The Chicago White Sox will honor Mark Buehrle by placing a statue of him at Rate Field on July 11 during the celebration of their 2005 World Series-winning team.
Buehrle spent the first 12 years of his 16-season career with the White Sox. Known for his fast work and precise control, the left-hander finished with a 161-119 record and a 3.83 ERA in 390 games with the team, including 365 starts.
The White Sox made the announcement about the statue during their fan festival on Friday. Buehrle’s No. 56 was retired by the team in 2017.
“It’s an incredible honor,” Buehrle said. “To put a statue up, of me, out there, forever. I guess the number could be unretired and get taken out and put it back into play. But the statue, unless someone tears it down or does something to it, it’s always going to be there.”
The 45-year-old Buehrle wore his old uniform and threw a few pitches to help the sculptor capture the details for the statue.
“I ain’t going to lie. It actually felt pretty good — for the 10 minutes I did it. A couple hours later it did not feel good,” Buehrle joked.
After leaving Chicago, Buehrle played for Miami and Toronto. The five-time All-Star finished his career with a 214-160 record, a 3.81 ERA over 3,283 1/3 innings, and four Gold Gloves. He struck out 1,870 batters and walked 734.
He earned 45 votes (11.4%) in his fifth year on the Hall of Fame ballot for the Baseball Writers’ Association of America.
“I’m literally just honored to be on the ballot this many years,” Buehrle said. “Just getting my name on the first, I was like, ‘Man if I can just stay on for another year,’” Buehrle said. “And now we are going into Year 6. I mean literally giving me goosebumps. It’s insane.”
Buehrle played a key role in the White Sox’s 2005 World Series championship. He posted a 16-8 record with a career-low 3.12 ERA in 33 starts that season, helping the team win the AL Central. In the postseason, he went 2-0 with a 3.47 ERA in four appearances, including three starts.
In Game 3 of the World Series against Houston, Buehrle earned the save by retiring Adam Everett for the final out of the 14th inning in a 7-5 win.
“Every time you go out there you’re trying to win a World Series. Sometimes it happens, sometimes it doesn’t,” Buehrle said. “I have the feeling the way these fans are and the way they talk to you about that year, they start tearing up and shaking when they’re talking to you about it, yeah you can definitely feel how it affects everybody.”
