White Sox lead Guardians 2-0 in ALDS, one win from the ALCS after three straight 100-loss seasons

The Chicago White Sox are one win from the American League Championship Series, two years after losing a modern-era record 121 games.

Chicago leads the Cleveland Guardians 2-0 in the best-of-five ALDS, having won the first two games in Cleveland. Game 3 is scheduled for Wednesday in Chicago, the White Sox's first home playoff game since 2021.

From 121 losses to October

The collapse was steep. After an 81-81 finish in 2022, Chicago lost 101 games in 2023, 121 in 2024 and 102 in 2025.

In late September 2024, attendance was sparse, and some of those who showed up were hoping to witness history, with Chicago one defeat away from setting the record for losses in a 162-game season. The Sox won their last three home games of that season, then lost No. 121 on the road.

This year they finished 84-78. That made them the first team to make the playoffs after back-to-back 100-loss seasons, and because they had lost 100 or more three years running, the first to do it after three straight.

The roster looks very different from 2024. Only four hitters and five players overall were on the team then and are on it now, according to MLB.com.

The playoff run so far

Chicago swept the Houston Astros in the Wild Card round. It was the franchise's first postseason series win since 2005.

In Game 1 of the ALDS the White Sox shut out Cleveland 3-0. Munetaka Murakami hit a two-run homer, and the pitching staff held the Guardians to three hits.

Pitcher Grant Taylor recorded a save in each of the first two wins. He spoke Monday about what Wednesday could mean.

"Waiting 120 years, so maybe we can do it this year," Taylor told reporters. "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."

A chance at a 120-year drought

A win Wednesday would end another long wait. The White Sox have not clinched a playoff series in front of their home fans since 1906.

That is the team's own history, and it frames what is at stake. Cleveland has to win to keep its season alive.

The comparison nobody in Pittsburgh wants

The turnaround has drawn comparisons with franchises that have stayed stuck. The site Rum Bunter argued that the White Sox's run makes the Pittsburgh Pirates' long rebuild look worse.

The Pirates went 82-80 this season, their first winning record since 2018. They still finished six games out of a Wild Card spot, and their season ended Sept. 27.

Rum Bunter's own piece acknowledges the two organizations did not follow identical paths or operate under identical circumstances.

The White Sox were not the only surprise this season. FanSided noted that the Tampa Bay Rays were the best team in the AL more or less wire to wire, while the New York Mets and Seattle Mariners missed the postseason.

What comes next

The series is best-of-five, so Chicago needs one more win to reach the ALCS. If Cleveland wins Wednesday, the series continues.

The outcome of Game 3 was not available at the time of publication.