Ron Kittle

Ronald Dale (Ron) Kittle (born January 5, 1958) is a former left fielder and designated hitter in Major League Baseball. He was known for his home run hitting power, in particular line-drive rooftop home runs (7, an MLB record) at Comiskey Park, and was named the 1983 AL Rookie of the Year. From 1982 through 1991, Kittle played for the Chicago White Sox (1982–86, 1989, 1991), New York Yankees (1986–87), Cleveland Indians (1988) and Baltimore Orioles (1990). He batted and threw right-handed. Kittle was also a manager for the minor league Schaumburg Flyers.

Career

A former steelworker who made his major league debut at nearly 25 years old, Kittle was a popular player on the 1983 "Winnin Ugly" Chicago White Sox when they won 99 games and made their first playoff appearance since the 1959 World Series. That season, Kittle was selected an All-Star and won Rookie of the Year honors after hitting 35 home runs (club record for a rookie) and 100 RBI.

Kittle also hit 50 homers in the minor leagues with the Edmonton Trappers and has his jersey retired in Edmonton at Telus Field.

Chicago White Sox

The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in the South Side of Chicago, Illinois. The White Sox are members of the American League (AL) Central division in Major League Baseball (MLB). The White Sox play their home games at U.S. Cellular Field. They are one of two major league clubs in Chicago; the other is the Chicago Cubs, who are a member of the National League (NL) Central division. The team is currently owned by Jerry Reinsdorf.

One of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Chicago team was established as a major league baseball club in 1900. The club was originally called the Chicago White Stockings, but this was soon shortened to Chicago White Sox. The team played home games at South Side Park before, in 1910, moving to Comiskey Park for the next eight decades.

The White Sox won the 1906 World Series with a defense-oriented team dubbed "the Hitless Wonders", and the 1917 World Series led by Eddie Cicotte, Eddie Collins, and Shoeless Joe Jackson. The 1919 World Series was marred by the Black Sox Scandal, in which several members of the White Sox were accused of conspiring with gamblers to fix games. In response, Major League Baseball's new Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis banned the players from Major League Baseball for life. In 1959, led by Early Wynn, Nellie Fox, Luis Aparicio and manager Al Lopez, the White Sox won the American League pennant. They won the AL pennant again in 2005, when they also went on to win the World Series.

Comiskey Park

Comiskey Park was a ballpark in Chicago, Illinois, the home of the Chicago White Sox from 1910 through 1990. Built by owner Charles Comiskey and designed by Zachary Taylor Davis, it hosted four World Series and more than 6,000 Major League Baseball games. The field was also the site of the 1937 heavyweight title match in which Joe Louis defeated then champion James J. Braddock in eight rounds.

The Chicago Cardinals of the National Football League also called Comiskey Park home when they weren't playing at Normal Park or Soldier Field. The Cardinals won the 1947 NFL Championship Game over the Philadelphia Eagles at Comiskey Park.

A new ballpark opened in 1991, across 35th Street and south of its predecessor, and Comiskey Park was demolished the same year. Originally also called Comiskey Park, it was renamed U.S. Cellular Field in 2003.

Early years

The park was built on a former city dump that Comiskey bought in 1909 to replace the wooden South Side Park. It was originally built as White Sox Park, but within three years was renamed for White Sox founder and owner Charles Comiskey. The original name, White Sox Park, was restored in 1962, but it went back to the Comiskey Park name in 1976.