Chicago Cubs don’t have friend in high places after all; New Pope is White Sox fan

The Chicago Cubs were welcoming positive news after a two-game skid against the San Francisco Giants, a skid which included  an ugly, ugly 14-5 extra innings loss to the San Francisco Giants, and they seemed to get it on Thursday morning.

Reports surfaced that the new Pope, 69-year-old Chicago native Robert Francis Prevost, who will use the name Pope Leo XIV, was a Cubs fan.

Cubs fans and Cubs media seized the opportunity to crow a bit about having friends in high places.

Cubs Claim New Pope Ally

Brett Taylor of Bleacher Nation was among the first to post a reaction:

“Chicago Cubs, 2025 World Series Champions, confirmed. It is ORDAINED from on high.

Let’s get His Holiness to Wrigley Field ASAP to throw out a first pitch and officially bless the ivy.”

Cubs fans also jumped on social media to react:

Go Pope Go…Go Pope Go
Hey Chicago what do you say…

— B.P. Cox (@BPCox_) May 8, 2025

Praying for a bullpen.

— Eli Lebowicz (@EliLebowicz) May 8, 2025

He needs to tell Ricketts that the big guy said resign Tucker.

— Tall, Mark, and Handsome (@ItsMe_ItsMarkC) May 8, 2025

World Series confirmed

— Jay (@lozatakes) May 8, 2025

But…No…He’s A White Sox Fan

But shortly after the Cubs world began basking in the glory of having a Vatican ally, the North Siders were Steve Bartmaned by the cold, hard truth.

Pope Leo XIV is actually a White Sox fan.

Christian Farr of NBC Chicago reached out to John Prevost, the Pope’s brother, in suburban New Lenox. Prevost, like any Sox fan, was eager to set the Cubs/Sox question straight.

“Whoever said Cubs on the radio got it wrong. It’s Sox,” Prevost asserted.

The White Sox, even more desperate for some good news than the Cubs, were quick to issue a statement.

“Family always knows best, and it sounds like Pope Leo XIV’s lifelong fandom falls a little closer to 35th and Shields,” the South Side spokesperson said. “Some things are bigger than baseball, but in this case, we’re glad to have a White Sox fan represented at the Vatican. A pinstripe White Sox jersey with his name on it and a hat is already on the way to Rome, and of course, the Pontiff always is welcome at his ballpark.”

A Blessed 2025 So Far, Anyway

Even without a die-hard fan residing in the Vatican, the Cubs have already had a bit of blessed season thus far in the 2025 campaign. They have a 22-16 record and stand three games ahead of the St. Louis Cardinals and Milwaukee Brewers atop the NL Central Division.

The Cubs offense, ranked among the very best in all of baseball and motored by the emergence of Pete Crow-Armstrong, has stunned. The starting pitching, despite losing ace Justin Steele for the season and co-ace Shota Imanaga for at least a few starts, has held together remarkable well. The bullpen, well, it has sometimes been good– in spots.

There’s a long way to go, but the Cubs give off the vibe of being a playoff-bound team and they have the roster flexibility as well as the finances, to pursue missing puzzle pieces at the trade deadline.

However, it certainly wouldn’t have hurt to have a friend with the right connections.