Welcome to the South Side Sports Roundup! Check back every month for the latest news and updates on everything South Side sports fans need to know.
White Sox conclude rough first half, mourn 2005 playoff star
The White Sox entered this week’s All-Star Break as the worst team in the American League. They’re on pace for 109 losses, which would be the second-most in team history. Compared to last year’s record-setting 121-loss team, though, that 109-loss pace somehow seems like a breath of fresh air.
With just a single full-season playoff appearance since 2008, many fans still harbor serious doubts about the organization’s chances of returning to respectability. But the bar being so low means that even with the losses piling up, some are taking note of their oh-so-barely better play as of late.
“Last season and [at] the very start of this season, not only would they lose, they would do something you’ve never seen before,” longtime fan Sam Bartlett told the Weekly, likening some of last year’s plays to clips “from a sports blooper VHS tape.”
At twenty-nine, the Hyde Parker has seen little but losing in his time as a fan. That being the case, like many supporters, he’s managing to find humor in the South Siders’ futility. “They’re a cute little baby phoenix right now,” he added. “I’m hopeful. Like, the kind of hope you feel in the moment right before you crack open a fortune cookie.”
Off the field, the Sox community is mourning the loss of former closer and fan favorite Bobby Jenks, who passed away this month at age forty-four after a battle with stomach cancer. The right-hander played a pivotal role in the team’s 2005 championship, recording the final three outs of their World Series win over the Houston Astros. He made a pair of All-Star Games in six seasons on the South Side and retired with 173 saves, second in team history.
Speaking of All-Star Games, rookie starter Shane Smith was selected as the Sox’ representative in this year’s festivities. He’s the first rookie in team history to appear in the game, and just the second Rule 5 draft pick to make the team in his first year, following Miami’s Dan Uggla in 2006.
With twenty-three-year-old shortstop Colson Montgomery now in the fold, the Sox will look to make significant improvements in the second half. Montgomery made his MLB debut on July 4 after spending most of the last three years as the top-ranked minor leaguer in the organization. They’ll try to start on a high note when they resume play this Friday in Pittsburgh against the lowly Pirates.
Reese earns Player of the Week honors as Sky remain near bottom of standings
At the Wintrust Arena on Cermak and Indiana, the Chicago Sky are entering their own All-Star Break with a disappointing 7-14 record, good for tenth out of thirteen teams in the WNBA. With better play as of late, including a statement win over the 19-4 Minnesota Lynx, a low-seeded playoff spot is still within reach. But it will take a substantial improvement in the second half to climb that mountain.
On the brighter side, second-year star Angel Reese has taken her game to a new level, averaging an unheard of 18 points and 15 rebounds per game since June 22. Reese was named Conference Player of the Week for the week of July 1, and days later was selected to her second All-Star Game. Though her 14.0 PPG and 12.6 RPG are nearly identical to last year’s averages, her assists per game (3.8) and shooting percentage (44.6 percent) have seen substantial upticks.
It was a significant month off the court for Reese as well. On July 9, she announced her first signature shoe, Reebok’s first WNBA outlay since 1997. As a part of the shoe release, Reese was also revealed as a cover athlete for this year’s edition of NBA 2K, the video game market’s flagship basketball game.
Meanwhile, with franchise icon Courtney Vandersloot on the mend from a torn ACL sustained last month, journeywoman guard Rachel Banham has become a name to watch. A ten-year veteran, the Minnesota native appears to have found another level to her game in Chicago, averaging 12.6 PPG on 44 percent three-point shooting since being inserted into the starting lineup last month.
The team also honored fellow Sky icon Allie Quigley on July 9, making her number 14 the first to be retired in franchise history. Quigley, a Joliet native who attended DePaul University, ranks second to Vandersloot in Sky history with 3,723 points and 684 assists, and first with 504 made three-pointers.
The Sky will take on Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever in a highly anticipated game to be held at the United Center on July 27. Clark missed the team’s last road trip to Chicago, a 79-52 blowout by the Fever.
Bulls narrowly miss lottery win, select French forward in draft
Fans of the Chicago Bulls somehow endured even more heartbreak during last month’s draft lottery, when the team narrowly missed a miraculous rise to the number one overall pick. They instead earned at the number twelve spot after losing a coin toss to the Dallas Mavericks, who finished with an identical record to the Bulls, and were subsequently awarded the eleven seedin the lottery ranking. That spot then became the improbable lottery winner, putting Dallas in a position to acquire consensus top pick Cooper Flagg, widely considered the best US-born prospect in over a decade.
Instead of Flagg, the Bulls used their pick on forward Noa Essengue, an eighteen-year-old native of France who spent last season playing in the German Bundesliga. The pick received mixed reviews due to the expectation that Essengue will require a substantial amount of development, and is unlikely to significantly contribute to the team for several more seasons.
Bears open training camp, prepare for preseason
Though it’s hard to believe, football season is fast approaching, with Chicago Bears rookies expected to report to the first practices of training camp this coming weekend on July 19. Numerous starting spots are expected to be up for grabs as coach Ben Johnson prepares for his first season at the helm, with Johnson noting during last month’s offseason work that “we only do this once a year and it’s an evaluation. We’ll circle back in training camp…to see who we can trust to catch [or] throw the ball.”
Their first preseason game is scheduled for Sunday, August 10 against the Miami Dolphins. Their regular season debut is set for September 8 as fans wait with bated breath to see whether second-year quarterback Caleb Williams can grow into his massive potential after an inconsistent rookie campaign.
Malachi Hayes is a Bridgeport-based writer and South Side native.