No Soxfest in 2023

[White Sox Park]

You would think that after this debacle of a season, that the very least that they could do, would be to form up on stage and answer questions from the fans . it would be pure hell for them, but somewhat cathartic for the fans . they messed up . we know it . they know it . for the good of the city, the organization, and all Chicago White Sox fans, at least have the courtesy to show up.

[Balta1701]

30 minutes ago, White Sox Park said:

You would think that after this debacle of a season, that the very least that they could do, would be to form up on stage and answer questions from the fans . it would be pure hell for them, but somewhat cathartic for the fans . they messed up . we know it . they know it . for the good of the city, the organization, and all Chicago White Sox fans, at least have the courtesy to show up.

Why should they have to listen to the complaints of the scum beneath them? They’re important.

[Bossanoveralls]

4 hours ago, Chicago White Sox said:

Downtown Nashville is great, but hated living in the suburbs there and simply missed everything Chicago (places, people, food, etc.).  Just couldn’t see living there forever and unfortunately for whatever reason going to Sox games is one of my favorite things in the world.  I’ve always dreamed of taking my two young sons to Sox games on a regular basis and have them share in this passion with me.  Despite the s%*# show that is the Sox over the past couple months (and cancelling SoxFest is a big one), moving back to Chicago was the best decision in my life.  For all its warts, I fucking love every corner of this place.

Atta boy, CeeDub!

My kinda town.

[chitownsportsfan]

Slap in the face to families. Go be Cubs fans young ones is basically what they are saying.

[Rowand44]

7 hours ago, Chicago White Sox said:

Downtown Nashville is great, but hated living in the suburbs there and simply missed everything Chicago (places, people, food, etc.).  Just couldn’t see living there forever and unfortunately for whatever reason going to Sox games is one of my favorite things in the world.  I’ve always dreamed of taking my two young sons to Sox games on a regular basis and have them share in this passion with me.  Despite the s%*# show that is the Sox over the past couple months (and cancelling SoxFest is a big one), moving back to Chicago was the best decision in my life.  For all its warts, I fucking love every corner of this place.

How far were you from the city?  I ask cause if I ever leave where I’m currently at Nashville is number 1 on my list.  

[Chicago White Sox]

11 minutes ago, Rowand44 said:

How far were you from the city?  I ask cause if I ever leave where I’m currently at Nashville is number 1 on my list.  

I was in Brentwood which is a 20 to 30 minute drive from downtown.  The problem is that downtown Nashville is your cool young, urban, liberal setting and the suburbs are uber religious & conservative.  Unfortunately the latter wasn’t for me and being back in Chicago has only reaffirmed that point.

[PitchatRisktoZisk]

Canceling SoxFest is a total and complete chickenshit move made by a bushleague organization. They hide under their desks, don't go to the ballpark, and live in an echo chamber where sycophants tell JR how brilliant he is and how much people love him. The idea of actually listening to direct feedback from their customers petrifies them. I'm thoroughly disappointed in the entire FO, but not in the least bit surprised. 

[pcq]

My hunch is the core guys did not wish to attend. Rotten core. 

[Paulie4Pres]

4 hours ago, pcq said:

My hunch is the core guys did not wish to attend. Rotten core. 

My hunch is that management and leadership in this "organization" are a bunch of cowardly, chicken-s%*# assholes, who cannot handle an ounce of accountability, and it has nothing to do with the players. But I guess everyone is entitled to their opinion.

[Highland]

15 hours ago, PitchatRisktoZisk said:

Canceling SoxFest is a total and complete chickenshit move made by a bushleague organization. They hide under their desks, don't go to the ballpark, and live in an echo chamber where sycophants tell JR how brilliant he is and how much people love him. The idea of actually listening to direct feedback from their customers petrifies them. I'm thoroughly disappointed in the entire FO, but not in the least bit surprised. 

From the start, JR has been a terrible communicator. He blamed things on the media, but that was nonsense. As time has gone on, he has become more and more reclusive. That does little to instill confidence in the organization as a whole. The Sox need a competent spokesman to talk to the fans and not just at SoxFest. But I don't think they know how to communicate with their own fan base because they have never understood their own fan base.

[Dick Allen]

Besides being a huge bust in 2022, the other thing this signals is not a lot of popular moves coming between now and the end of January. I doubt a huge sell-off, but Abreu will be gone and probably at least one or two others, and their replacements won't initially have you thinking playoffs.

[GreenSox]

It wouldn't surprise me if they make moves for salary reduction.  Something like Hendriks or Lynn for a C prospect; not pick up Giolito's option.  That sort of thing.  I don't think they'll move the overpaid and hopeless, as that will require attaching an A prospect to the stiff, and receiving a C in return.

RH gets riled up and mad from reading twitter, so I doubt he's interested in those comments live and in person.

Edited October 23, 2022 by GreenSox

[Dick Allen]

They will send someone out to the flagship this week, probably Brooks, who will say it was cancelled out of an abundance of caution and Covid. Being the flagship, they will throw him no curveball and it will be accepted and the rest of the prece will go smoothly.  Just remember, JR has no problem hosting 20k plus inside to see his other disappointment.  They had no problem with crowds gathering in the inside parts  (suites, patio, club level, restaurants,  etc. the entire 2022 season and the last half of 2021.

[quickman]

1 hour ago, Dick Allen said:

Besides being a huge bust in 2022, the other thing this signals is not a lot of popular moves coming between now and the end of January. I doubt a huge sell-off, but Abreu will be gone and probably at least one or two others, and their replacements won't initially have you thinking playoffs.

This is a really good observation that nothing big will happen in the offseason to dramatically improve this club. Its really a shame that they let this slip out of their hands. I can’t see any fan trusting this management to do anything right .

[GradMc]

There are enough global oligarchs out here that would buy CWS.

No other major market team perhaps in any other professional sport has the kind of clear path to perennial post-season play than CWS.

It's a damn shame we got stuck with this current ownership for this long.

[Lip Man 1]

9 hours ago, Highland said:

From the start, JR has been a terrible communicator. He blamed things on the media, but that was nonsense. As time has gone on, he has become more and more reclusive. That does little to instill confidence in the organization as a whole. The Sox need a competent spokesman to talk to the fans and not just at SoxFest. But I don't think they know how to communicate with their own fan base because they have never understood their own fan base.

These two quotes show you how his attitude has changed over the years: 

“Eddie and I never discussed how to talk to reporters. We’ve just been ourselves. I always though Jack Kennedy was the kind of person I looked up to in that regard. He always gave the media a fair shake and understood you guys have a job to do. Without responsible people willing to divulge some accurate information, it’s hard to do it right. It was a much better approach then Nixon, who figured the media, was his enemy. Doing it Kennedy’s way just makes a lot more sense to me. After all, nobody can buy the kind of advertising Chicago teams get. What other line of work finds newspapers assigning people to follow you around and write about how the business is doing every day? At Balcor, we have to hire a public relations firm to get our names in the paper. When baseball teams get that for free, it makes sense to cooperate.” – Jerry Reinsdorf to Bob Logan. From the book ‘Miracle On 35^th Street.’ Pg. 154. Published 1983.

 

“The idea that I must talk to the media in order to know what is going on with our fans or the public is ludicrous. I communicate with fans on an almost daily basis and often hear comments from people on the street and in the ballpark. We have committed a lot of resources to market research each year, whether it is telephone or internet polling, mall intercepts, focus groups or in-park surveys. We believe these surveys are the most impartial way to hear from our fans. I don't think a media interview gives me the same type of insight into what our fans think and feel. Believe me, our fans tell us. They care and they are passionate. I like that about sports. The fact is that I do speak publicly when there is an issue of importance to our fans and to the franchises. I owe that to our fans. But again, I don't really think people want to hear from me or go to the game to see me. I hope not.” – Jerry Reinsdorf quoted on the “official” White Sox web site, www.whitesox.com, August 16, 2004.

 

[pettie4sox]

On 10/22/2022 at 4:52 PM, Chicago White Sox said:

I was in Brentwood which is a 20 to 30 minute drive from downtown.  The problem is that downtown Nashville is your cool young, urban, liberal setting and the suburbs are uber religious & conservative.  Unfortunately the latter wasn’t for me and being back in Chicago has only reaffirmed that point.

I could be out of line and I sorta mean this in jest but isn't that what Elmhurst practically is?

[The Kids Can Play]

On 10/21/2022 at 3:55 PM, poppysox said:

I know it would be a stretch...but I wonder if no manager being named yet and the cancellation of SoxFest might have to do with the team being in discussions to be sold.  Just looking at the hopeful side of things.

The day this team is sold and we get a new owner will be the greatest day in my Sox lifetime fandom, other than the 2005 World Series championship. 

[Chicago White Sox]

1 hour ago, pettie4sox said:

I could be out of line and I sorta mean this in jest but isn't that what Elmhurst practically is?

There is some of that in Elmhurst no doubt, but it’s leagues different.  Like when the Uvalde shooting happened, my neighbor posted to Instagram that guns weren’t the problem but rather that lack of Jesus in schools.  And no one I knew down there batted an eyelash at that opinion.  I knew I had to get the f*** out of there immediately.

[SoCalChiSox]

1 hour ago, Chicago White Sox said:

There is some of that in Elmhurst no doubt, but it’s leagues different.  Like when the Uvalde shooting happened, my neighbor posted to Instagram that guns weren’t the problem but rather that lack of Jesus in schools.  And no one I knew down there batted an eyelash at that opinion.  I knew I had to get the f*** out of there immediately.

Perhaps your neighbor is the one who should "stop blogging" lol 

[Chicago White Sox]

I’ll give Brooks Boyer a lot of credit.  He wrote me a lengthy, well thought-out email back when I voiced my frustrations over the SoxFest cancellation.  While he didn’t explain the reason for the decision (he simply said the traditional SoxFest didn’t make sense for the club this year), he did push back on my cowardice accusations, albeit in a very respectful way.  And while I don’t fully buy that, perhaps there is more to the story than just avoiding accountability after a horrible season.  Regardless, he really is one of the good guys in the organization and truly wants to put together the best fan experience possible.  Unfortunately, there are clearly limitations being part of a Reinsdorf owned operation.

[wegner]

Just now, Chicago White Sox said:

I’ll give Brooks Boyer a lot of credit.  He wrote me a lengthy, well thought-out email back when I voiced my frustrations over the SoxFest cancellation.  While he didn’t explain the reason for the decision (he simply said the traditional SoxFest didn’t make sense for the club this year), he did push back on my cowardice accusations, albeit in a very respectful way.  And while I don’t fully buy that, perhaps there is more to the story than just avoiding accountability after a horrible season.  Regardless, he really is one of the good guys in the organization and truly wants to put together the best fan experience possible.  Unfortunately, there are clearly limitations being part of a Reinsdorf owned operation.

I've never had a problem with Brooks.  In the past, he would answer emails from regular fans like myself and he does seem like a fellow who understands accountability.  Of course, he is a marketing guy so probably was just blowing smoke up my ass, haha.

[SoCalChiSox]

24 minutes ago, Chicago White Sox said:

I’ll give Brooks Boyer a lot of credit.  He wrote me a lengthy, well thought-out email back when I voiced my frustrations over the SoxFest cancellation.  While he didn’t explain the reason for the decision (he simply said the traditional SoxFest didn’t make sense for the club this year), he did push back on my cowardice accusations, albeit in a very respectful way.  And while I don’t fully buy that, perhaps there is more to the story than just avoiding accountability after a horrible season.  Regardless, he really is one of the good guys in the organization and truly wants to put together the best fan experience possible.  Unfortunately, there are clearly limitations being part of a Reinsdorf owned operation.

Wow....im shocked you got any kind of decent halfway substantive response from them. I'm sure there's alot of good people who truly want things to be different and want to do good, including RH, but between "budget constraints", archaic infrastructure, and ownership meddling they are kind of caught in between.

I thought I read somewhere that Boras said Hahn wants to modernize the organization and really bring it to the present so im sure he is frustrated too not just marketing people. Instead, he's stuck being forced to trot out there and try and put a lawyerly and thoughtful sounding gloss on bullshit decisions. 

He doesn't have any real juice, he's just a glorified white house press secretary pretty much. I know people say if that's the fact you should just quit but realistically how many of us would give up a million bucks a year or whatever he makes cushy gig where you have great job security and no accountability and all you have to do is take arrows in front of the media and spin other people's decisions. Very few of us would let that job go, even if we were only the GM in title only. 

Nothing is going to change until JR is gone. We have to just accept that making the playoffs is basically the ceiling and they can even f*** that up too even when it's seemingly a layup. 

There are no championships or parades or any of that nonsense. The window is just about playoff berths that's all...nothing more and nothing less. If they are lucky enough to win a series here and there with this group it's gravy but there's no real title window. 

At least you got away from batshit crazy neighbors so take whatever wins you can get even when they aren't on the baseball field. I imagine Chicago weather is much worse than Nashville though. 

I only went to Chicago once and the weather was awful. Ofcourse to me, 65 degrees is cold so what do I know. 

[Lip Man 1]

55 minutes ago, Chicago White Sox said:

I’ll give Brooks Boyer a lot of credit.  He wrote me a lengthy, well thought-out email back when I voiced my frustrations over the SoxFest cancellation.  While he didn’t explain the reason for the decision (he simply said the traditional SoxFest didn’t make sense for the club this year), he did push back on my cowardice accusations, albeit in a very respectful way.  And while I don’t fully buy that, perhaps there is more to the story than just avoiding accountability after a horrible season.  Regardless, he really is one of the good guys in the organization and truly wants to put together the best fan experience possible.  Unfortunately, there are clearly limitations being part of a Reinsdorf owned operation.

Brooks has always been very up front and generous with his time to me in my dealings with him which has been many. I e-mailed and voiced my frustrations as well, part of his reply was (and this is certainly true) that he doesn't have a say in the baseball side of the operations. Granted there wasn't really much he could say but I suspect he's one of the few folks in the front office who would even take the time to reply. 

Edited October 24, 2022 by Lip Man 1

[Chicago White Sox]

53 minutes ago, SoCalChiSox said:

Wow....im shocked you got any kind of decent halfway substantive response from them. I'm sure there's alot of good people who truly want things to be different and want to do good, including RH, but between "budget constraints", archaic infrastructure, and ownership meddling they are kind of caught in between.

I thought I read somewhere that Boras said Hahn wants to modernize the organization and really bring it to the present so im sure he is frustrated too not just marketing people. Instead, he's stuck being forced to trot out there and try and put a lawyerly and thoughtful sounding gloss on bullshit decisions. 

He doesn't have any real juice, he's just a glorified white house press secretary pretty much. I know people say if that's the fact you should just quit but realistically how many of us would give up a million bucks a year or whatever he makes cushy gig where you have great job security and no accountability and all you have to do is take arrows in front of the media and spin other people's decisions. Very few of us would let that job go, even if we were only the GM in title only. 

Nothing is going to change until JR is gone. We have to just accept that making the playoffs is basically the ceiling and they can even f*** that up too even when it's seemingly a layup. 

There are no championships or parades or any of that nonsense. The window is just about playoff berths that's all...nothing more and nothing less. If they are lucky enough to win a series here and there with this group it's gravy but there's no real title window. 

At least you got away from batshit crazy neighbors so take whatever wins you can get even when they aren't on the baseball field. I imagine Chicago weather is much worse than Nashville though. 

I only went to Chicago once and the weather was awful. Ofcourse to me, 65 degrees is cold so what do I know. 

Yeah, it’s very clear to me that Jerry is the root of most of our problems.  I do think we see a transformation once he finally sells the team (assuming it’s not to his son).  To me, this franchise should be a powerhouse and it has operated so unlike how good businesses do for so many years.  Invest in a consistent, quality product and people will want to consume it in droves.  Unfortunately, Jerry is a “can’t spend a dollar if I only have 50 cents” type guy and will never budge from that sort of operating principle.  Just got to hope Mellody Hobson & George Lucas or whoever ends up buying the team will let its employees run without too much interference while also holding them accountable.

And yeah, plenty to be excited for back in Chicago beyond just the Sox.  Just wish the Sox would do me some favors as I work to get my sons interested in the team and professional baseball in general.