Role reversal: Why the White Sox are suddenly so much more fun than Cubs

If you had to put down $100 today on which team is more likely to reach the playoffs in 2026, who are you taking, Cubs or White Sox?

Granted, this isn't a very steep hypothetical. Anyone living in Illinois could complete this task in less than a minute.

Seriously, though, which team has the better outlook: The surprisingly improved White Sox, playing in a weak American League? Or the up-and-down Cubs in MLB's toughest division?

If we tweak the criteria a bit, the Sox are clearly more fun than the Cubs right now. That's quite a feat for a franchise that lost 324 games the past three years.

The White Sox have won some exciting games recently, such as Edgar Quero's walk-off home run against the Cubs and Miguel Vargas' walk-off homer against the Tigers on Friday. Those magical endings may not last forever.

And the hamstring injury suffered by Munetaka Murakami on Friday is reason to worry. He's expected to miss 4-6 weeks.

Basically, the addition of Murakami is the equivalent of the Cubs adding Kyle Tucker last year, a big bat that lifts the entire lineup. It's worked perfectly for the Sox. The plan paid off for the Cubs too, at least in the first half of 2025. Tucker wasn't so valuable once he got hurt late in the year, and now he's in Los Angeles.

What could be more fun than an international star turning mild expectations into an all-star caliber performance? Not much, unless it's successful major-league debuts.

The White Sox have had a ridiculous number of new players hit the ground running. Noah Schultz, Sam Antonacci, David Sandlin, Rikuu Nishida were just the beginning this spring. Former first-round pick Jacob Gonzalez was just called up and will likely be in Sunday's lineup, while two of their top three prospects remain waiting in Triple-A, outfielder Braden Montgomery and pitcher Hagen Smith.

Any objective observer should agree the White Sox are a very likable team. They're a great underdog story, coming back from the MLB loss record in 2024, with young players who seem genuinely happy to be here. Breakout pitching star Davis Martin has been especially gracious with his time, helping set the tone for everyone else.

Look, every team in professional sports will go through a transition. When players are new to the experience and having fun, they're more available to reporters, who serve as a window for the fans.

As teams have more success, the media requests increase, they inevitably grow tired and try to avoid it. (Not hockey, though, those guys never seem to get huge egos.)

For the Cubs to be at their best, they should be a little cocky. Peak Pete Crow-Armstrong is where the team should be simmering at all times.

Here are two Cubs complaints: When they went through that 20-3 stretch, they probably got too full of themselves. These Cubs should never forget they've yet to beat the Brewers for a division title or playoff series. A 10-game losing streak is unacceptable.

Then there's a criticism made here a few times over the years. When things so south for the Cubs offense, their hitters seem to get caught up in the frustration. Mopey is the word I'd use. Is that why it takes them so long to turn things in a positive direction when the slumps arrive? Well, it's one theory.

Crow-Armstrong has brought electricity to Wrigley Field, but he's not the only player in the clubhouse who can sound like he's describing a car accident when speaking after a loss.

Early Saturday evening, before the Cubs played in St. Louis, the Cubs and White Sox had identical 31-27 records. In a horse race, the Cubs seem like the obvious pick, since they were just in the playoffs.

Fun can be contagious, though, especially if the White Sox keep beating up on division opponents.

“The team's playing pretty good baseball, playing hard every day,” catcher Edgar Quero said Saturday. “That's the mentality right now. That's the new White Sox: Win every day and make the playoffs.”