When the Cleveland Indians swept the four game White Sox home series, it was the first time the Tribe had done so since 1948.
1948 was a historic season for Chicago baseball. The Cubs and White Sox lost a combined 191 games.
The Cubs are currently 35-45, a .438 winning percentage. Surprisingly, the White Sox are 32-47, a .405 winning percentage. If they continue their current trends, the teams are on pace for a combined 187 losses.
The Cubs were expected to be bad. The team continues its annual fire sale of veterans for prospects after signing numerous players with injuries (like Scott Baker) to rehab and flip like distressed foreclosed houses. The plan to sign marginal players for the major league roster to stock the minor league system with more depth has begun to annoy the fan base, who more and more are not coming to see the team at Wrigley.
The White Sox were expected to hover around the wild card slot like they did last season. The same veteran core was present this season. The team thought it stabilized third base with the acquisition of Jeff Keppinger. He had been a disappointment. More disappointing has been the defense's collapse and lack of offense. The team seems lackluster and old with little drive.
National columnists believe that both teams want to be active at the trade deadline. The White Sox have relievers (Crain, Thorton, Lindstrom) who many teams would like to bolster their bullpens for the stretch drive in September. The Cubs have starting pitching on sale (Garza, Feldman). The Cubs are also filled with a roster of Reed Johnson type role players (Ransom, Navarro, Hairston, Valbuena) that may be valuable to a club looking for a defender or pinch hitting specialist.
After the trade dust settles, it will be clear that both teams will have a long way to go to rebuild their squads.
