Lenyn Sosa hit a two-run homer with two outs in the ninth inning to tie the game, but the Chicago White Sox lost their 118th game when Fernando Tatis Jr. got a double to score a run in the 10th, giving the San Diego Padres a 3-2 win on Friday night.
“He had a good sinker so I stayed away from that,” Tatis said. “But then he decided to go with the slider and I just stayed back and put the barrel on the ball.”
With a record of 36-118, Chicago needs to win 7 out of their last 8 games to avoid breaking the record for the most losses in a season, which was set by the 1962 expansion New York Mets at 120 losses.
The White Sox are also one loss away from tying the American League record held by the 2003 Detroit Tigers and, despite their late comeback, they remain 0-100 when behind after eight innings. Since the All-Star break, they have a record of 9-47.
The major league record for losses is held by the 1899 Cleveland Spiders, who finished at 20-134.
San Diego, now at 88-66, kept a two-game lead over Arizona for the top National League wild card spot.
“We want it more than ever,” Tatis said. “We are pushing no matter what. We know the numbers, the teams we are playing and there’s a little bit more pressure. But it looks like we can handle it.”
In the ninth inning, Gavin Sheets walked after a nine-pitch at-bat with two outs, and Sosa ended his nine-pitch at-bat by hitting a fastball at 100.4 mph over the left-center field wall. Suarez, the pitcher, threw 12 pitches at 100 mph or faster during the game.
“Continuing to build confidence. Continuing to show that we can compete with the best teams and we’re never out of it,” said White Sox interim manager Grady Sizemore.
In the 10th inning, Tyler Wade, who was brought in as a pinch runner, threw out Bryan Ramos at the plate when Ramos tried to score from third on a ground ball hit to second base by Dominic Fletcher off pitcher Adrian Morejon.
