A nifty 50: The White Sox enter the bottom of the eighth inning leading the Mariners at T-Mobile Park 4-0, only to lose 8-4 on a walk-off grand slam by Cal Raleigh. (June 10)
A decent debut: Drew Thorpe throws five innings of two-run ball against the Mariners in his first MLB start which is a respectable showing after being promoted directly from Double-A. (June 11)
A one-run loss delayed, not denied: Luis Robert Jr. comes off the bench and homers on the only pitch he sees to tie the game at 1 in the ninth inning, but the White Sox end up losing the Mariners with another walk-off hit in the 10th. (June 12)
Sunk cost: The Houston Astros release José Abreu despite owing more than half of the three-year, $58.5 million deal they signed him to after the 2022 season. (June 14)
Martín Maldonado, plus baserunner: The White Sox end up on the right side of a pitch-tipping revelation because they saw old friend Thyago Vieira spinning the ball in his glove before throwing a slider. The uncertainty over the White Sox's great swings led the Diamondbacks to intentionally balk Martín Maldonado to third so he couldn't look into Vieira's glove and relay the information, which comes back to bite the Snakes when an Andrew Vaughn single scores him. (June 15)
No vote of confidence: Chris Getz passes on an opportunity to voice support for Grifol, even if he's not the guy ultimately in charge of the manager's job security. (June 18)
“Pedro and I are still talking regularly and like I said earlier, we are trying to put our players in the best position we can for not only to be successful this year, but in the coming years,” Getz said. “So, there is a lot of work to be done, whether it be on our major league staff or with our front office to take steps forward. So, I know that actually there’s a lot of speculation on who is going to be in what role in future years and really it’s about showing up each day and figuring out how to put our players in the best position possible.”
A return to Rickwood: Two days before Major League Baseball's jewel event between the Giants and Cardinals, the Birmingham Barons play their first game at Rickwood Field since the pandemic. Willie Mays' death is announced during the game, adding to the poignancy of it all. (June 18)
DuhJong: The White Sox invent a new way to lose when Paul DeJong is doubled off first base on a routine fly ball to center in the ninth of a 2-1 game in Detroit, because he didn't know the number of outs. (June 21)
Minor successes: The Birmingham Barons and Kannapolis Cannon Ballers close out the first half of the season with first-half titles for the Southern and Carolina leagues, guaranteeing spots in the postseason at the end of the year. (June 23)
The worst first half: After a 4-3 loss to the Dodgers, the White Sox close out the first half of the season at 21-60. Using very complex calculations, that puts them on pace for a 42-120 record at the end of the year. (June 25)
An inauspicious restart: The White Sox open the second half the way they opened the first: by getting shut out. A 4-0 loss at the hands of Gavin Stone seals a sweep for the Dodgers, who held the White Sox scoreless for 26 of the 27 innings during the three-game set. (June 26)
Condor clipped: The White Sox actually win the season series against the Braves -- a series that started in April -- with a 1-0 victory over Chris Sale in a rescheduled midweek day game. A Luis Robert Jr. solo shot providing the only run. (June 27)
Nobody was shot: The White Sox successfully host a postgame concert, as country singer Jordan Davis provides the postscript for a 5-3 White Sox victory over the Rockies. (June 28)
Be more specific: In response to questions about Eloy Jiménez's ability to run for any duration without hurting himself, Pedro Grifol says Jiménez is running "between 75 and 83 percent." (June 29)
Spread it on: The White Sox set a season high in runs by running up the score against the Rockies with four homers. One of them is Luis Robert Jr.'s, 470-foot blast, the longest hit by a White Sox in the Statcast era. John Schriffen enters SlamBall Mode. (June 29)
Damn the Manfred Man: Michael Soroka pitches the 11th, 12th, 13th and 14th innings and allows zero earned runs, but still has to take the loss in a 5-4 defeat to the Rockies, dropping him to 0-8 on the season, and denying the White Sox their first 10-win month of the year. (June 30)
