Arizona Complex League White Sox

History

The Chicago White Sox first fielded a Rookie-level affiliate in the Arizona League from 1998 through 2002. This team played its home games in Tucson for three seasons before moving to Phoenix for the final two. It was created when the major-league club relocated its spring training base from Sarasota, Florida, to Tucson Electric Park after the 1997 season, shifting its existing Gulf Coast League team across the country. Over those five years, the squad went 115–161, never finishing with a winning record.

The club left the league after the 2002 season and did not return for eleven years. Following the 2013 season, the White Sox ended their 19-year partnership with the Bristol White Sox of the Appalachian League and established a new Rookie-level team at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Arizona. That team has played in Arizona since 2014, sharing the stadium with the Arizona League Dodgers. In 2021, the Arizona League was renamed the Arizona Complex League.

Did You Know?

• Former Major League All-Star catcher Tony Peña began his managerial career with the 1998 AZL White Sox.
• Notable alumni from the 1998–2002 period include Joe Borchard, Brandon McCarthy, Michael Morse, and Chris Young.
• The Pittsburgh Pirates replaced the White Sox in Bristol, Virginia, as the owners and operators of the Bristol Pirates.