White Sox: The team quit on the season and deserves your scorn

Not every player on the team laid down after the Chicago White Sox fell apart in an important series against the Cleveland Guardians. But enough did that the team ended up going 0-6 during a six-game homestand. That’s right, the Sox were winless for an entire homestand.

It started with an important series against the Guardians. The Sox needed to sweep, or at least take two of three, to have realistic hopes of winning the American League Central. Instead, they got swept.

The Sox did fight hard in the first game before falling apart in extra innings. But the effort was lacking in games two and three of the series.

The Sox, still clinging to long-shot hopes for the wild card, then fell flat against the Detroit Tigers and got swept again. The Tigers have some talent, and shortstop Javier Baez had a good series, but Detroit is also the worst team in the division.

Oddly enough, the Sox did get quality starts from their starting pitchers all week only to see a lack of offense, sloppy defense, poor bullpen pitching, and an inability to hold runners on base make those starts go to waste.

The Chicago White Sox gave up on the season instead of fighting until the end.

As a fan, it’s enraging. It’s bad enough that the team has underachieved all season, with assists from baffling managerial decisions from Tony La Russa and injuries to key players like Tim Anderson not helping.

It’s worse to see that the team still had a chance, after all that, to steal the division away from a well-managed Guardians team that plays smart baseball. It’s even worse that the Sox, having lost the first game of the series, appeared to have given up.

It adds even more insult to see that the team couldn’t rouse a fighting spirit after the Cleveland series. A team that had World Series aspirations at the season’s start should be able to shake off the sweep and fight for the division and/or wild card until the math eliminates them.

It’s insulting to the fans who invested all their time and money in this season. It’s an insult to the competition and I can’t get mad at the Guardians for trolling the Sox during their celebrations. It’s pathetic.

Chicago Bears quarterback Justin Fields was pilloried for suggesting players hurt more after losses than fans do. Apparently, at least some of the White Sox don’t hurt as much as their spectators do and that’s frustrating.

All year long, there have been rumors about the Sox clubhouse being toxic. There’s no way to know how true those rumors are without being close to the team — even the beat reporters are limited in how much time they spend in the clubhouse (if the clubhouse has even reopened post-COVID).

But it sure looks like the team has been in need of energy and effort. And while La Russa often took the blame for that, he’s been away from the team all month and acting manager Miguel Cairo has been praised for his energy and ability to call the team out for poor effort.

So the blame lies beyond La Russa. Players must look in the mirror. Any White Sox who doesn’t have fight shouldn’t be here next year, regardless of talent level.

The front office built a talented team, for the most part. There have been some misses, and some talented veterans who have underachieved (especially in the bullpen), but generally speaking, the front office gets credit for having an eye for talent.

The problem is that talent isn’t enough. Players have to execute, they have to show baseball IQ, and they have to show the ability to fight when necessary.

The Sox have done none of the latter. Players can be taught to play smarter. But the ability to fight comes from within. And the Sox have let fans down one more time, in a season full of letdowns by showing up to the park physically but not mentally.

It’s bad enough to root for a contending team that underachieved and might finish below .500. It’s bad enough to watch a manager who isn’t the right fit for the team make baffling decisions or for injuries to take prominent players out.

But it’s poisonous icing on a cake made of crap to see the players just quit. The Sox could’ve salvaged a terrible season with a late run to the postseason.

Failing that, they could’ve at least fought to the last second, giving us fans something to cheer for. It would end a bad season on a positive note. Instead, the Sox essentially gave their fans an obscene gesture on the way out the door.