From a family baseball night to one of baseball’s earliest social media experiments, here’s why a Chicago White Sox game became the highlight of my trip home to Chicago.
When you only have 48 hours in Chicago, every hour counts. Choosing to spend a few of them at a Chicago White Sox game turned out to be one of the best decisions of the trip.
On Monday, June 22nd, we headed to Guaranteed Rate Field to watch the White Sox take on the Cleveland Guardians. They won that night, keeping their momentum rolling right in first place. But, the score was not the most interesting part of the evening. There’s so much more to baseball than hits and runs.
What started as a quick family outing turned into a full-circle moment about community, history, and the earliest days of digital marketing.
The Best Seats Aren’t Always the Closest
We bought tickets in the 500 level, way up above the field. If you are planning a White Sox game, please do not dismiss the upper deck.
Five stories up, the view is spectacular. The emerald field stretches below you, the downtown skyline frames the horizon, and as the sun sets, Chicago slowly turns gold, then pink, then deep blue. I spent almost as much time photographing the city as I did watching the game.
Here is the biggest surprise, though: getting there. It used to be that reaching the upper deck meant navigating what felt like miles of ramps. Today, elevators and escalators make the trip effortless.
Our evening actually started in Walter’s elevator. He greeted us like we were long-awaited VIPs, and on the ride up we met a fellow fan whose first White Sox game was back in 1957. Nearly seventy years cheering for the same team. That conversation alone reminded me that baseball is not just entertainment. It is family history.
More Than a Ballgame
One thing I have always loved about the White Sox is how welcoming they feel, starting the moment you arrive.
Parking was easy, the staff smiled, and the vendors joked with everyone. When my daughter and her boyfriend ordered soft-serve, the vendor piled it so high it started leaning like the Tower of Pisa. They had to ask for a cup just to keep it from toppling over while everyone nearby cracked up. Moments like that do not show up in the box score, but they are the ones you take home.
Dinner was an Impossible Burger and enough fries for my husband and me to share. And here is a quick travel tip. The non-alcoholic beer was just $5.99, which felt like an absolute steal compared to typical stadium prices.
Baseball Has Changed, That’s a Good Thing
Once upon a time, baseball moved a lot slower. When I lived in Wrigleyville, I would sometimes bring the Sunday Trib to Cubs games because there was that much time between pitches. Yes, I lived on the North Side. The rivalry is real, it is Chicago, and I embrace all of it.
Today’s game is completely different. The scoreboard never sleeps, Southpaw dances, and the wave circles the upper deck. Fans scan QR codes hoping their selfie lands on the giant video board. Even replay reviews become their own mini-show with “Let It Be” playing while the umpires huddle. The game has become a fully interactive experience. And, I love it.
Can of Corn!
This classic memory came rushing back to me mid-game.
When our kids were little, we sat in front of some fans who kept yelling “Can of corn! Can of corn!” The kids looked at us, completely puzzled. A few days later, they found an actual can of corn at the grocery store and held it up very seriously to ask, “Is this what they meant?”
For anyone else who grew up wondering, “can of corn” is old baseball slang for an easy fly ball. Grocers used to knock cans off high shelves right into their aprons. Now you know. I still smile every single time I hear it.
A Social Media Day Throwback
Watching fans interact with the stadium screens made me think about my own history with this team. Because today, June 30th, is officially World Social Media Day, and my connection to the White Sox actually goes way back to the early days of digital community. I covered our panel in a post called Playing the Games of Sports and Social Media on WIRED PR Works.
Back on June 9, 2010, I was invited to speak at a tweetup event right there at the ballpark, which was called US Cellular Field back then. The event was called Eat. Drink. Tweet. I was representing Social Media Club Chicago, which I had recently co-founded, and my own Twitter platform @wiredprworks. Twitter was new, Facebook was finding its footing, and nobody really knew what fan engagement was going to become.
I sat on the panel alongside an incredible lineup of digital pioneers. We had Sarah Evans, Amy Martin from Digital Royalty who talked about launching Shaquille O’Neal’s Twitter, Brad Boron for the Chicago Blackhawks, and Scott Reifert for the White Sox.
White Sox player Mark Teahen was also on the panel. The absolute best part of the night was Mark admitting he originally started his Twitter account from his dog’s perspective, and his dog ended up with a massive following. I thought that was very funny and completely fair. Our panel was even featured in the White Sox magazine.
Until today, I’d completely forgotten that I posted a video from that Eat. Drink. Tweet. panel until I found it hiding on my YouTube channel. And, here’s my White Sox Eat Drink Tweet photo album.
Technology Changes. Communities Do Not.
The White Sox understood community before most organizations did. Soon after that panel, they invited me to the opening of the White Sox Social Media Lounge. It was one of the first dedicated social media spaces inside a Major League Baseball stadium. They actually built a physical space inside the ballpark for people creating online content.
Looking back, that night captured a core truth for modern brands. Technology changes, but communities do not. The best organizations do not just adopt new platforms. They create places where people feel they belong. The White Sox figured that out early, and it is a visibility strategy every business can learn from today as the team keeps evolving and winning on the field.
Looking back, it wasn’t really about social media. It was about building a brighter presence long before we had language for it.
A Walk Around the Ballpark
One of my favorite moments happened away from the game entirely.
I wandered onto the wraparound concourse with my camera. The skyline glowed, people leaned against the railings taking photos, kids laughed, and fans cheered somewhere below. For a few quiet minutes, I was not documenting Chicago. I was simply part of it.
That is what travel is really about. It is not checking attractions off a list, but feeling connected to a place.
The South Side Is Having a Moment
Chicago’s South Side has always had its own identity, and these days it also has momentum.
The Obama Presidential Center is reshaping the neighborhood and drawing national attention. That shift did not happen in a vacuum. When a neighborhood starts pulling people in, something real is changing in a good way.
Here is a fun thread for those of us in Charlotte. The White Sox farm team is our own Charlotte Knights, with the Kannapolis Cannonballers a step below just a few miles away. When names from Charlotte showed up on the Guaranteed Rate Field scoreboard that night, it felt like a thread connecting two cities I love.
And Then There Is the Pope
Only Chicago baseball could make this happen. Pope Leo XIV is a lifelong White Sox fan, and the team is responding exactly the way you would hope with Pope Hat Night on August 11th. We are already planning to be there.
When we visited the Vatican last fall, we spotted people walking around with Garrett Popcorn bags from Chicago. Someone apparently tried to bring the Pope his favorite popcorn. Whether or not it reached him, the gesture is perfectly, wonderfully Chicago.
Only baseball could connect a South Side neighborhood team, a global faith leader, a bag of cheese and caramel corn, and thousands of fans wearing Pope hats into one magical game night. And yes, you can buy Garrett’s Chicago mix right there at the games. I definitely did.
Why I Tell Every Chicago Visitor to See the White Sox
Everyone talks about Wrigley Field when they visit Chicago. It is iconic, and I have loved my time there too. But do not overlook Guaranteed Rate Field and the White Sox experience.
You will find spectacular views, affordable tickets, easy access, family-friendly prices, genuinely warm people, and one of the city’s most authentic neighborhoods. Disco Demolition Night of 1979 lives in baseball legend. The Toy Story shirts our kids got one summer live in our family’s collection. Pope Hat Night lives on the calendar.
Sometimes the best way to understand Chicago is not by following the crowds. It is by crossing town and spending a summer evening on the South Side.
Travel Tuesday Takeaway
On the way out, we stepped back into Walter’s elevator. “I’m so glad you came tonight,” he said. We talked about the game, the win, the crowd. Outside, people zipped up their jackets and said their goodbyes to the ballpark. We found our car easily and pulled out onto the Ryan, heading back to the North Side.
Travel is not always about discovering somewhere new. Sometimes it is about returning to a place that reminds you who you have been, and surprises you with who it is becoming.
Warren was right. We needed to go to that game, not just watch baseball, but to experience a magical summer evening together. As I looked out over the field from the 500 level, I realized I wasn’t just at a baseball game, I was revisiting family memories. And looking back at the early days of social media, my career, my Chicago chapters, and a familiar city that somehow keeps finding new ways to surprise me.
That’s why I’ll always say travel isn’t about checking places off a list. It’s about returning with fresh eyes. Sometimes the places we know best still have the most to teach us.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are the 500-level seats good at a White Sox game?
Yes. The 500-level at Guaranteed Rate Field offers unobstructed, panoramic views of the field and the Chicago skyline. Access is now incredibly easy thanks to multiple escalators and elevators.
What is the connection between the White Sox and Charlotte, NC?
The White Sox have a real presence in North Carolina. Their Triple-A farm team is the Charlotte Knights, and their Single-A affiliate is the Kannapolis Cannonballers, bridging the gap between Chicago and the Carolinas.
When is White Sox Pope Hat Night?
The team is hosting Pope Hat Night on August 11, 2026, celebrating the fact that Pope Leo XIV is a lifelong fan of the franchise.
Did the White Sox have the first social media lounge in baseball?
They were pioneers in digital sports marketing. The White Sox hosted early tweetups like “Eat. Drink. Tweet.” and launched one of the first dedicated Social Media Lounges in Major League Baseball to connect digital content creators directly with the game-day experience.
About the Author
Barbara Rozgonyi is an AI + PR Visibility Strategist, keynote speaker, podcast host, and the founder of CoryWest Media. From speaking on early digital pioneer panels to helping modern executives optimize their personal brands for AI, Barbara connects the dots between storytelling, technology, and community. She splits her time between Charlotte, NC, and Chicago, IL, and publishes insights on digital visibility right here at BarbaraRozgonyi.com and on wiredprworks.com
