77 Hitmen

There is a two-word answer to this that explains it in an articulate and persuasive way: LAUGH EMOJI!

Ron sure knows how to stir the pot here!

The officials at the groundbreaking had to be airlifted in and out. The site is totally inaccessible. They were also wearing hazmat suits.

The Twins apparently went from ~$55M in RSN revenue to ~$5M. Meanwhile, the Dodgers are getting over $300M annually from their RSN deal. The Cardinals have gone from $75M in TV revenue to $20M: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ijf4lkGd98&t=138s

and none of those teams can break through against the big market teams except for the Royals winning one WS title 11 seasons ago. Milwaukee is perhaps a text book example of how to run a small market team in MLB very well....and they still have no pennants to show for it. Their payroll is less that the Dodgers' luxury tax. Cleveland is a well-run organization that has to perpetually tear down and rebuild every few years. That isn't exactly a good model for the sport. Baltimore hasn't won a pennant in more than 40 years. Last year, they lost 87 games and within the last 8 years they've had 115, 110, and 108-loss seasons. I wouldn't exactly point to them as an example of how MLB's system is working. The A's are homeless and playing in a minor league stadium for another two seasons after abandoning Oakland after 56 years. Are they an MLB success story? San Diego's days of big payrolls are probably over as the team is for sale. The Tigers 26-man payroll has gone up to $203M this year, but they haven't been "running $230M+ payrolls." We'll see if they can keep Skubal when he becomes a FA. Are you seriously arguing that there's no competitive balance issue in MLB with teams like the A's and Orioles as examples?

.....and this is EXACTLY what's wrong with MLB. I don't hear people moaning about revenue and ratings when Kansas City or Green Bay make the Super Bowl. Where was the outcry that people want big market teams to be in the NBA finals when OKC and Indiana were in it? I don't recall the NHL saying that they want/need only NY/Chicago/LA/Boston to be in the Stanley Cup. I don't care who will die on what hill or what accounting tricks are being used, MLB simply cannot go on as a league where the top 12 markets are almost a lock to at least make the WS if not win it. If that means a long lockout, then so be it. If they can solve this problem without any semblance of a salary cap, wonderful. The only time in the last 20 years a top 12 team didn't win it all was when Washington, KC, and St. Louis won it. The Nats are perhaps one of those mid-market teams and are a total mess right now. St. Louis has slid from one of the most successful franchises over many decades to a small-market also-ran. At one time, the Cardinals had a $1B RSN deal, but that has totally imploded and now they're one of the teams that is going under the MLB umbrella for local broadcast distribution. The last time a top 12 market team wasn't in the World Series was 2006 when it was St. Louis vs. Detroit. If that's not a "lock" for them to be in the World Series, I don't know what is.

Site work begins for the new Cleveland Browns indoor stadium in Brook Park, Ohio.

I didn't see a more recent thread about the upcoming CBA expiration and expected work stoppage. So, my apologies if this has been posted elsewhere or should go in another thread. The Athletic has conducted a fan survey and 68% of respondents are in favor of a salary cap and floor system. 77% expect some games to be missed in 2027. What do fans say about a lockout affecting their fandom: 20% say Significantly, 47% say Somewhat, and 33% say Not At All. https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7073638/2026/03/02/mlb-salary-cap-fan-survey-2026/

Right? What did people expect Brooks to say in an interview - "yeah, we tried to give Nancy a hint that it was time for her to go"? I don't want to get this thread totally sidetracked about the Nancy Faust situation since there's a lot more speculation involved there, but it's totally reflective of how this organization has driven away talented individuals who aren't total loyalists for 4+ decades now. This shitshow isn't going to end for us until there is a change in ownership.

Unfortunately, Jerry is totally incapable of this kind of self-reflection. The only times he takes notes is when he can tell everyone "I told you so". So, he's run off Caray, Benetti, Fisk, Thomas......but on the bright side he brought back Tony LaRussa!

Paul Sullivan: Jason Benetti’s new gig as voice of ‘Sunday Night Baseball’ yet another blemish for Chicago White Sox https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/03/05/jason-benettis-sunday-night-baseball-chicago-white-sox/ The Detroit Tigers released a statement Wednesday saying they were “incredibly proud” of announcer Jason Benetti being named the new voice of NBC’s “Sunday Night Baseball” broadcasts. “This recognition reflects his exceptional broadcasting talent, tireless commitment to excellence, and engaging personality, all of which combine to make him a premier storyteller across all of sports,” the Tigers statement said.

He also alienated Bill Veeck almost instantly after assuming ownership and then Veeck became a regular (and popular) visitor at the Wrigley bleachers for the rest of his life. Jerry's organization (allegedly Brooks Boyer) pushed Nancy Faust out the door, too. But hey, on the plus side Jerry was the co-founder of SportsVision and the designer of New Comiskey!

Yeah, but that's all negated by the way he eats!

I look forward to the day when Ishbia finally takes control of this franchise. My hope is that a massive house cleaning of the organization quickly follows that day.

.....and for those who don't want to watch the video, here is how he groups the MLB ballparks: Cathedrals: Wrigley, Fenway, Oracle Park, Dodger Stadium, Petco, Camden Yards, PNC Park Modern Hits: Truist Park, Comerica Park, Target Field, T-Mobile Park, Citi Field, Coors Field, Rogers Centre Safe & Basic: Busch, Yankee Stadium, Citizen Bank Park, American Family Field, Nationals Park, Globe Life Field, Progressive Field, Great American Ballpark, Daikin Park, Load Depot Park, Kauffman Swing & Miss: Chase Field, Sacramento ballpark (temp home), Angel Stadium, Tropicana Field, Rate Field

Here's a new MLB ballpark rankings that just got posted. One thing I like about this review is that he groups the ballparks into four categories: Cathedrals, Modern Hits, Safe & Basic, and Swing & Miss. That seems like a much better way than to argue which park is 17th or 23rd, etc. I don't think he's listing the ballparks in each category by best to worst in that group. The other thing I like is the Google Earth 360 view of each stadium. Sox fans who have a huge chip on their shoulder about Rate Field should probably stop at Tropicana Field and not watch the end of this video. Cardinals fans might not like that he puts Busch in the Safe & Basic category, either.

The Padres play in a top-tier ballpark and have averaged fewer than 26k per game only once since Petco opened in 2004. They've drawn over 3M three years in a row and just missed 3M in 2022. They're also the only team in San Diego among the 4 major sports leagues. I can see why they're valued greater than the White Sox even though the Sox are in the 3rd largest market.

We all know that KW has too much of a temper and ego for this own good. But yeah, I mean it was only a few weeks ago that we were discussing the Sox vs. Thomas spat over their Black History month statement and KW has been gone for several years now. This organization simply does not tolerate former players who don't kiss the ring and it all comes down to the person in the organization who just became a nonagenarian.

I assume you meant to type south part of the lot. Looking at the rendering below, it doesn't appear to me that a Fire stadium would block much of the skyline view. I don't imagine the soccer structure would be any taller than the top of the upper deck of the Sox stadium and most of that view is blocked by the scoreboard in LF with a Mets player on it. And yeah, it'll be up to Ishbia. If he wants to privately finance a new stadium there, it'll probably get done. Only time will tell if that's what he wants to do.

KW contributed a lot toward this team leading up to the 2005 championship, but I'm so relieved that he's gone. As far as throwing former players under the bus who aren't total loyalists after they're gone, seems like par for the course for this team under Jerry Reinsdorf

Yeah, there are lots of people who look older than that who are in their 70s.

Yes, but it's not just about the most money either state is going to throw at them. It's also about which site offers the most potential for generating revenue streams and franchise valuation for the Bears. It looks to me like McCaskey still sees AH as the best location for that. Otherwise, this would all be over - the IN offer clearly bests the IL offer in that they'd be chipping in $1B toward the stadium itself. But that means saying goodbye to that massive 326 acre site at a prime location for development. My guess: If IL pushes through their legislation in the spring session without much delay, the Bears will take that and have earthmoving equipment ready to go at AH. If IL dicks around some more and fails to get a package done this spring, the Bears will tell them to drop dead and sign on to the IN deal. ....and yeah, Papa Bear would do the same thing. He was trying to get out of Soldier Field shorter after the Bears moved there in the early 70s.

Getting back to this question, though it may enrage anyone on SoxTalk who is apparently monitoring my post count, I found this article from last June a couple of weeks after the Fire made their stadium announcement. https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/sports/mlb/chicago-white-sox/could-chicago-fire-fc-white-sox-stadium-projects-share-south-loop-site/3770673/ “There is a lot of room at the site,” David Baldwin, Fire FC’s President of Business Operations, told NBC Chicago’s Lexi Sutter. “Obviously we are the anchor tenant, (and) we’re really excited to catalyze this development. If it makes sense once our stadium is open for one of the other teams, if it makes sense at that point we are open to having a conversation down the road. and Related Midwest had said in a statement last year that they were “actively exploring the co-location of dual stadiums” for the two teams. It might not leave a lot of room for a sprawling entertainment district, but probably enough to have some development there. The riverfront and close to downtown location perhaps outweighs the need to create some sort of sprawling "White Sox Village" development like they'd need to do at a suburban location or even on the parking lots of the current stadium.

It looks like any updates on the Bears stadium saga will have to wait a few weeks. The IL House committee advanced the mega projects bill, but now the assembly is adjourned until March 18. IN's governor signed their stadium bill into law yesterday, but it looks like the Bears are willing to wait until the IL recess is over next month. https://abc7chicago.com/post/chicago-bears-news-illinois-indiana-lawmakers-taking-stadium-bills-thursday/18652916/