Last week, we talked about the “mixed-use monster” Justin Ishbia is plotting for the 47-acre Amtrak yard. It’s a beautiful vision — a stadium campus on the South Loop, skyline views, and maybe even a blessing from Pope Leo XIV, who reportedly told Ishbia he’d love to throw out a first pitch if the “palace” ever gets built.
But let’s get real for a second. Winning drives revenue. It’s the simplest math in sports, yet it’s the one the front office seems most determined to ignore.
Look at Dodger Stadium. It’s 64 years old. It’s tucked into a ravine, surrounded by a parking lot that’s a nightmare to leave, and it doesn’t have a “stadium district” with trendy bars or a Northwestern Medicine hub next door.
Yet, the Dodgers are a license to print money. Why? Because they spend on the product. They run with the best technology, hire the best developmental staff, and sign the best players. They didn’t need a “South Loop reboot” to become a powerhouse; they just needed to be good enough to contend every single year.
The White Sox will always be the “second team” in the Second City. That’s our identity. We’re the South Side. We don’t need the “Innovation Window Dressing” Ishbia is talking about. We need a bullpen that doesn’t collapse in the seventh and a developmental pipeline that doesn’t stall out at Double-A.
Instead of sinking billions into a 2029 move, why not:
Sox fans don’t go to the ballpark to look at the skyline; we go to see a winner. If Ishbia and Reinsdorf put all their eggs into the basket of “play on the field” instead of “real estate development,” they wouldn’t need to beg for public funds or plot 47-acre land swaps.
Build a contender, and the fans and the revenue will follow, whether the game is played at 35th and Shields or a repurposed rail yard. Honestly, wouldn’t that be something?