CHICAGO — Sean Manaea pitched seven innings of two-hit ball, Francisco Lindor hit his 29th home run and the New York Mets beat the Chicago White Sox 2-0 Sunday, handing them their franchise-record 107th loss.
Chicago (31-107) broke the club record for losses set by the 1970 team. The White Sox also completed the first 0-10 home streak in franchise history, becoming the first team since the 1965 Mets to have three 10-game losing streaks in a season.
Lindor gave New York a 1-0 lead when he connected leading off the fourth inning off Garrett Crochet. Starling Marte lined an RBI double off the center-field wall off Justin Anderson in the ninth, and the Mets earned their fourth straight win and ninth in 13 games to finish a 7-3 road trip. They began the day trailing Atlanta by two games in the race for the final NL wild card.
“We knew that, especially after playing the Padres and the Diamondbacks, we had to keep the intensity, stay focused, match their energy,” manager Carlos Mendoza said. “I'm proud of the guys, that we were able to do it day in and day out. And finally, getting that last 2-0 was big for us.”
Manaea (11-5) struck out five, walked two and hit a batter with a pitch. The left-hander is 3-0 in his last four starts and New York has won 12 of his last 15 starts.
He retired his first 11 batters before walking Lenyn Sosa, but then picked him off at first base to end the fourth inning. The White Sox didn't get a hit until Miguel Vargas singled to left field with two outs in the fifth.
Chicago threatened to score in the seventh, but came away empty-handed.
Luis Robert Jr. was hit by a pitch leading off the inning but was thrown out trying to steal second base. Andrew Vaughn walked with two outs and Gavin Sheets singled off sliding left fielder Jesse Winker, putting runners on the corners. Manaea then retired Vargas on a flyout to left field to escape that jam.
Reed Garrett retired all three batters in the eighth inning. Edwin Diaz struck out all three batters in the ninth for his 16th save in 22 chances as the Mets completed their sixth shutout of the season, all dating back to July 11.
The White Sox were shut out for the 15th time. They have been on the wrong end of 22 series sweeps, the most in the majors by a wide margin. Miami is second with 10.
Chicago is 4-36 since the All-Star break and 3-18 under interim manager Grady Sizemore. The White Sox's worst home stretch before this one was when they went 0-7 from May 23-29. They have lost 12 straight at Guaranteed Rate Field, which matches their season high.
Crochet (6-10), one of Chicago's few bright spots, matched an American League record by striking out the first seven batters and struck out eight overall in 3⅓ innings. The All-Star left-hander allowed one run and three hits with no walks.
The White Sox are limiting Crochet's workload because he missed most of the past two seasons due to Tommy John surgery and was a reliever before that.
“I was pretty frustrated when I came out, but I think he knows the situation and what we're trying to do,” Sizemore said. “He pitched well. He was focused, he had good stuff. It's going to be tough when he's on a leash that short like that and a pitch count, he's never going to be able to go as far as he wants to.”
