A letter from a White Sox fan to The Office of the Commissioner of Baseball

Robert D. Manfred, Jr.

The Office of the Commissioner of Baseball
1271 Avenue of the Americas
New York, NY, 10020
Phone: 212-931-7800
[email protected]

[email protected]

9.19.2024

Dear Mr. Manfred, Jr.

We sat on the third base line. I vividly remember Chet Lemon hitting his second home run of the game. I was eight years old on July 31, 1977, and officially became hooked as a White Sox fan.

It was more than the victory though. Harray Caray singing, “Take me out to the ballgame”, showers in the outfield, the exploding scoreboard, and Nacy Faust belting out “Kiss it Goodbye”, which ESPN later chronicled as the start of America’s taunt anthem. My Dad took me to that game, and I’ve been a fan of major league baseball ever since. Even in countless losing seasons, some of that joy of the ballpark was always there. That was until 2024.

The White Sox have been historically mismanaged. Bad scouting and awful drafting have put the team in a tailspin over the past decade. 2023 was the worst season I had experienced.

First, the team was so bad, it finally forced the team President and General Manger out which was long overdue.

Second, a non-search brought in Chris Getz as the new General Manager. It should have been shocking as Getz was on nobody’s short list. The supposed logic was that he knew the team best as assistant General Manager in charge of player development and it would save a year by getting a possible better candidate up to speed. However, as he was in charge of player development, player development had been atrocious.

Third, to make things worse, after a 101-loss season, Jason Benetti, the team’s announcer, who grew up a White Sox fan, wanted out. Ownership let him out gladly over a cheaper alternative.

Fourth, Sox Fest over the offseason which is an opportunity for fans to meet players was nixed for yet another season. What business does that?

Fifth, the owner refuses to speak to the local press and instead drips out information through a national USA Today reporter. It’s an obnoxious snub.

Sixth, the team retained Pedro Grifol, the awful manager who was on nobody’s list to hire and who kept his job despite captaining a team that was supposed to contend and losing the most games in over 50 years.

2024 was the first time I gave up reading about the team at the start of the season. Something I’d done for 48 years in a row. I love following the offseason and the beat reporters who take on rookies and various player stories. Spring training is where hope is eternal, even for Chicago fans. Not this year though. However, I peeked at the lineup in the first week and started to become interested in the team. Not because of a surprise hope but because the lineup was so atrocious. If the Sox lost 101 games the year before, what was this team heading for? 110 losses? 115 losses? I became fascinated in the White Sox of 2024 because this team was such a monumental train wreck. And they have exceeded expectations. Three twelve plus game losing streaks including an American league worst ever 21-game affair. 19 shutouts against as of September 18th. 20 consecutive series lost. 60+ players used. $1 dollar tickets to buy through scalpers. Balls hitting players on the head. Players not knowing how many outs there are. Three stooges like activity of everyone running into each other. A comedy of errors upon another comedy of errors. As of writing this letter, they are 36-117 and closing in on the worst record of the modern era.

But what about next year? The White Sox never sign the top free agents. The owner announced a cut in payroll. Their best minor league talent is hitting .216 at AAA. They can’t even draft until number 10. Players don’t want to play here. Young players won’t be giving the White Sox home player discounts to re-sign here. Worse, the ownership of this team is only concerned about the bottom line. As a 48-year fan of your product, you are losing me. I was talking to an old timer Mets fan friend of mine, Chuck, who witnessed the 1962 season. That Mets team at least tried and had joy. My friend said what you have is so much worse. Chuck said that an owner has the responsibility and is the caretaker of the fan. It should be an honor to represent the fans and be the champion of the city they represent.

Ownership of the White Sox is an antagonist to its own fans. He should have simple communication with the fans, promotion of the product, and interaction with the local press. It’s their responsibility to put out the best product possible and to keep its local loved announcers. This ownership team has failed the fans and major league baseball. Ownership shows no joy or interest in the product. He is gutting the fan base and by 2029 will call Uncle and sell the team to the highest bidder. The Autin X-SOX run by Elon Musk is what we are on par to become.

This owner was the architect of the players’ strike which resulted in the 1994 first place White Sox folding the season and denying a chance at a World Series. Counting the pennies and antagonizing the customer is the interest and only interest at this stage of the owner’s life.

At times major sports leagues have become involved to prompt a change. Donald Sterling and Ted Stepien in the NBA. Dan Snyder in the NFL. I believe Major League Baseball has a responsibility for the health of the game and for the benefit of its fans to start an investigation and address a change of ownership in Chicago.

Most Sincerely,

Jeff Lichtenstein

Posted in Uncategorized on September 19, 2024 at 1:40 pm.

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A letter from a White Sox fan to The Office of the Commissioner of Baseball