NEAR THE CELL
`There are no words’
Jimbo’s Lounge, a bar just north of The Cell, couldn’t hold all the fans who’d made the trek to watch Game 4 there. But that didn’t stop a couple of dozen fans who couldn’t get in but stayed to watch the game through the bar’s open doors.
About a minute before the title was sealed, the raucous crowd started chanting “Na Na Hey Hey.” The second the game ended, a huge roar arose from the crowds inside and out.
Mark Brodnik, 36, called his parents in Indianapolis immediately.
“I just want to celebrate and enjoy the moment; I’ll reflect on it tomorrow,” said Brodnik, who lives in Pilsen.
“In my lifetime, I didn’t think it would happen,” said the White Sox fan of 24 years. “There are no words.”
Minutes later, the crowd outside grew to 50, at least one of them holding a broom and many of them holding video cameras. Cars with honking horns soon joined the chanting and screaming. At the corner of 33rd and Princeton, everyone savored a victory that was a long time coming.
–Jimmy Greenfield, Redeye
UNITED CENTER
‘The greatest thing ever’
“I’ve rooted for White Sox all my life–even when they sucked. This is the greatest thing ever!” said Darren Bell, one of thousands of fans who watched the Sox clinch the series at the United Center.
When Paul Konerko caught the final out of the game, the UC erupted. People were standing on top of chairs to high-five the fans sitting on the level above them. Bell dove from his seat to hug his girlfriend and his mom. The three of them promptly toppled over.
Bell, a 34-year-old teacher from Wheaton, has been watching Sox games with his family all his life. “Now all my teams have won championships,” Bell said. “The Bears, the Bulls and now the White Sox.”
About 100 fans milled about outside the United Center after the game ended, their cheers punctuated by the blare of an occasional car horn. One vendor was selling shirts declaring, “World Series Champions–Sox.” One group of fans took up the chant “Take that, Ronnie Woo-Woo!”
–Maegan Carberry, Redeye
SOUTH LOOP
Race to the South side
The University Center at 525 S. State St. erupted in pandemonium after the Sox clinched Wednesday night.
Students raced to elevators past countless dorm rooms that held shouting crowds of their own.
“Where are we going? We have to go to the South Side!” shouted Mike Perry, 22 of Roosevelt University.
Hurrying alongside, his friend, Mike Skauge, 18, said “We’re going to go riot. We’ll be right back!”
As the elevators stopped on each of the 18 floors, the doors opened up on teeming, shouting hordes. Students poured out of the ground floor entrance by the dozens and marched north on State Street chanting, “White Sox, White Sox!”
–Elliott Ramos, Redeye
BRONZEVILLE
Grown men cry
Inside the Negro League Cafe in Bronzeville, 100 to 150 people packed into two rooms. The air was heavy with the smell of beer and 50 cent chicken wings.
When the Sox won, the room exploded into screams. People were jumping on booths, pumping their fists. One small group of men were actually crying.
Some people ran out a side door to celebrate, screaming “Go Sox!”
“I came to see the Sox whack that ass, and they did,” said Miquita Pittman, 27, of the South Side. “I’m very excited. It’s an emotional moment,” said Thomas, a 25-year-old from the South Side. “I think I’m having a heart attack. That damn catch!”
–Kyra Kyles, Redeye
DIVISION STREET
Family matters
When the game ended, the crowd inside Shenannigans on Division Street cheered and raised their hands, not knowing quite what to do. Minutes later, people rushed out onto the street.
Inside, Scott Ulaszek, 41, an investment manager from Lincoln Park, held a video camera in his right hand and pointed it at the monitor. He was filming the game–and the scene–for his mother and sister, White Sox fans who were in Boston.
“I’m going to make copies for my family. This is amazing, and they’re not here to see it,” said Ulaszek, who said he also was thinking about his dad, a Sox fan who died 10 years ago.
–Josh Noel, Tribune
CHATHAM
Like a dream
On the South Side, cars drove up and down 75th Street, with horns honking and people hanging outside their windows with brooms in hand.
About 100 people gathered inside The 50 Yard Line bar in Chatham swayed to “We Are The Champions.” “I feel like I’m in a dream,” said Sam Cohen, 38, a South Shore resident and lifelong Sox fan, as he embraced anyone within reach. “If I had enough money, I’d buy a beer for everybody. But I’m just gonna hug y’all.”
–Stephanie Banchero, Tribune
WRIGLEYVILLE
‘No greater feeling’
Down the block, Wrigley Field is barred up for the season and sports shops are advertising discount Cubs gear. But it’s standing room only at Sluggers at the end of the ninth inning. As the bar cues up “We are the Champions,” the fans scream and leap through the air. Friends and strangers hug, knocking over chairs and spraying beer in the air.
“I’ve waited for this day since the first time I walked into Comiskey Park,” said Michael Chatman, 24, of Wrigleyville.
“There is no greater feeling than this.”
–Samantha Nelson, For Redeye
NORTH SIDE
Venezuelan pride
“Guillen! Guillen!” a group of Venezuelan fans shouted in unison just after the game ended at the Caracas Grill on the North Side.
The crowd of 20 erupted with tears of joy and pride in Venezuelan skipper Ozzie Guillen as the Sox recorded the final out to clinch a World Series victory. They popped champagne after a night spent waving their country’s colors–gold, blue and red–and taking calls from friends back home in need of an update. “I am superproud,” said Fanny Gimenez-Farid, a friend of Guillen’s who wore his autographed jersey. “I am happy for Venezuela, for Chicago, for everyone.”
–Oscar Avila, Tribune
