Five years is not a long time for fans of the Chicago White Sox, an MLB American League baseball team on the city’s South Side. In sports news as of lately, there have been discussions about the White Sox leaving Chicago after their lease at Guaranteed Rate Stadium (formerly Comiskey Park) is set to expire in the year 2028. Although the potential move would not be for a few years, baseball fans are still talking about how this issue could change everything, not just for the Sox, but also for their fanbase. Each community faces change differently. Baseball has always had a significant impact in Chicago, as well as within the DePaul Prep community, which is part of what makes this possible change such a big conversation for long-time Sox fans.

Furthermore, Noah Deck, a math teacher here at DePaul Prep and a longtime Sox supporter, firmly believes that sports serve as a tool to bond people together in the city. As a cross country and track coach, Deck is quite familiar with the sports scene in Chicago, and even as the years go by, his passion for the baseball team remains. 

Deck believes that moving the Sox, consequently ending the cross-town rivalry, would be detrimental to the fanbase, especially young fans. “The Crosstown rivalry is such a huge game every year. When I was in third grade, and I played baseball, [for] that game specifically, all the baseball teams in the surrounding neighborhoods and the greater Chicagoland area would go to the game. They would invite the kids to go to that game, and that’s kind of how I fell in love with the sport,” Deck recalls. 

Assistant Principal Joe Voss also enjoys the cross-town classic, believing that it creates camaraderie and helps bring people together from across the city. Voss is a very passionate Sox fan, stating “I have big memories, and whether they’re good or bad, I usually tend to watch every single game if I can.”

 Another baseball fan here at DePaul Prep is Ulises Ortiz. Ortiz is a counselor, head JV baseball coach, Cubs fan, and a self-described “baseball fanatic.” He says, “There are so many things about sports that I think can unify others.” Ortiz believes that baseball can help build community in a place where division is unfortunately very common.

“Chicago is an extremely diverse city, and there’s a lot of things that can make us see the differences in others and use that to separate,” Ortiz says. As a lifelong Cubs fan, Ortiz strongly believes, similarly to Deck, that sports have the power to unite communities facing struggles. 

Many Sox fans are strongly opposed to the idea of the team potentially leaving the city, including those within the DePaul Prep community. They see the benefits of the current stadium location at Sox and 53rd while having a strong connection with the history behind the team and its stadium. Some of these fans believe that a potential move out of Chicago would neglect the history behind the team itself. 

“There’s too much history for them just to leave Chicago out of nowhere, even dating back before the World Series win,” Deck says.

But it isn’t only team history that matters to the fans. Memories of childhood and family sometimes intertwine with the passion for baseball that many Chicagoans possess.

For instance, Voss has been a fan of the Chicago White Sox for the entirety of his life. “My Dad grew up on the south side of Chicago, so I have many fond memories of going to Sox games with my dad growing up,” Voss shares. Many people watch sports for the love of the game, but the sense of family and community that it brings out in many people is what causes the love for it. 

Despite the love, some fans feel that a move out of Chicago would not be the right move for the White Sox and that instead, other changes need to be made within the organization. 

Likewise, Deck declares that “moving is not the right solution, it has to come from getting a better front office, drafting better players, making some trades, and that’s just what we have to do.”

 On another note, it is believed that a move could further frustrate long-term fans. Similarly, Voss says that he would be disheartened by a change in stadiums, while Ortiz says “I think it would create a bitterness to them, in the sense of going to a new stadium, but people tend to bounce back and be a lot more resilient.” Win or lose, many fans will stand by their team no matter what.

 “I think anyone can be resistant to change, especially when you know something to be a particular way,” Ortiz says. But there will always be fans that will support their team regardless. “It’s been hard when they struggle, but because of that deep root you have, you tend to just keep cheering them on and rooting for them” Voss states. 

It is thought that if the Sox do decide to move, the decision would be met with further apprehension from their Chicago fanbase. “I think for Sox fans that are loyal and diehard, obviously that’s going to sting for them, [but] I’m sure over time, they’ll get over it,” Voss continues. 

Overall, there is a strong belief in the resilience of these fans, and that the Sox will continue to live on even if the decision to leave their home does truly become a reality. Ortiz concludes that “ultimately, I think the fans are more emotional about it right now, but I think once it actually happens, I don’t know how much it’ll actually change, because people are pretty passionate about their sports regardless.” Though sports may change and shift in ownership and tradition over time, sports will never fail to change our communities.