Win Ugly

No matter the sport, Chicago fans grab hold of their teams and never let go. Titles and glory may come round once a century, but baseball thrives in the sports-mad city and, in the parking lots around the White Sox stadium, tailgating lives on, come rain or shine…or snow.

- Jane Ehrhardt

 “It’s easy to find us,” says John Weyer about his White Sox tailgating crew that’s been ushering in the baseball season at their Guaranteed Rate Field lot for about 25 years. “If you don’t know where we are, we say meet at the car with White Sox flag with the shamrock…and the ‘WIN UGLY’ license plate.”

The intriguing “Win Ugly” moniker for the Chicago team came about in their 1983 season. Around the time of the All Star Game that year, the Sox were blazing through a winning streak. Texas Rangers manager Doug Rader remarked that the team wasn’t really playing well despite their victories. “They’re winning ugly,” he said.

And like all hard-core Chicago sports fanatics, White Sox fans grabbed hold of the demeaning critique. They turned the phrase into a rallying cry that led their team to win the American League West championship that year, marking their first postseason action since the 1959 World Series.

The nickname—with a little leeway on the spelling— now proudly adorns the license plate of Weyer’s tailgating buddy, Mick Hyland, who just attended his 50th home opener this year. It’s the closest thing the tailgating crew has to an official name, Weyer says, who grew up in a tailgating family. For generations, they’ve been rabid tailgaters at Notre Dame football games. Even a few Bears games. “I’m more of a visitor at Bears games because my Saturdays are committed, so going to a game on Sunday too is a tough challenge,” he admits.

Many of the same people from the football tailgates spill over into the baseball gatherings, which start about five hours before the first pitch. “We’re always waiting for the gates to open to the lot,” says Weyer.