By Woodrow Carroll
With a 4-1 victory over the Detroit Tigers Sunday, the Chicago White Sox raised their season record to 41-24. At 17 games over .500 with 65 games played, the White Sox were only slightly off the franchise’s record-setting pace.
The 1915 edition of the White Sox were 44-21 after having played 65 games to give the team the best record in Club history..
As good as were the 1915 Sox, the team did not maintain the pace.
Ultimately, under manager Pants Rowland, the Sox finished 93-61 and in third place in the American League race. Two years later Rowland guided the White Sox to a World Series championship over the New York Giants.
Rowland’s charges were 100-54 and nine games in front in the American League race.
The 100-victory season enjoyed by the 1917 White Sox stands as the franchise’s high-water victory level and it was done when the Major League Baseball played a 154-game schedule, Beginning in 1961 the Sox played a 162-game schedule.
The 1915 edition of the White Sox may not have kept up the winning pace, however, the 2005 club sure did!
The 2005 White Sox were obviously a gifted team that culminated a magical season with a four-game sweep of the Houston Astros in the World Series. For much of the 2005 season, the Sox had the best record in franchise history.. In time the Sox tailed off a tad in 2005. The 2005 White Sox closed out the regular season with a record of 99-63 to finish six games in front in the American League Central Division.
There is always a dark side to a team’s history. The 1915 White Sox were 44-21 after 65 games.. The 1934 White Sox were 21-44 after 65 games to set the pace in reverse.
In 1934 the White Sox finished 53-99 for a 349 percentage. The American League was comprised of eight teams and Sox finished in last place.
Lew Fonseca opened as the team’s manager in 1934, only to be replaced by Jimmy Dykes at mid season. It was a knowledgeable group of Sox’ fans at the time and the team’s fans knew enough to stay away in droves. Only 236,559 made their way to Comiskey Park.
Dykes, who managed the Sox for all, or part of 13 seasons, brought about a mini-revival of White Sox fortunes. Dykes’ 1936 and 1937 teams both finished in third place in the American League races. Between 1920 and 1957 seasons, both second-place finishes, those third-place finishes in the 1930s, were the best for the Club.
• Hot starts! The 1946 Boston Red Sox roared out of the gate by winning 41 of the team’s first 50 games. Ted Williams and Company had a 10-game advantage in the American League race. As you might expect, the Red Sox did cool off a bit. However, the hot start was more than enough to allow the Red Sox to coast to a 104-50 record and finished 12 games in front in the AL race. The World Series proved to be a bit of a downer, however. The Red Sox lost in seven games to the St. Louis Cardinals.
• In 1984 the Detroit Tigers were 35-5 after 40 games. The team hit a fallow period and saw an 8.5 lead reduced to 3.5 games in the American League Eastern Division. Not to worry, the Tigers righted the ship and finished 15 games up on the Toronto Blue Jays in the Eastern Division.
The postseason was kind to the 1984 Tigers. Detroit swept the Kansas City Royals three straight in the American League Championship Series, then took out the San Diego Padres, four games to one in the World Series.
The White Sox started this week with the biggest divisional lead of any team in Major League Baseball, ahead by 5.5 games on the Cleveland Indians in the AL Central.