Chicago Tribune

Buried deep in a time capsule for a century, a 1919 ‘Black Sox’ World Series baseball sees the light

Developer Lee Golub stands on the 25th floor of Tribune Tower Residences on Aug. 24, 2022, while holding a baseball from the 1919 World Series featuring the Chicago White Sox.

CHICAGO — For nearly a century, millions of words poured from the confines of the Tribune Tower in stories about crooked politicians, murderous lovers, civic giants, sports heroes, regular folks and big shots, charting all the joys and tragedies of the human condition. No longer home to a newspaper but to luxurious condominiums, the building now delivers a new and fascinating tale, of a baseball long buried, a baseball that some believe is worth $1 million or more.

The ball is a homely and bruised and beaten thing. It was discovered earlier this year when three time capsules were found during the remaking of the building.

The Tribune Tower was sold for $240 million in June 2016 to the CIM Group in partnership with Chicago-based Golub & Co. Its transformation began after all former tenants — including some 750 Chicago Tribune

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