The next stadium I will discuss is the home of the Chicago White Sox. When I visited the ballpark in Aug 2009, it was called U.S. Cellular Field. Located on the South Side of Chicago, the baseball-only park has been renovated multiple times and has been christened three times, originally called Comiskey Park II (1991-2002), then later U.S. Cellular Field (2003-2016), and then most recently Guaranteed Rate Field (2016-present). The picture below is Comiskey park on opening day, April 18, 1991.
The Chicago White Sox team, established in 1894 as part of the American League (AL), gets overshadowed by the other team, the National League’s Chicago Cubs, especially in recent years when the crosstown Cubs in late Sept 2023 are playing for a playoff spot. What I remember about the stadium is that I was in the upper level (high up) with an unobstructed view of the field. The game was between the White Sox and the Cleveland Indians. Home team lost; final score was 2 Sox - 6 Indians. I noted that the ballpark has one of the highest decks in baseball. Since 2001, stadium was retrofit to include a multi-tiered concourse beyond center field, adjusting the fences to make the outfield less symmetrical, the removal of 6600 seats at the top, and creating luxury suites. Before this renovation, the ones in upper deck could not venture anywhere else in park, such as lower deck concourse. This renovation helped in allowing movement between the areas.
This historic team, one of the 8 charter franchises in AL, won the World Series three times (1906, 1917, and 2005) and the AL pennant seven times. The name, Chicago White Stockings, was shortened to White Sox in 1904. This stadium did recognize its great players, such as Paul Konerko (1B), Ted Lyons (starting pitcher/manager), Billy Pierce (starting pitcher), Frank Thomas (1B, DH), Mark Buehrle (starting pitcher), and Carlton Fisk (catcher). Also, there are pictures of the “Black Sox” scandal (when 8 White Sox players fixed game to lose 1919 World Series to Reds, thus being banned from MLB for life). It took the White Sox 87 years to win the World Series, the 2nd longest MLB championship drought of all time, after the Cubs’ 107 seasons.
I did not find this ballpark that unique. The ballpark was standard fare, with Kentucky bluegrass covering the field. No wonder the team is looking to get a new stadium in the coming years, once the lease expires. The talk is that the team may move to the suburbs of Chicago or move to Nashville. The 2023 Chicago White Sox are under .50 ball. You know your team is desperate for attendance when Chicago White Sox announced $1.00 lower level tickets and free parking for Thursday’s White Sox-Diamondbacks 1:05 pm game (9/28/23). Going back to .50 ball should be the goal, rather than nearing 100 losses and probably firing manager at end of season. It is a sad state of affairs in South side of Chicago.
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