Photo of the seats at U.S. Cellular Field. Home of the Chicago White Sox. 

 
Whether or not the upper deck seats at U.S. Cellular Field (now called Guaranteed Rate Field) are riddled with bullet holes is an urban legend that has circulated around the city of Chicago for two decades now. The ballpark is the home of Major League Baseball's Chicago White Sox and was formerly known as Comiskey Park II from 1991 to 2002. I was first told about the subject years ago when I roomed with a Chicago native in college.
 
Recently, a co worker of mine, also from Chicago, brought up the subject once again. At that point, I realized that there may have been some truth to the rumors. So I conducted some research and found a few articles that briefly mentioned people firing upon Comiskey Park during it's construction and the violent history of the neighborhoods surrounding the ballpark. Turns out, it wasn't just a rumor started by yuppie Chicago Cubs fans. 
 
 
According to the Chicago Tribune article, the Chicago White Sox front office confirmed that bullet holes were found in the stadium's scoreboard in center field as well as all throughout the upper level during the construction of Comiskey Park in 1991. The Chicago Police also added that the bullets could have come from the Robert Taylor homes (pictured below), one of the former high rises on Chicago's dangerous south side. The Robert Taylor homes, along with the infamous Cabrini Green Housing Projects, were demolished in 2007. 
 
Photo of the Robert Taylor homes in Chicago, Illinois.
 
 
At the time, the news of bullet holes frightened many of the construction workers working on new Comiskey Park's construction. A homicide from that distance would be virtually unsolvable. I also decided to take to Twitter and other social media outlets to see if Chicago sports fans could confirm the myth. I was excited to find that the subject was well known.  

As someone that has visited U.S. Cellular Field for a White Sox game, I would like to add that baseball fans are completely safe walking to U.S. Cellular Field from the red line stop on 35th street. There are too many police and spectators around for shady events to take place. The site of the ballpark consists really of just endless parking lots as you can see in the video below. 

However, I will add that the atmosphere and vibe on the south side of Chicago is completely different than what you'll find at Wrigley Field, home of the Chicago Cubs. The White Sox and Cubs fan bases and their ballparks also couldn't be more different. Make sure you check out ballparks both to see for yourself!
 
  

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