CHICAGO — This was the exclamation point on an ugly season.
The Angels lost 7-0 to the Chicago White Sox on Thursday, getting swept in three games by a team that began the series just one loss away from a major-league record.
The Angels (63-96) were the ones who made history instead, setting a franchise record for losses. The Angels lost 95 games in 1968 and 1980.
They couldn’t win a single game in this series against a White Sox team whose 120 losses tied the big-league record for futility. The White Sox have won only eight of their past 31 games, and four of them were against the Angels. The White Sox swept only one other series this season, in April.
“It’s pretty sickening,” catcher Logan O’Hoppe said. “Going in the spring and expecting things to turn around, and then it happens. We’ve got a good group in here, and it doesn’t feel like what the record shows, but the record is what it is. I don’t think anyone’s OK with it here. I’ll have a better answer when we have time to sit back and reflect on it, but I don’t know. it’s just tough right now.”
Adding to the Angels’ misery Thursday, shortstop Zach Neto left the game with right shoulder irritation. He was thrown out trying to go to second on a pitch in the dirt. He slid head-first and got hurt as he hit the ground.
Neto said he’s not concerned about the injury. Washington said Neto might return to the lineup as soon as Saturday.
His absence was felt quickly, with shortstop Jack López unable to turn a key double play in a scoreless game in the fifth.
Left-hander Tyler Anderson, who was trying to finish his rollercoaster season on a high note, got a ground ball that could have been a double play.
“I thought (Anderson) was good, but then that double play we didn’t turn screwed the inning up,” manager Ron Washington said. “We turn that double play it’s a different story but we didn’t turn the double play.”
Anderson got the next hitter to hit another grounder, but the Angels got only one out. After that, Anderson issued a walk and gave up two straight hits. Reliever Carson Fulmer entered and allowed hits to four of the next five hitters.
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By the time the inning was over, the White Sox had scored seven runs, their season high.
Anderson was charged with four earned runs, ending his season with a 3.81 ERA in 31 starts, including an All-Star selection. He pitched a career high 179⅓ innings.
Everyone around the Angels would certainly have signed up for those numbers when the season began, but Anderson’s 2024 could have been even better if he hadn’t posted a 6.93 ERA in his final eight starts.
“I don’t really want to reflect on it right now,” Anderson said. “I’m in a bad spot about how it ended the last couple months. Really disappointed. Overall I’m glad I took the ball every day, and made every start.”
The Angels are going to need Anderson to rediscover his first half form, and get a few other pitchers to join him, if the Angels are to bounce back from this nightmarish season.
“Hopefully it can’t get worse than this,” Neto said. “It’s a learning step for all of us. We have a young group here, a couple veterans. Hopefully learning from this season and take it to spring training and on to the regular season.”
O’Hoppe said the Angels have no choice but to be optimistic that they can improve next year. For now, though, he said it’s difficult to handle what’s happened.
“It’s just frustrating,” he said. “Our fans come out on the weekends and they want to see us win. We want to win more than anybody. Sleepless nights all year get pretty old after a while. It’s just frustrating. You feel all the emotions, and at some point you just don’t have any more emotion you can feel. It’s just like another hit onto the this year. It’s not fun to go through. I know we have to go through it, but doesn’t mean that anyone is OK with it.”