Chicago White Sox Release Renderings for Possible New Ballpark

It's been known that the Chicago White Sox would like to get into a new ballpark in the new future, and now they've officially put out renderings for a ballpark in the city's South Loop.

The Chicago White Sox have put out renderings for a proposed new ballpark in the South Loop of the city.

We knew that the White Sox have wanted to leave Guaranteed Rate Field for a while now, but they are putting a plan into action officially.

Per Front Office Sports on social media:

The Chicago White Sox have proposed a new stadium in the South Loop's 'The 78.' 

If the Sox moved to the South Loop, their current Guaranteed Rate Field could be converted into a soccer stadium for the MLS' Chicago Fire.

There was more information on this idea in a Chicago Sun-Times article back in January:

The White Sox are negotiating with developer Related Midwest about the possibility of building a new ballpark on the South Loop parcel known as “The 78.”

Sources familiar with the talks, all speaking on the condition they not be named, told the Chicago Sun-Times the negotiations for a baseball-only stadium are “serious.”

The Illinois Sports Facilities Authority, the government agency that owns and financed Guaranteed Rate Field, has not been involved in the discussions, according to the authority’s CEO Frank Bilecki. At some point, the stadium authority would need to get involved in determining the future of Guaranteed Rate Field and possibly in building a new ballpark if it is publicly funded.

Guaranteed Rate Field is the eighth-oldest ballpark in baseball, younger than only Fenway Park (Red Sox), Wrigley Field (Cubs), Dodger Stadium (Dodgers), Angels Stadium (Angels), Oakland Coliseum (Athletics), Kaufmann Stadium (Royals) and Rogers Centre (Blue Jays).

Given how old the stadium is, it's understandable that the team would want to explore a new spot and potentially get the new ballpark. It's also good to see that the team is exploring areas within Chicago, since there were previous talks of possible relocation of the franchise.

As usual, if the spot is found to be suitable and approved, the big discussion point will be about who pays for it.

Follow Fastball on FanNation on social media

Continue to follow our Fastball on FanNation coverage on social media by LIKING us on Facebook and by following us on Twitter @FastballFN.