Chicago secured its first postseason appearance in five years with Thursday’s win in Kansas City. The victory capped a turnaround after three straight 100-loss seasons.
The Chicago White Sox clinched their first playoff berth in five years on Thursday, defeating the Kansas City Royals 9-1 at Kauffman Stadium.
The win completed a turnaround for Chicago, making them the first team in Major League Baseball history to qualify for the postseason after losing at least 100 games in three straight seasons. The White Sox had lost 101 games three years ago, dropped to 41-121 two seasons ago, and finished 60-102 last season.
Chicago arrived in Kansas City after taking three of four games against the Detroit Tigers, rebounding after blowing a six-run lead to Detroit the previous Friday. In Tuesday’s game against the Royals, the White Sox earned a 14-11 victory in front of 15,785 fans. Second baseman Chase Meidroth drove in five runs, pulling a foul ball down the left-field line in the third inning before hitting a three-run homer to left-center on the next pitch. Third baseman Miguel Vargas said Tuesday that his breakout season was secondary to the team’s postseason push.
The Royals delayed Chicago’s clinching bid on Wednesday with a 5-4 win before 17,114 fans. Chicago erased a four-run deficit in that matchup, but Kansas City’s Maikel Garcia drove in three runs on three hits, including a tiebreaking RBI double in the seventh inning that snapped the Royals’ five-game losing streak. Chicago had also needed a Texas Rangers loss to the New York Mets that night to clinch, but couldn’t seal the spot until Thursday.
Heading into Thursday’s finale, the White Sox stood at 81-77 while the Royals were 68-90. In addition to securing an American League wild-card berth, the White Sox remain one game behind the Cleveland Guardians in the American League Central race and hold the head-to-head tiebreaker over Cleveland.
