waltwilliams

Totally agree with this. And regarding their present location, remember that the state of Illinois and the White Sox completely leveled an entire neighborhood (South Armour Square) to build current Rate Field in 1989-91, displacing hundreds of people/businesses. There is absolutely no reason that a deep-pocketed developer couldn't build an entire new community on the site of Old Comiskey and on the parking lots just behind it (adjacent to Armour Park) to create the Ballpark Village/Neighborhood that they need/desire. And you'd still have the parking to the west and south of the park, which has traditionally been the tailgaters spot. Hell, they could tear down the Tinkertoy signage in the bleachers, and put a couple of hotels in that space behind the back of the stadium (near Wentworth) to create an effect of buildings in the background, a la Wrigley. This is the great thing about 35th and Shields -- in addition to the history (no MLB team has played longer at the same location), it's a blank slate with regards to development. And the transportation/infrastructure is already there.

The neighborhood around Sox Park is definitely not unremarkable. Bridgeport on one side and Bronzeville on the other have seen a tremendous renaissance over the past 10 years. And the neighborhood that Sox Park is actually in -- Armour Square -- is also home to one of the city's most notable tourist areas, Chinatown. It is, in fact, a much more vibrant area than the desolate area of the South Loop where the 78 is. The issue has always been that the White Sox have tried to ignore the neighborhood, with the sea of parking lost and insistence on having visitors only pay for what's inside the stadium.

Eder's actually back in the majors with the Angels: https://www.si.com/mlb/angels/angels-news/two-surprise-angels-pitchers-have-lockers-in-clubhouse He's pitched a couple of scoreless innings for them in long relief: https://www.milb.com/player/jake-eder-671109.

Jake Burger sent to Triple A by the Rangers -- hitting .190 with three homers: https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/44958204/reports-rangers-demoting-slugger-jake-burger-triple-a

They are outstanding ... I have Sirius and listen to all the broadcasts and they have to be in the top 5 radio teams in the country.

I know this will be an unpopular opinion, but I think Schiffren's been decent this year. He's a been a straightforward broadcaster -- his style kind of reminds me of Chip Caray. As good as Benetti could be, his forced humor really got on my nerves. And Schriffren, to his credit, doesn't do that kind of stuff.

That's right. I'm thinking of guys they kept, though

Kenny Williams was actually really good in finding diamond-in-the-rough types: Jose Valentin, Juan Uribe, Carlos Quentin come to mind.

Fun fact: Tim Anderson was the last home-grown (drafted and developed) Sox position player to make the All-Star team in 2021 and 2022. The last home-grown position player to make the All-Star team before TA was Joe Crede in 2008! And he was drafted almost 30 years ago ('96)

Robert is still a trade asset. He's running very well, probably better than he has in at least a year. The bat's not there right now, but despite what a lot of posters believe on this site, he's not a malingerer. He IS undisciplined at the plate, though. And I'm sure he's demoralized by being on this historically bad team. He desperately needs new surroundings.

Doesn't he still have three minor league options left? I think he does. But the Sox would never do that to him - they wouldn't want to hurt his feelings.

I live in the South Loop and that 78 location at Roosevelt and Clark is remote, even for people who live in the neighborhood. You must have been quite the adventurer to literally walk a mile from the financial district to this weed-strewn empty lot for lunch breaks. I agree with the other posters here -- despite the skyline views, this location is a pipe-dream for a new stadium. There's a reason why it has never been developed -- even before you get into the costs of a new stadium, just making it commuter friendly would take billions.

He was by far the best-looking player on that sorry squad in September. I would have to think he'll get a shot in spring training

What examples do you have of Colas' "questionable character". I know he complained about not being brought up, but is that really "questionable"?

Kevin Warren is the key driver of keeping the Bears on the lakefront. I think the McCaskeys and Ted Phillips were perfectly fine with the Arlington Heights location, which at the end of the day, makes more sense for the Bears than staying downtown.

Not sure why Citi Field is a poor example. For the past 20 years of existence (and for adjacent Shea Stadium's entire life going back to the 60s) it was surrounded by auto-body shops and borderline poverty. But that didn't keep Mets fans away in the past. Good on Steve Cohen for being a responsible owner and attempting to create his own village by his existing stadium -- that's what JR or a new Sox owner should be doing, looking for ways to develop around Sox Park. As for Pittsburgh and Cincinnatti, these two franchises are routinely at the bottom-third of MLB attendance, despite their relatively new ballparks and whatever attractions they may have on the outside. Unless you're the Cubs or Red Sox, if you don't have a good team, chances are you won't draw, regardless of where you play,

I've been to Yankee Stadium (the old one) and Dodger Stadium a few times. There is probably less to do outside those ballparks than there is at Sox Park. (Yankee Stadium has a dive bar named Stan's nearby, but not much else). And yet, these two teams are routinely one and two in attendance. It's not because they have cool places outside the ballpark -- it's because of the winning traditions that both teams have. Same thing with Citi Field -- it looks like a third world country outside that stadium. But the Mets routinely draw between 2.5 million and 3 million.

Yeah, I get the frustration with management, but that was kind of embarrassing. A low point for us as a fanbase, to be honest

Garrett told Merkin that he didn't appreciate the fans cheering on the Angels and cheering for the Sox to lose at home this week.

PK Wrigley was as ignorant about the cost benefits of television and sports as almost every other owner of the time was. He basically gave the rights away for free to WGN (and earlier, had Cubs games on both WGN and WBKB for nothing). He WAS very insightful about TV being free advertising for the team, but he made no money off the TV rights. @Dick Allen is absolutely right. The teams were basically on equal footing until the early 80s, when the Sox moved off free TV. But even then, the Sox were still right there with the Cubs "83 and '84 -- they were the first team in Chicago to draw over two million fans two years in a row in those years. But the combination of the Tribune Company's national reach as a superstation, along with Harry Caray moving from the Sox to the Cubs began the real momentum of the North Side as the dominant team. The Sox came back with the move to the new stadium in '91. But after the '94 strike, where JR was the most prominent union-buster on ownership side, the Sox were diminished even more. And the Sammy Sosa phenomenon in the late 90s, culminating with the '98 season, really killed the Sox.

Thanks, Mite. Lots of empty seats in that film at Sox Park. Jimmy Brown was something, though -- he'd still dominate in today's game

Great story, Mite. Always got the impression that the Cardinals and Sox shared the same fan base (although the Cardinals had a tiny fan base at the end). Cards and Browns played the year prior to you seeing them at Sox Park -- looks like Brown had quite the day then, too:

And it happens at Sox Park as well. Public transportation is much closer to 35th and Shields than it is to Soldier Field or the UC. The current Sox Park is by far the most conveniently located stadium for both mass and vehicular transportation in the city, with three different public transportation lines (CTA and Metra) located with a couple of blocks from the park, along with a major expressway (connected to multiple other area expressways) adjacent to it. I

Here, also, is a good Chicago Magazine piece (from 2013) about the recent history of the land: https://www.chicagomag.com/city-life/august-2013/rezkos-lot/