With 120 losses, the White Sox set the record for most losses since 1900.

SAN DIEGO – The Chicago White Sox led 2-1 until the bottom of the eighth inning on Sunday when history struck.

That narrow lead vanished within four hits of the San Diego Padres, and the White Sox suffered their 120th loss, tying the post-1900 record set by the 1962 expansion New York Mets.

The dichotomy couldn't have been greater.

The White Sox went into a gloomy clubhouse and calmly packed their things for their flight home.

The Padres, closing in on a postseason berth, gathered in front of their dugout to applaud the 45,197 fans who braved the eighth and ninth innings of their 4-2 victory in the final home game of the regular season on the bright first day of fall. Some fans even chanted “Beat LA!” in anticipation of a big series that begins Tuesday night at the Los Angeles Dodgers.

“I think when you lose 120 it’s easier to dismiss it, but it [stinks] to get through this, but that's where we are,” said veteran White Sox outfielder Andrew Benintendi.

There was hope that the White Sox could at least delay the historic loss, but that was no longer the case. Right-hander Sean Burke, making only his second major league start – and third appearance – was outstanding for six innings. The White Sox took the lead with two home runs from Yu Darvish, including one from Korey Lee, who grew up in northern San Diego County.

“Burke pitched a heck of a game,” Benintendi said. “They have a lot of good hitters in their lineup, guys who have been playing for a long time, and once they take over with that bullpen, it seems like it's pretty much over at that point.”

“So yes, it [stinks].”

Many of the White Sox losses came late in games.

“Yeah, we joke about it all the time. It never seems like we're going down, and in the seventh, eighth and ninth innings, every night we're going against their guys who are going seven, eight or nine innings, which is great. It's hard to score from the back ends of the bullpen,” Benintendi said.

“It seems like we've been here many times and it just didn't work out.”

With another loss in their final six games, the White Sox will tie the modern record. They finish the season with three home games against the Los Angeles Angels, starting Tuesday night, and three wins at Detroit, which is in the running for the AL wild card.

The 1899 Cleveland Spiders hold the major league losing record at 20-134.

Interim manager Grady Sizemore did not speak to the team again afterward.

“No loss is good,” he said. “It's not something we're focused on. I think everyone outside of this clubhouse is more obsessed with it than we are. We want to put this behind us and get ready for the series at home.”

When asked how his players had digested the situation, Sizemore said, “We all know the situation. We know where we stand. We have a job to do and they're still playing for something. They handled it like professionals and we'll be back out there on Tuesday ready to do our best.”

Lee said: “I think if you ask all 50 guys or so, [who have been on the roster this season] we're not going to be happy about it. If you're happy about it, I don't know what you're doing here.

“I think it's hard, of course, but at the same time, everyone comes here every day and does their best.”

The catcher said that the team stayed together despite all the defeats.

“It shows how close we are. We talked about it today. Honestly, I look forward to it every day when I come here: having the guy right next to me and knowing that he's going to take care of me, inside and out, on the field and off the field.

“That's everything you could ask for. We're a nice family. Of course there's a lot of bad stuff, but you have to take the good out of every day. And the good thing is coming here with this group of guys and doing what we all love to do.”

The White Sox tied the AL record of 119 losses set by the Detroit Tigers in 2003 on Saturday night, losing their 20th straight road series and being swept for the 24th time this season.