Blog

Jan 26, 2024

The White Sox's worst week isn't over yet

It’s hard to think of a worse week in White Sox history, which is saying something for a team that threw a World Series. Maybe the White Sox have had more devastating individual events, but the steady

It’s hard to think of a worse week in White Sox history, which is saying something for a team that threw a World Series. Maybe the White Sox have had more devastating individual events, but the steady drumbeat of admissions of failure, unpopular announcements and bad news — without even bringing the mostly terrible on-field baseball into the mix — is utterly unthinkable.

To review:

Monday: Crain’s Chicago Business reports that the White Sox are beginning to explore relocation, which includes potential sites outside Chicago city limits (which is fine), or outside of Chicagoland entirely (which is not).

Tuesday: Jerry Reinsdorf fires Kenny Williams and Rick Hahn, which could be a step forward. But first they have to withstand the torrent of disaster recaps and obituaries of an era that lasted way too long.

Wednesday: Bob Nightengale reports that Chris Getz is expected to be promoted from assistant general manager/director of player development to general manager, with Dayton Moore being brought into assist him in some capacity. The threat of continuity halts any goodwill.

Thursday: Nothing off-field happens, but the White Sox give up five homers in a loss to the worst team in baseball.

Friday: Two fans are struck by a bullets, plural, in the left-field bleachers during Friday night’s game. The area is cleared, but the game continues without interruption. The only signal that something occurred came after the game, when the I Love the 90s concert featuring Vanilla Ice, Rob Base and Tone Loc is abruptly called off for “technical difficulties,” which was the sole reason a lot of fans came to the Guaranteed Rate Field.

The Chicago Police Department released a statement:

This evening during the Chicago White Sox vs. Oakland Athletics game at Guaranteed Rate Field, a 42-year-old female victim sustained one gun-shot wound to the leg. A 26-year-old female victim also sustained a graze wound to the abdomen.

The 42-year-old female was transported to University of Chicago Medical Center where she is listed in fair condition. The 26-year-old female refused medical attention.

Upon receiving notification of the incident, CPD responded immediately and deployed additional resources while coordinating with White Sox security to maintain the safety of those who were in attendance or working at the game. At no time was it believed there was an active threat.

This information is still preliminary as Area One Detectives are investigating.

As did the White Sox:

Two fans attending Friday’s game suffered non-life threatening injuries after being struck by bullets. It is unclear to investigators whether the shots were fired from outside or inside the ballpark.

The incident continues to be investigated by Area One detectives from the Chicago Police Department. While the police continue to investigate, White Sox security confirms that this incident did not involve an altercation of any kind.

Ballpark video of the incident does not indicate any activity prior to the injuries. The White Sox are thinking of the victims at this time and wishing them a speedy recovery.

I haven’t seen any theories or eyewitness reports that rise above speculation or approach any kind of consensus, so I’m not going to promote any leading ideas. For the time being, it’s sufficient to say that this is the last thing that needed to happen at 35th and Shields, regardless of where the bullet(s) originated and whether anybody was derelict in their duties.