The Night Chicago Died

The New York Yankees can accomplish something Thursday night that they have not done since 1976, and failed to do seven times since then: in 1981, 1982, 1983, 1988, 1992, 1997 and 2008.

The Yankees can sweep a four-game series in Chicago by defeating the White Sox tonight; they haven't done so in 35 years. Now, four-game series are fairly rare in this age of three-division play, but the Yankees had those seven chances to pull off a four-game sweep at the Chisox' old and new parks since 1976 (a pennant-winning year for them, and a 97-loss season for the White Sox), and failed.

On a similar but lesser note, the Cubs can sweep a four-game series over the Pirates by winning in Pittsburgh Thursday night. They have done that on the road exactly twice in franchise history -- in 1950 and 1959, both times winning both ends of a doubleheader to accomplish the sweep.