Chicago White Sox stadium officially has a new name — sort of. Here's why, and what it is

The home of the Chicago White Sox is getting a new name -- sort of. It's more familiar than you may think.

The team posted about the name change -- going from "Guaranteed Rate Field" to simply "Rate Field" -- Tuesday evening. An official press release on Wednesday followed, saying the name will "streamline the customer experience" as the stadium's sponsor dropped the word "Guaranteed" from its business earlier this year.

According to the release, the new name of "Rate Field" goes into effect immediately.

“We are now changing the name of this iconic ballpark to Rate Field," Rate CEO Victor Ciardell said in the release." Jerry Reinsdorf and his team have been nothing but amazing to us in this process. We couldn’t be happier with our partnership with the Chicago White Sox in this transformation. We are thrilled to showcase our new name on this legendary ballpark for the best fans in baseball in the greatest city in the world."

What was the Chicago White Sox stadium previously called?

The name is the fourth for the ballpark in its 30-plus year history. When it opened in 1991, the stadium was known as Comiskey Park, but a naming rights deal in 2003 brought a new name to the ballpark, which became known as U.S. Cellular Field.

After the 2016 season, the White Sox announced they had signed 13-year deal with Guaranteed Rate to rename the ballpark Guaranteed Rate Field, running through the rest of the team’s lease at the stadium. That deal reportedly paid the White Sox just over $2 million per season, though the team did not confirm the financial details when the arrangement was struck.

According to the release, the renaming of the stadium to "Rate Field" reflects the Chicago-based mortgage lending company's "modern evolution and its deep roots in the community."

“Like the White Sox, Rate is rooted in Chicago and committed to providing elite service to its customers," Brooks Boyer, White Sox chief revenue and marketing officer said in the release. "We look forward to welcoming fans to Rate Field to enjoy our ballpark experience, creating lasting memories for fans for years to come.”

In social media comments, White Sox fans did not hold back when it came to how they felt about the change.

"They removed guaranteed from the name because they cannot guarantee a win next year," one comment that earned more than 3,000 likes said.

Another predicted that by 2026, the stadium would simply be called "Field."

Fans of the team had plenty of reasons to weigh in, as the team in 2024 set a modern baseball record for number of loses. Towards the end of the season, chairman Jerry Reinsdorf wrote a letter to fans, calling the campaign "a failure" and promising to act to improve the team's fortunes.

In August, after a 21-game losing streak, the team fired manager Pedro Grifol, who was appointed to the position on Nov. 1, 2022.

For 2025, White Sox Spring Training begins Feb. 22. The White Sox Home Opener for 2025 is March 27.