It was not that long ago that the Chicago White Sox hit absolute rock bottom by losing 121 games in a season. That was in 2024. Two years later, they won 84 games against 78 losses and even won their first series in the MLB playoffs in over two decades.

What a turnaround it has been for the White Sox, leaving owner Jerry Reinsdorf reflecting on it after Chicago's American League Wild Card Series sweep of the Houston Astros on Wednesday.

“It's absolutely amazing. First of all, it's amazing to lose 121 games. Now, that was depressing. That was depressing,” said the 90-year-old Reinsdorf in a video shared on social media by Jesse Rogers of ESPN.

Reinsdorf, who is no stranger to success, having witnessed his Chicago Bulls dominate in the 1990s, then highlighted the work behind the scenes that put the White Sox in a position to win.

“But then you can see the progress started. The first thing I realized with [general manger Chris Getz] was the organization he was putting in place. You know, when you build a building, the foundation comes first. And he went about putting in place a terrific foundation in the scouting and development.

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And that didn't start to produce the players. And then of course, there was the crochet trade. I mean, that provided a third of the players on the starting lineup. So it was a process. I didn't think it would come to fruition this fast. I really didn't. I really thought 2027 was the year that we would contend. But nobody told the players that they couldn't do it.”

After that brutal 121-loss campaign, Will Venable was hired as manager, and he helped Chicago improve by 19 wins. That provided a glimpse of what was to come for the club in 2026.

Then again, the journey is not over yet for the White Sox, who will look to strike while the iron is hot.

After eliminating the Astros, Chicago heads to the AL Division Round for a serise against AL Central rivals Cleveland Guardians.