42 Facts About Chicago White Sox

1.

Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,037
2.

The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball as a member club of the American League Central division.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,038
3.

White Sox won the 1906 World Series with a defense-oriented team dubbed "the Hitless Wonders", and the 1917 World Series, led by Eddie Cicotte, Eddie Collins and Shoeless Joe Jackson.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,039
4.

The 1919 World Series was marred by the Black Sox Scandal, in which several members of the White Sox were accused of conspiring with gamblers to fix games.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,040
5.

In 1959, the White Sox, led by Early Wynn, Nellie Fox, Luis Aparicio, and manager Al Lopez, won the American League pennant.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,041
6.

White Sox originated as the Sioux City Cornhuskers of the Western League, a minor league under the parameters of the National Agreement with the National League.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,042
7.

The franchise, now known as the Chicago White Sox, made its first World Series appearance in 1906, beating the crosstown Cubs in six games.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,043
8.

White Sox won a third pennant and a second World Series in 1917, beating the New York Giants in six games with help from stars Eddie Cicotte and "Shoeless" Joe Jackson.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,044
9.

The Chicago White Sox were heavily favored in the 1919 World Series, but lost to the Cincinnati Reds in eight games.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,045
10.

White Sox did not finish in the upper half of the American League again until after founder Charles Comiskey died and passed ownership of the club to his son, J Louis Comiskey.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,046
11.

From 1951 to 1967, the White Sox had their longest period of sustained success, scoring a winning record for 17 straight seasons.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,047
12.

The Chicago White Sox finished in the upper half of the American League in eight of his nine seasons, including six years in the top two of the league.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,048
13.

In 1959, the White Sox ended the New York Yankees' dominance over the American League, and won their first pennant since the ill-fated 1919 campaign.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,049
14.

White Sox were fairly successful in the 1990s and early 2000s, with 12 winning seasons from 1990 to 2005.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,050
15.

The Chicago White Sox won the West division in 1993, and were in first place in 1994, when the season was cancelled due to the 1994 MLB Strike.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,051
16.

The White Sox went on to sweep the Houston Astros in the 2005 World Series, giving them their first World Championship in 88 years.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,052
17.

Guillen had marginal success during the rest of his tenure, with the Chicago White Sox winning the Central Division title in 2008 after a one-game playoff with the Minnesota Twins.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,053
18.

Also occurring during the 2018 season, the White Sox announced that the club would be the first Major League Baseball team to entirely discontinue use of plastic straws, in ordinance with the "Shedd the Straw" campaign by Shedd Aquarium.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,054
19.

The White Sox broke an MLB record during their 100-loss campaign of 2018, but broke the single-season strikeout record in only a year after the Milwaukee Brewers broke the record in the 2017 season.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,055
20.

Chicago White Sox only allowed one baserunner, which was a walk to Erik Gonzalez in the fourth inning.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,056
21.

On September 23,2021, the White Sox clinched the American League Central Division for the first time since 2008 against the Cleveland Indians.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,057
22.

Yet by far, the most unusual wrinkle was the option to wear shorts, which the White Sox did for the first game of a doubleheader against the Kansas City Royals in 1976.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,058
23.

In those jerseys, the White Sox won 99 games and the AL West championship in 1983, the best record in the majors.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,059
24.

In one game during the 2014 season, the Chicago White Sox paired their throwbacks with a cap featuring the batter logo instead of the wordmark "SOX"; this is currently their batting-practice cap prior to games in the throwback uniforms.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,060
25.

That same year, the White Sox wore "City Connect" alternate uniforms introduced by Nike, featuring an all-black design with silver pinstripes, and "Southside" wordmark in front.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,061
26.

The Chicago White Sox are most prominently nicknamed "the South Siders", based on their particular district within Chicago.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,062
27.

In 1988, the Chicago White Sox got rid of Ribbie and Roobarb; Andy the Clown was not permitted to perform in the new Comiskey Park when it opened in 1991.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,063
28.

Chicago White Sox was one of the first ballpark organists to play pop music, and became known for her songs playing on the names of opposing players.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,064
29.

The BP Crosstown Cup was introduced in 2010 and the White Sox won the first three seasons until the Cubs first won the Cup in 2013 by sweeping the season series.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,065
30.

The White Sox won the Cup the next season and retained the Cup the following two years.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,066
31.

The Twins won the division in 2002,2003,2004,2006, and 2009, with the Chicago White Sox winning in 2005,2008, and 2010, and many of those years their rival was the division runner-up.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,067
32.

White Sox Charities began centering on early childhood literacy programs, then expanded to focusing on encouraging high school graduation and college matriculation so the team can monitor its success.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,068
33.

White Sox did not sell exclusive rights for radio broadcasts from radio's inception until 1944, instead having local stations share rights for games, and after WGN was forced to abdicate their rights to the team in the 1943 after 16 seasons due to children's programming commitments from their network, Mutual.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,069
34.

Caray, alongside color analyst Jimmy Piersall, was never afraid to criticize the Chicago White Sox, which angered numerous Chicago White Sox managers and players, notably Bill Melton and Chuck Tanner.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,070
35.

Chicago White Sox left to succeed Jack Brickhouse as the voice of the Cubs in 1981, where he became a national icon.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,071
36.

White Sox shifted through several announcers in the 1980s, before hiring John Rooney as play-by-play announcer in 1989.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,072
37.

The last game on WMVP was game 4 of the 2005 World Series, with the White Sox clinching their first World Series title in 88 years.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,073
38.

White Sox games appeared sporadically on television throughout the first half of the 20th century, most commonly announced by Jack Brickhouse on WGN-TV.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,074
39.

Don Drysdale became the play-by-play announcer in 1982, as the White Sox began splitting their broadcasts between WFLD and the new regional cable television network, Sportsvision.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,075
40.

Chicago White Sox will call 20 games over the course of the season, after which Benetti will take over full-time play-by-play duties.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,076
41.

On January 2,2019, the White Sox agreed to an exclusive multiyear deal with NBC Sports Chicago, ending the team's broadcasts on WGN-TV following the 2019 season.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,077
42.

Chicago White Sox invested in 120 Sports, a digital sports channel, that launched in June 2016.

FactSnippet No. 1,735,078