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Careful what you wish for: Could White Sox leave Chicago if Jerry Reinsdorf sells team?

By Zach Wadley | Last updated Oct 18, 2024 2:28 PM ET

The Chicago White Sox recently put a bow on a historically bad season, finishing 41-121 — the worst season in modern MLB history. Blowouts, bloopers and bad baseball made the White Sox something of a circus act this summer and amplified fans' cries for owner Jerry Reinsdorf to sell the team.

He might do just that, according to The Athletic's Brittany Ghiroli. The 88-year-old Reinsdorf is reportedly having active discussions with a group headed by former MLB star Dave Stewart regarding the sale of the team. Reinsdorf has owned the White Sox since 1981 and is the second-longest tenured owner in the MLB behind the Yankees' Steinbrenner family.

The simplest explanation for the report that Jerry Reinsdorf is open to selling the White Sox now is that it’s a last-ditch effort to try to extract public funding for a new stadium.

But is that the explanation?@dan_bernstein and @Mharrisonair debated.https://t.co/0LABjaAgvk pic.twitter.com/GJNMQrTTs1
— 670 The Score (@670TheScore) October 17, 2024

Reinsdorf's flirtation with selling the White Sox is new. He has not entertained the idea before, though he has told his heirs to sell the White Sox and keep the NBA's Chicago Bulls after his death, per the Chicago Tribune's Paul Sullivan. (He has a 40 percent stake in the Bulls.) On the heels of the club's ignominious history, he might be ready to rid himself of the White Sox, too.

The news that Reinsdorf might sell was met with hope from Sox fans, but Stewart's presence in the meetings is an ominous sign for what the future may hold. His group, Smoke34, is a major proponent of an expansion franchise in Nashville.

It's unknown if Stewart would move the White Sox to Nashville should his group buy the team. But that's the double-edged sword the situation presents. If you're a Sox fan, would you rather have Reinsdorf as your owner or potentially no team at all?

Chicago has supported two baseball teams since 1900 and Wrigley Field, home of the Chicago Cubs, sits 25 minutes north of the Sox's Guaranteed Rate Field. 25 minutes can feel like another world away, though, as the Cubs frequently enjoy sellout crowds, a unique gameday atmosphere and a strong following whether they are winning or losing.

On the Southside, the Sox have always struggled to fill the park and the area around the ballpark doesn't entice fans to stick around before or after the game the way Wrigleyville does for the Cubs.

Perhaps a change of scenery could help — one much closer to home. The Sox unveiled renderings of a proposed ballpark in the South Loop in February. There are financial hurdles to leap through, but the plans in place would potentially revolutionize the White Sox gameday experience.

That's for the future though. The Sox's lease at Guaranteed Rate Field runs through 2029. For now, a Sox fan must feel stuck. All year the fan base cried for Reinsdorf to sell. Now it appears he is opening the door to a potential sale, but it could mean the team leaves.

Careful what you wish for, indeed.

Zach Wadley

Zach Wadley's sportswriting career began at the age of 12 when he started covering Little League games for his local newspaper. Since then, he's worked in the sports information field where he merged his love of writing, social media, and broadcasting. He is a graduate of Anderson University (IN).

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