An explosive report says Chicago White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf is “willing to sell” the team as his request for a new stadium in the city faces resistance.
According to reporting from Brittany Ghiroli of The Athletic, Reinsdorf is in “active discussions” with a group led by former MLB player Dave Stewart about a potential sale.
The White Sox declined NBC Chicago’s request for comment on the report, saying they would not “comment on rumors.”
Reinsdorf, 88, has lobbied for public funding to help facilitate the construction of a new baseball stadium in the South Loop in a development known as “The 78.” The White Sox went so far as to build a full diamond on the site, with a panoramic view of the Chicago skyline in the background.
The approximate proposed cost could reach $1.1 billion in public funding. The site would also require tax funding to help facilitate infrastructure projects around the stadium, including a new CTA stop and rerouting of existing Metra tracks.
The team proposed paying for the park by extending a hotel services tax that was used to pay for bonds on Guaranteed Rate Field, the team’s current home.
The proposal met significant opposition in Springfield, with Illinois Governor JB Pritzker says he’s ‘really reluctant’ to authorize the expense.
“Unless the investment is shown to generate a long-term return for taxpayers that we can justify in some way, I haven’t seen it yet,” Pritzker said earlier This year.
Estimates show that more than $50 million in bonds still need to be repaid for the construction of the Guaranteed Rate Field, which opened in 1991. The ballpark was built through a public financing deal struck by former Gov. Jim Thompson , amid speculation that the team would move to Florida if it didn’t get a new stadium.
In August 2023, Crain’s Chicago Business reported that the White Sox would consider leaving the guaranteed rate field, considering a move to Nashville as a possibility. That was followed by Reinsdorf meeting with Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell during last year’s Winter Meetings in November.
Nashville has been one of the markets considered a potential candidate for an expansion franchise, with Stewart part of a group pursuing a team. Stewart also participated in efforts to purchase the city of Oakland’s interest in the Oakland Coliseum in the years before the Athletics announced their departure from the city.
Any move or change of ownership must be approved by Major League Baseball. The league would likely prefer an expansion team in Nashville, with a potential $2 billion expansion fee in the league’s coffers.
