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It took over a decade, but a former MLB All-Star finally got his World Series ring

Chris Cwik
·Staff writer
Ron Kittle is finally getting a 2005 World Series ring from the White Sox. (Getty Images)
Ron Kittle is finally getting a 2005 World Series ring from the White Sox. (Getty Images)

Former Chicago White Sox Rookie of the Year Ron Kittle never won a World Series, but he’s still getting a ring. That ring may have arrived over a decade late, but he seems OK with that.

Kittle had dinner with White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf on Saturday. As that dinner, Reinsdorf presented him with a 2005 White Sox World Series ring.

Ron Kittle received a 2005 World Series ring from the White Sox. (Screenshot via Ron Kittle’s Facebook page)
Ron Kittle received a 2005 World Series ring from the White Sox. (Screenshot via Ron Kittle’s Facebook page)

According to Kittle’s post on Facebook, Reinsdorf told him it was an “injustice” that he hadn’t received a ring until now.

“In all the excitement back then, part of the family was overlooked. An injustice happened years ago, tonight that injustice is corrected,” Reinsdorf said.

Kittle posted a picture of the ring. On the side, it has his name, the team’s 99-63 record in 1983 and makes mention of Kittle’s Rookie of the Year award from that season.

Kittle was a key member of the surprising 1983 White Sox club that made a run to the postseason. As a rookie, he hit .254/.314/.504, with 35 home runs. He made the All-Star team and beat out Julio Franco for the Rookie of the Year award.

The White Sox’s miracle run was stopped by the Baltimore Orioles in the American League Championship Series. Baltimore went on to defeat the Philadelphia Phillies to win the World Series in 1983.

Handing out World Series rings to former team icons has become a more popular practice in recent years. The Chicago Cubs did exactly that after the team broke its World Series curse in 2016. It wasn’t just key players who received rings from the Cubs. The team also gave one to Steve Bartman.

Kittle’s name still carries a lot of weight among White Sox fans. He was a fan favorite as a player, and his presence is still felt around the team today. Kittle is listed as one of the team’s community relations representatives, and has a food stand at the park that bears his name.

If what Reinsdorf told Kittle is true, there should be plenty of other former White Sox who are about to get 2005 World Series rings.

That could be an expensive endeavor. The team went 87 years between championships, so Reinsdorf should have a pretty long list to get through.

(BLS H/N: The Sports Daily)

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Chris Cwik is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at christophercwik@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Chris_Cwik