The White Sox are in the World Series.
Go ahead.
Give it a moment to sink in. It has been 46 years.
The Sox secured their first pennant since 1959 when they beat the L.A. Angels 6-3 Sunday night at Angel Stadium to complete a 4-games-to-1 victory in an American League Championship Series they dominated with pitching.
Joe Crede tied the game 3-3 with a home run in the seventh inning, then brought in the go-ahead run with a multiple-hop single that barely reached the outfield grass as Aaron Rowand scooted home from second with two outs in the eighth.
They pushed across two insurance runs in the ninth, one on a double by Paul Konerko, the MVP of the series.
A light but steady rain couldn’t dampen the celebration that began when Jose Contreras retired Casey Kotchman for the final out, and it continued into the wee hours in those parts of the Chicago area that hold the White Sox near and dear.
The Sox don’t do well along the lakefront or in the trendy spots of the Near North Side, never have.
They’ve always been a team for working folks–the saloonkeepers, the tradesmen, the factory hands, the cops and firefighters.
The fan base has spread far and wide from its traditional Bridgeport/Canaryville roots, reflecting an ever-changing city. The displaced haven’t been particularly zealous about filling a ballpark they have been slow to warm to, in part because of the strong-arm tactics that went into building it.
But that’s changing, and it’s this team’s doing. They not only win, they win playing ball the right way. And if you’ve seen them, you know what that means. They’re an appealing, likable group, from the live-wire manager to the rock-steady first baseman to the aces-high pitching staff.
Even the pugnacious catcher has his endearing traits: He’s all about winning, niceties be damned.
And they’re going to the World Series.
