5 Things You Didn’t Know About the Chicago White Sox

mlb.com

In this series I am going through all 30 MLB teams and presenting five facts you most likely didn’t know about each one.  As a big baseball fan, I thought I knew a lot about the history of the game, but there’s so much I’m learning as I’m going through this, which makes it really fun to put together.  Let’s get started.  First up in this series: the Chicago White Sox

1. The franchise began as a minor league ballclub from Iowa

The first name of the Chicago White Sox was the Sioux City Cornhuskers and they were founded in 1894.  They were a minor league team, and would remain one until 1901.  After one year of playing in Iowa, Charles Comiskey bought the team and moved them to St. Paul, Minnesota.  They would finally make their way to the Windy City at the turn of the century in 1900.

2. They have a long, bad streak for right-handed pitchers on Opening Day

Since 1944, no right-handed starting pitcher has won a game for the White Sox on Opening Day.  Although left-handed starting pitchers and right-handed relievers have, the same cannot be said for a RH starting pitcher since Oral Grove in 1944.  Maybe the Sox should never start a righty on Opening Day again?  Or maybe they’ll keep trying to end the streak.

3. They were winners of the very first American League Game

The team has had its share of struggles throughout the years, but they can claim victors of the very first official American League game in history.  That game took place on April 24, 1901 against the Cleveland Blues.  The final score: The Chicago White Stockings 8, Cleveland Blues 2

4. 2021 marked the end of a hard-to-believe streak

After a 120 years of being a major league team, the 2021 Chicago White Sox ended the streak of not playing the same opponent twice in their postseason history.  That’s right, since 1901, the White Sox had not played the same franchise throughout all of their playoff history.  It was the 2021 team that played the Houston Astros, who they had previously played in the 2005 World Series, when the Astros were in the National League.

5. Names on the back of jerseys began with the White Sox

It was the Cleveland Indians who became the first MLB team to put numbers on the back of every players’ jerseys in 1929, but it was the White Sox who became the first to put names on the back of every players’ jerseys in 1960.  Every team, except the Yankees, have since followed suit.

Did you learn something new?  Find anything interesting?  If you did, feel free to leave a comment or add a fun fact of your own!

Garett