Hammond Smells Bears’ Black Sox Meat
- Jun 8
- 2 min read
Letter to Da Bears: Hammond is crowing about inking a billion-dollar new stadium “deal” to lure the Bears out of its storied Windy City den, but it better include a “guarantee” clause. Bears are surely repeating the infamous Black Sox “leverage” ruse on St. Petersburg.
How ignorant folks can be of history. I still recall 1988 & the hubbub over the Chicago White Sox’s ballyhooed move to St. Petersburg, which had spent millions on a new ball park to grease the team’s slide there. Like today’s Bears ownership, the Sox’s managing partner, Jerry Reinisdorf, was insisting the move was “hours away” when the Illinois legislature met at midnight to approve public funds for a new stadium to replace antiquated Comiskey Park on Chicago’s South Side. In an interview after his stiff arm to the incensed Floridians, lawyer Reinsdorf simply brushed off the mud by quipping “a savvy negotiator creates leverage.” Years later, I interviewed Reinsdorf in his ritzy new stadium's office and also asked the “why? Q.” From behind a puff on a $25 Cuban Havana & its rising thick smoke, he simply asked, “Why not?”
LOL. But, it may be LOL all over again, this time, on the Indiana governor. He's been doing a victory lap on national television explaining how HE outsmarted the Illinois legislature by taking advantage of the near bankrupt Illinois’ unwillingness to fork over a billion dollars for a new Bears stadium in Chicago or, at least, its suburb of Arlington Heights. It needs to be realized that for nearly SIX years now, the Bears have been “leveraging” Indiana, i.e, executing the White Sox play book, to get a Black Sox deal of their own. And, like Reinsdorf did nearly 40 yrs ago, the Bears owners seem to have landed the prayed for Our Father as details slowly leak out, including a rural stadium site that looks more like a swamp than DC. All I’m sayin’ is the Hoosiers & THEIR lawyers better have gotten the Bears to sign an iron clad contract that prevents another last-minute Hail Mary pass by Chicago’s Machine Democrats.
Davd Soul
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