Top 50 Chicago White Sox
An inaugural team when the American League formed in 1901, the Chicago White Sox were first called the Chicago White Stockings, but that would be a brief moniker as they would shorten that to the Chicago White Sox, the name that they hold today.
Despite the lengthy existence of the franchise, this has not been one of the more successful teams in the AL. Chicago won their first World Series in 1906, and in 1917 they captured their second. In 1919, they were considered the best team in baseball and were expected the crush the Cincinnati Reds of the National League. Chicago lost, and it later came out that the players on the team conspired to throw games for financial benefit. The ChiSox struggled for decades after and would not win another Pennant until 1959. They lost the World Series, and it would take until 2005 until they reached the Fall Classic again. This time, they won, marking their third World Series win.
This list is up to the end of the 2023 season.
Note: Baseball lists are based on an amalgamation of tenure, traditional statistics, advanced statistics, playoff statistics, and post-season accolades.
Gary Peters signed with the Chicago Cubs before the 1956 season, and he was likely frustrated as he would be called up briefly in each of the 1959 to 1962 seasons.
Carlton Fisk is one of those rare players that both versions of the “Sox” can make a claim as one of their own. After 1,078 Games, seven All-Star Games, and an American League Pennant, Fisk began the second half of his career when he signed with the White Sox as a Free Agent for the 1981 Season.
Oh boy. We know the story of “Shoeless” Joe Jackson, the simple country boy who was as gifted a player as there was in the late 1910s, and one of the eight players who threw the 1919 World Series in the “Black Sox” Scandal. We’ll get there.
Playing all but the final year of his career with the Chicago White Sox (which would only be 5 Games), Ray Schalk was known for his defensive skills and innovation, but more importantly, his dedication to winning.
Drafted with the number one Draft Pick in 1977, Harold Baines made his White Sox debut in 1981. Baines would never evolve into an excellent (or even average) defensive player, but that is why he stayed in the American League, where he would be regarded as the sweetest hitting Designated Hitter.
After five seasons playing in the National League with Brooklyn, the American League was formed, and many players jumped to the upstart league. Fielder Jones was one of those players.
George Davis's best seasons occurred with the New York Giants, where he had nine consecutive .300 seasons (1893-1901), but with the formation of the American League, he was one of many who looked for a better payday. He initially found it when he jumped to the Chicago White Sox, where he played the entire 1902 season batting .299 with 93 Runs Batted In.
Joe Horlen debuted in the Majors with the Chicago White Sox in 1961, and two years later, he was one of the top Starters of the team. Horlen would come of age in 1964, with a 1.88 ERA (second in the AL), and he led the league in WHIP (0.935) and H/9 (6.1). Horlen kept his ERA under 2.90 in the next two seasons, and in 1967 he would win 19 Games, go to the All-Star Game, and win the ERA Title (2.06), and his second WHIP Title (0.953). He also was fourth in MVP voting and second in Cy…
Playing the first half of his career with the Chicago White Sox, Magglio Ordonez first made the Majors in 1997 six years after being signed as an Amateur Free Agent from Venezuela.
Sherm Lollar arguably had the misfortune of playing at the same time as Yogi Berra, who was considered the best Catcher of the American League. Lollar would not match with Berra offensively, but with his defense, he was right there among the best.
Plucked from the Texas League in the Rule 5 Draft in 1912, Reb Russell would have been a Rookie of the Year candidate in 1913. That year, he went 22-16 with a league-leading 52 appearances and a 1.90 ERA. That was a strong beginning, and the gifted control pitcher would not have as many Wins in future seasons but was still effective. He never had a year where his ERA went above 3.00, and in 1916, he led the American League in WHIP. The year after, he helped Chicago win the World Series.
With the nickname of "Death Valley" (he came from Deadwood, South Dakota), Jim Scott would always post a sound ERA, though he was not always blessed with a lot of run support hence his losing record of 107-114.
“Black” Jack McDowell was the fifth overall draft pick in 1987, and he was able to make the White Sox for four starts that year. He played in 26 Games the following season, but injuries and rehab kept out of the parent club throughout 1989. McDowell returned in 1990 with a nice 14-9 season, but that was just the harbinger of things to come.
Frank Smith debuted as a Rule 5 Draft Pick in 1904, and he paid immediate dividends in his first two seasons with 35 Wins and with both of his seasons seeing him secure top ten finished in ERA. It was a good start, but there was a valley before he would hit the mountain.
While the name of Tommy Thomas is certainly alliterative, it is also owned by a very good Pitcher.
Ozzie Guillen debuted in the Majors in 1985, and he would become the American League Rookie of the Year. Guillen affixed himself as the White Sox' starting Shortstop for well over a decade, and he would be named to three All-Star Games while smacking s solid 1,608 Hits for the franchise.
Johnny Mostil would play all 972 of his Major League Games with the Chicago White Sox, and for a brief time, he was considered one of the quickest players in the game.
Willie Kamm was so highly regarded in the minors that he would become the first player purchased for six figures when the White Sox bought him from San Francisco of the Pacific Coast League in 1922. Kamm may not have become a Hall of Famer, but he did become a popular figure in Chicago.
Tommy John would have better years with the Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Yankees, but this should not discount what he did in Chicago from 1965 to 1971.