Comiskey Park
Comiskey Park was a ballpark in Chicago, Illinois, located in the Armour Square neighborhood on the near-south side of the city. The stadium served as the home of the Chicago White Sox of the American League from 1910 through 1990. Built by White Sox owner Charles Comiskey and designed by Zachary Taylor Davis, Comiskey Park hosted four World Series and more than 6,000 Major League Baseball games. The field also hosted one of the most famous boxing matches in history: Joe Louis' defeat of champion James J. Braddock, launching his 11-year run as the heavyweight champion of the world.
The Chicago Cardinals of the National Football League also called Comiskey Park home when they were not playing at Normal Park, Soldier Field, or Wrigley Field. They won the 1947 NFL Championship Game over the Philadelphia Eagles at Comiskey Park. Much less popular than the Bears, the Cardinals had their last season at Comiskey in 1958, and they left for St. Louis in March 1960. The Chicago American Giants of the Negro American League called Comiskey Park home from 1941 to 1950. The park was also home to the Chicago Mustangs and Chicago Sting of the NASL, and hosted the final edition of the original Soccer Bowl.
The park was demolished in 1991, after a new Comiskey Park stadium opened just to the south.
Early years
White Sox Park was built on a former city dump that Charles Comiskey bought in 1909 to replace the wooden South Side Park. Within three years, it was renamed Comiskey Park. The original name was restored in 1962, then it changed back to Comiskey Park in 1976.On April 22, 1923, the park was subject to a bombing, suspected to be labor unions in response to it being painted by Landis Award, open shop, painters. During a time of unrest due to an employer movement to weaken labor unions.
Comiskey Park was very modern for its time. It was the third concrete-and-steel stadium in the major leagues to be built since 1909. As originally built, it seated almost 32,000, a record at the time. Briefly, it retained the nickname "The Baseball Palace of the World". Light towers were added in 1939.
The park's design was strongly influenced by Sox pitcher Ed Walsh, and was known for its pitcher-friendly proportions. Later changes were made, but the park remained more or less favorable to defensive teams. For many years this reflected on the White Sox style of play: solid defense, and short, quick hits. The park was unusual in that no player hit 100 home runs there: Carlton Fisk set the record with 94.
The first game in Comiskey Park was a 2–0 loss to the St. Louis Browns on July 1, 1910. The first no-hitter at Comiskey Park was in 1911, hurled by Ed Walsh on August 27, a 5–0 win over Boston. The Sox won their first home night game, over St. Louis on August 14, 1939, 5–2.
The ballpark was significantly expanded during the 1926-1927 off-season. The single-deck pavilions and the outfield bleachers were replaced by a double-decked stand which surrounded almost the entire field except for a new, small bleacher section in straightaway centerfield.
Special baseball events
World Series
Comiskey Park was the site of four World Series contests. In 1917, the Chicago White Sox won Games 1, 2 and 5 at Comiskey Park and went on to defeat the New York Giants four games to two. In 1918, Comiskey Park hosted the World Series between the Chicago Cubs and Boston Red Sox. The Cubs borrowed Comiskey Park for the series because of its larger seating capacity. The Red Sox defeated the Cubs four games to two. Games 1–3 were played at Comiskey Park. The Red Sox won games one and three. Attendance was under capacity in that war year. The best crowd was Game 3, with some 27,000 patrons.In 1919, the White Sox lost the infamous "Black Sox" World Series to the Cincinnati Reds, five games to three in a nine-game series. Games three, four, five and eight were played at Comiskey Park. The White Sox won game three and lost games four, five and eight.
In 1959, the White Sox lost four games to two to the Los Angeles Dodgers. Games one, two and six were played at Comiskey Park. The White Sox won game one and lost games two and six. With their win in Game 6 at Comiskey Park, the Los Angeles Dodgers became the first West Coast team to win a World Series.
Comiskey saw its last post-season action in 1983, when the White Sox lost the American League Championship Series to the Baltimore Orioles 3–1. The White Sox lost both of their home games. Baltimore went on to win the World Series.
All-Star Games
Comiskey Park was the site of three Major League Baseball All-Star Games, and each marked a turn in the direction of dominance by one league or the other:- The first All-Star Game was held in 1933. It began as a promotion by Arch Ward, sports editor of the Chicago Tribune, in connection with the 1933 Century of Progress Exposition being held on Chicago's lakefront. The Americans defeated the Nationals, helped in part by a home run by Babe Ruth, who was nearing the end of his career, but could still swing a mighty bat. The game also inaugurated a stretch when the Americans dominated, winning 12 of the first 16.
- The park next hosted the July classic in 1950, a game best remembered for Ted Williams' collision with the outfield wall that broke his elbow and ended his playing season. Less remembered is that it began a turnaround for the Nationals, who won the game in extra innings and started to win frequently, a trend that continued for more than three decades, building up an astounding 30 wins against only 6 losses and 1 tie.
- The 50th Anniversary All-Star Game in 1983 was held at Comiskey Park in commemoration of the first All-Star Game at that same venue. The American League's lopsided win, including the first-ever grand slam in an All-Star Game, by Fred Lynn, turned out to signal an end to the National League's dominance in the mid-summer classic. During the last eight years of the park's existence the Americans went 5–3. Hosting a winning All-Star Game was also a good omen for the Sox, as they won their division in 1983, the first baseball title of any kind in Chicago since the Sox won the 1959 pennant.
- Comiskey Park was the most frequent home to the Negro leagues East-West All-Star Game from 1933 to 1960. The Negro leagues' all-star game achieved higher attendance in some years than its Major League Baseball counterpart, thanks in part to Comiskey's high attendance capacity.
Fans
From 1960 to 1990, Sox fans were also entertained by Andy the Clown, famous for his famous Jerry Colonna-like elongated cry, "Come ooooooooooon, go! White! Sox!"
Starting in the 1970s, Sox fans were further entertained by organist Nancy Faust who picked up on spontaneous chants of fans who were singing tunes like, "We will, we will, SOX YOU!" and popularized the now-ubiquitous farewell to departing pitchers and ejected managers, "Na-na-na-na, na-na-na-na, hey-hey, GOOD-BYE!"
Before he became an institution on the north side with the Cubs, Sox broadcaster Harry Caray was a south side icon. At some point he started "conducting" Take Me Out to the Ball Game during the seventh-inning stretch, egged on by Veeck, who said that the fans would sing along when they realized that none of them sang any worse than Harry did; Caray would take this tradition with him to the Cubs at Wrigley Field, which has continued even with Caray's death in 1998. Harry would sometimes broadcast from the center field bleachers, where he could hobnob with fans and get a suntan.
The largest crowd at Old Comiskey Park was in 1973 with a crowd of 55,555 on May 20 for a doubleheader against the Minnesota Twins, which also had the promotion of "Bat Day". By contrast, just over two years earlier, the smallest attendance at the park was recorded, with 511 spectators attending a game against the Boston Red Sox on Thursday, May 6, 1971.