In 2010, the Minnesota Twins and the Chicago White Sox were locked in a battle for the American League Central division championship until the last few weeks of the season. On Tuesday night in Chicago, the two teams will meet up in a series between the two teams that, currently, possess the two worst records in Major League Baseball.
The Twins and White Sox are the only two teams in the American League with winning percentages below .400. The White Sox enter this series with a record of 11-19, good for a .367 winning percentage. Yet, with a record that bad, they're still a half-game ahead of the Twins in the American League Central, as the Twins' 9-18 record puts them ten games out in the division.
To fully crystallize the futility of these two teams, here are their major statistics and where they rank in Major League Baseball in those categories:
| Twins | Stat | White Sox |
| 85 (30th) | Runs Scored | 119 (18th) |
| .230 (28th) | Batting Average | .242 (21st) |
| .292 (30th) | On-Base Percentage | .307 (23rd) |
| .324 (29th) | Slugging Percentage | .372 (23rd) |
| 5.06 (30th) | Earned Run Average | 4.44 (22nd) |
| 12 (27th) | Quality Starts | 15 (16th) |
| 1.48 (28th) | WHIP | 1.37 (22nd) |
| .277 (29th) | Batting Average Allowed | .264 (24th) |
As bad as the White Sox have been, the Twins have been significantly worse. The Twins can't hit and they can't pitch. To contrast just how much worse the Twins have been, Minnesota has the worst run differential in all of baseball, having a mark of -64 (meaning they've allowed 64 more runs than they've scored). The run differential for the White Sox is second-worst in the American League. . .and it's "only" at -32, or half of what Minnesota's is.
You might think that an opponent like the White Sox would present an opportunity for the Twins to "get healthy" as far as wins and losses, but that's not necessarily the case with this team. . .after all, the Kansas City Royals had lost six straight going into their three-game set with the Twins over the weekend, and they trounced the Twins in three consecutive games.
The pitching match-up for Tuesday night will see mercurial. . .to say the least. . .left-hander Francisco Liriano (1-4, 9.13 ERA) take the ball for the Twins, while the White Sox will go with right-hander Edwin Jackson (2-3, 5.86 ERA). First pitch from U.S. Cellular Field is scheduled for 7:10 PM Central time.