Rate Field Game Day Guide
Chicago White Sox · Chicago, IL
Know Before You Go
- Bag policy
Rate Field permits clear plastic, vinyl, or PVC bags up to 12 x 12 x 6 inches and non-clear clutches up to 9 x 5 x 2 inches.
Diaper bags accompanying a child and medically necessary bags are allowed after additional search; backpacks, drawstring bags, coolers, luggage, and computer bags are prohibited.
- Bag storage
An independent paid storage facility for restricted items is at the northwest corner of 35th and Shields in Lot C.
It opens with the ballpark gates and closes 30 minutes after the game ends.
- Gate opening
Rate Field gates normally open 90 minutes before first pitch, except for the home opener or an announced change.
- Mobile tickets
Tickets to all White Sox games are sent as mobile tickets by email and must be displayed on a smartphone at the gate.
Guests who have phone trouble or do not have a smartphone should visit an open ticket window for help.
- Re-entry
Guests may not return to Rate Field after exiting the ballpark.
- Prohibited items
Rate Field prohibits weapons, fireworks, drones, bats, noncompliant bags, hard containers, outside alcohol, glass or metal containers, lasers, inflatables, and noisemakers.
Aerosols, illegal drugs, large camera lenses, selfie sticks, tripods, projectiles, metal-tip or oversize umbrellas, and recreational vehicles are also prohibited; review the official list before arrival.
- First aid
First Aid is on the ground level behind home plate, with an additional booth on the 100 Level behind home plate.
Contact any staff member or text 773-754-HELP (4357) to request assistance.
- Nursing and lactation
The private nursing room is at Section 352 and is equipped for nursing and pumping, with a changing table.
Visit any Guest Relations Booth for access.
- Family restrooms
A family and gender-neutral washroom is near Section 106, with its key available from the section's Guest Service Representative.
Changing tables are available in every men's and women's washroom.
- Tickets for children
Children taller than 36 inches need their own ticket; children under 36 inches may enter without a ticket when sharing a seat with an accompanying adult.
Children admitted without a ticket are not eligible for promotional items.
- Guest services
Guest Relations Booths are directly behind home plate on the Main, Club, and Upper Levels and outside Gates 4 and 5.
For anonymous in-venue assistance, text 773-754-HELP (4357).
- Service animals
Rate Field permits service animals used by guests with disabilities.
- Smoking and vaping
Tobacco, smokeless tobacco, and e-cigarettes are prohibited inside Rate Field and on its ramps.
Guests who do not comply may be required to surrender their ticket and leave the ballpark.
Game Day Timeline
What the day looks like at Rate Field, hour by hour.
Arrive on the South Side
Take the CTA Red Line to 35th-Bronzeville-IIT or drive to the stadium lots. The parking lots open 2.5 hours before first pitch.
Pregame in the lots or Bridgeport
The parking lots allow tailgating with coolers and chairs, one of the few MLB parks where you can set up. Bridgeport bars on 35th Street are the alternative.
Enter Rate Field
Walk through the main gates. The concourses are wide and the food options are solid. Grab an Italian beef early.
Watch batting practice
Head to the left field bleachers or outfield corners. The left field upper deck has the iconic exploding scoreboard behind it.
Find your seat
Settle in. The Dan Ryan Expressway runs beyond the outfield, a uniquely Chicago backdrop. The skyline is visible beyond left field.
Play ball
Nine innings of South Side baseball. The exploding scoreboard in center field fires off pinwheels and fireworks after every White Sox home run.
Stand up and stretch
The White Sox play 'Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye', a South Side tradition since the 1977 season. Grab a final Italian beef.
Bridgeport or Red Line back north
Bridgeport bars on 35th Street have a local South Side vibe. Or take the Red Line back to the Loop and North Side.
Tips & Fan Reports
Tailgating before the game is a big part of the White Sox experience. Get there early and walk around the 100 level. Check out the shower that used to be in the Comiskey outfield and statues of Sox greats in center field.
The South Side Irish community is passionate about the Sox. The atmosphere is more blue-collar and authentic than Wrigley.
The exploding scoreboard is a White Sox tradition since 1960. Watch for it after Sox home runs.
Rate Field has some of the cheapest tickets in MLB. Upper deck seats can be under $10 on weeknights.
The parking lots allow tailgating with coolers and chairs, uncommon for an urban MLB park. Take advantage.
Tailgating in the GRF lots is a real thing. Bring a grill - the parking lots have a genuine cookout vibe.
Take the CTA Red Line, the 35th-Bronzeville-IIT station is right at the stadium. Connects to the Loop in 10 minutes.
Everything stops at first pitch. There is no post-game tailgating here at all.
Lots open two hours out, so the usable window is genuinely about two hours.
Lot E sells reserved tailgating spaces with dedicated room beside the bay, worth it if the tailgate matters more than the walk.
Before the Game
Tailgating is permitted in the Rate Field lots, set up within your own parking space and clear of pathways and traffic, and the club now sells reserved tailgating spaces in Lot E, which come with dedicated tailgate room and a short walk to the gates. The clock is tight at both ends: all tailgating stops at the start of the game, none is permitted afterwards, and the lots close about an hour after the final out. Lots open two hours before first pitch, or three on the home opener; gates open 90 minutes before, or two hours on Opening Day.
Where to Go Before the Game
Lot E reserved tailgating spaces
Bookable spaces in Lot E that include dedicated tailgate room alongside the parking bay, and sit close to the gates. The upgrade if the tailgate is the point of the trip.
Known for Reserved and bookable · Dedicated tailgate space · Close to the gates
The general parking lots
Tailgating is permitted throughout, set up within your own space without blocking pathways or traffic. Lots open two hours before first pitch, three on the home opener.
Known for Tailgating permitted · Open 2 hours before · In your own space
The end-of-tailgate line
All tailgating in the lots ends at the start of the game, with none permitted afterwards, and the lots close roughly an hour after the final out.
Known for Ends at first pitch · No post-game · Lots close 1 hour after
Pregame Rules
What Rate Field allows before the game, and what it does not.
- Tailgating is permitted in the parking lots.
- Fans who tailgate must set up in their respective parking space and avoid blocking pathways and traffic.
- Reserved tailgating spaces are available to purchase in Lot E, including a dedicated tailgate space and proximity to the gates.
- All tailgating ends at the start of the game, and no tailgating is permitted following the conclusion of the game.
- Parking lots typically open two hours prior to the scheduled start. On the day of the home opener only, lots open three hours prior to first pitch.
- All parking lots close approximately one hour after the game.
- Gates to the ballpark open 90 minutes prior to first pitch, or two hours prior on Opening Day.
Weather
Rate Field is open air, so these are the conditions you sit in.
Across the MLB season the warmest month is July, with an average high of 85°F, and the coldest is April, when the average low is 41°F. May is the wettest month at 4.1 inches and September the driest at 2.8 inches.
That April low ranks 8th coldest of the 30 MLB venues, and May here ranks 17th wettest.
April
3.6 inchesMay
4.1 inchesJune
4.0 inchesJuly
3.5 inchesAugust
4.0 inchesSeptember
2.8 inchesOctober
3.5 inchesWhat to Bring
- Only the outside food and drink the rule allows
Single-serving food may be brought into Rate Field in an approved bag or carried by hand for security screening.
- A card or a phone wallet
Rate Field is cashless.
- A warm layer for after dark
April nights average 41°F at Rate Field.
- Sunscreen, sunglasses and a hat
July highs average 85°F at Rate Field, with no roof over the seats.
- A poncho, not an umbrella
Umbrellas are on Rate Field's prohibited list, and May averages 4.1 inches of rain.
Tailgate Gear
Lots open two hours before first pitch, three on the home opener.
- A setup that fits your own parking space without blocking a pathway or traffic lane
- A Lot E reserved tailgating space if you want dedicated room rather than just a bay
- Everything packed away by first pitch, since no tailgating is permitted after the game either
How We Checked This Page
Every section below names the source it was read from and the day it was read. Where we could not reach a published figure, the page says so rather than presenting an estimate as a checked fact.
- Game day timeline
Gate opening time checked against the venue's own gate-opening policy: Rate Field gates normally open 90 minutes before first pitch, except for the home opener or an announced change.
- Pregame
Chicago White Sox official site: Tailgating at Rate Field, Where to Park, and Rate Field Entry Gates
- Weather
NOAA 1991-2020 Climate Normals
- Venue policies
Current White Sox Rate Field information, disability-access, and concessions guidance reviewed for entry, family, payment, food, parking, and accessibility rules.