Pope Leo XIV writes to the White Sox, the baseball team from his hometown of Chicago: here is what the letter says
Pope Leo XIV sent a personal letter to Chicago White Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf as the team prepared for a playoff run. The letter, dated September 9, arrived at Rate Field on September 8, before the White Sox’s Wild Card Series opener against the Houston Astros. The White Sox won the opening game 6–3, and the message carried a personal connection to Leo XIV’s Chicago roots.
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Pope Leo XIV sent a letter to Chicago White Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf thanking him for a note prompted by the team’s August 11 game and using the exchange to describe sport as a way to foster respect, solidarity and peaceful cooperation. The message connected the pope’s longtime support for his hometown team with a broader reflection on values beyond winning.
In the letter, dated September 9, 2026, Leo thanked Reinsdorf for his “thoughtful gesture.” He recalled his earlier statement that sport can be “a school of life,” where people learn that abundance comes not from victory at any cost, but from sharing, respecting others and walking together.
Leo hoped the White Sox would continue to build friendship and solidarity and serve as a hopeful example of people living and working together in peace. He closed by invoking God’s blessings on Reinsdorf and his loved ones.
The article describes Leo, formerly Robert Prevost, as a lifelong White Sox fan who grew up on Chicago’s South Side. It also recalls that he attended Game 1 of the 2005 World Series, when Chicago defeated the Houston Astros.
The team honored the pope during an August 11 game against Cincinnati, after which Reinsdorf wrote to him. The letter arrived as Chicago entered the American League Wild Card Series against Houston; the article reports that the White Sox won the opener 6–3.
The article gives the letter’s date as September 9 but says it reached Rate Field on September 8, one day earlier.
Chicago finished the regular season 84–78 and earned a wild-card place after losing at least 101 games in each of the previous three seasons. Asked whether he had influenced the team’s turnaround, Leo smiled and replied, “No comment.” White Sox manager Will Venable said the pope’s support meant a lot to the team.
Sport cultivates human fraternity and communal solidarity
Sport can cultivate fraternity because it gives people a shared task: teammates learn cooperation, mutual esteem, and responsibility for one another. Those habits can extend beyond the team, building friendships and community across differences.
Christian solidarity goes further than good sportsmanship toward one’s own side. It means recognizing the dignity of opponents too—for example, helping an injured rival rather than treating that person merely as an obstacle to victory. In this way, sport can contribute to a more united and peaceful society.
This potential is not automatic. The Church calls for sport to be inclusive and accessible, welcoming people of differing abilities and circumstances; otherwise, exclusion or the pursuit of profit can undermine its communal purpose.