A visit with retired Chicago White Sox organist Nancy Faust as she plans to return for 6 games this year
Nancy Faust retired from the Chicago White Sox to much fanfare in 2010, after over four decades behind the organ console.
This season, as the White Sox celebrate their 125th anniversary, Faust will be returning for a series of nostalgic performances on six Coca-Cola Family Sundays.
The National Baseball Hall of Fame noted that Faust was a luncheonette organist in 1970 when then White Sox then-general manager Stu Holcomb heard her — and hired her on the spot.
Organ music had been part of the baseball experience — and the White Sox game experience specifically — for some time by the time Faust took over.
The Cubs across town were the first team to feature organ music at their games. Contemporary published reports say organist Ray Nelson played an organ with pipes behind the grandstand for one Cubs game, against the St. Louis Cardinals, on April 26, 1941. But it was not until 1967 that organ music became a regular feature for Cubs games at Wrigley Field.
Ebbets Field in Brooklyn, New York City installed an organ for Brooklyn Dodgers games in 1942, according to the Baseball Hall of Fame. Gladys Gooding was the star behind the console there.
In 1960, White Sox owner Bill Veeck had an organ installed in the center field stands at Old Comiskey Park. Shay Torrent was the first organist to play at White Sox games, until 1967. But Faust Fis the star everyone knows, and has known for over half a century.
According to the Inside the White Sox official blog, organ music selections were fairly limited before Faust took over — the National Anthem of course, as well as "Charge," and "Take Me out to the Ballgame."
But Faust provided a new approach, and has gone down in history as the first ballpark organist to incorporate pop and rock songs into ballgame playlists. She engaged fans by playing to crowds' moods and in reaction to what they were seeing on the field. She also introduced personalized music themes for the White Sox players — "Jesus Christ Superstar" for slugger Dick Allen in 1972, "I Feel the Earth Move" for Frank Howard, "He's So Shy" for Harold Baines.
Faust is also known as the first ballpark organist to incorporate pop and rock songs into ballgame playlists. Perhaps the most famous among them is a 1969 pop hit that was in regular rotation on oldies radio for many years — performed by studio musicians and credited to an initially fictitious band called Steam. Faust began playing "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" as a taunt to opposing teams in 1977 — and even won a gold record from Mercury Records for repopularizing the old hit.
Faust is set to say hello again
This story is not about "goodbye." It's about hello — again. Faust was thrilled when the Sox called her to be part of the team's historic 125th anniversary.
"I just couldn't be more excited about returning," Faust said. "I think I'll feel a little 'stressured' that first day — a little stress, a little pressure."
But she's not that worried about it.
"I'd say pretty much, it's like riding a bike," Faust said.
During her run as White Sox organist, Faust almost never missed a game.
"In the 41 years that I was there, I missed five games — and that was due to the birth of our son, Eric," said Faust.
Eric practically grew up at the ballpark. His first step was captured in photos at a family picnic outing in center field at Old Comiskey Park.
While Faust has been retired from the White Sox since the 2010 season, by no means has she covered up her organ and called it a day. She has played some minor league games over the last 15 years.
Nevertheless, this is Faust's first performance at a Major League Baseball game since her retirement.
Faust will play the old favorites — including local favorites like "Sweet Home Chicago." But there will also some new songs for her repertoire, when she returns for her first game back at the organ console on Sunday, May 11.
"Girl on Fire" by Alicia Keys may be on the playlist as a nod to moms in honor of Mother's Day. Son Eric will be there for the occasion.
Faust does not read sheet music. Instead, her system involves handwritten papers and a great ear.
It is a recipe for magical sounds that have been enjoyed by the likes of Sammy Davis Jr.; legendary broadcaster Harry Caray, who called games for the White Sox before switching to the Cubs; and Andy the Clown of, "Come on, you White Sox!" chant fame. And of course, generations of Sox fans have enjoyed those magical sounds too.
"I just want to say how excited I am to be back with the fans again, and watch ballgames," Faust said.
In retirement, Faust, an animal lover, has spent much of her time with donkeys. She currently has a miniature donkey named Gigi, and a new addition to the stable this year named Jackpot.
And who could forget Faust's dog, Cooper. He howls with delight as Faust plays "Take Me out to the Ballgame."
"He'd get a treat. Pretty soon, he associated that song, 'Take me out to the Ballgame," with a treat — and before you know it, he was barking along with it," Faust said. "He sleeps through everything else I do."
Faust earned a spot in the Baseball Reliquary Shrine of the Eternals in 2018 for her contributions to baseball. She also has a ring from the White Sox' 2005 World Series championship.
Faust will be playing at Rate Field during White Sox games on the following dates:
Sunday, May 11, vs. Miami.
Sunday, May 25, vs. Texas. The first 7,500 fans who enter the ballpark for the game will receive a Charles Comiskey Bobblehead.
Sunday, June 8, vs. Kansas City. The first 7,500 fans who enter the ballpark for the game will receive a Ray Durham Bobblehead.
Sunday, June 29, vs. San Francisco. The first 7,500 fans who enter the ballpark for the game will receive a Luis Aparicio Bobblehead.
Sunday, July 13, vs. Cleveland. The first 10,000 fans who enter the ballpark for the game will receive a Buehrle, Garland, García & Contreras Bobblehead.
Sunday, August 10, vs. Cleveland. The first 7,500 fans who enter the ballpark for the game will receive an Ozzie Guillén Bobblehead.
Meanwhile, Faust gave CBS News Chicago a little preview of her playlist.
First, "Take Me out to the Ballgame." While it later became a Cubs tradition, published reports note that Harry Caray originally sang the standard during the seventh-inning stretch at White Sox games as Faust played, beginning in 1977. Here, Cooper howls along.
Next, "Dance the Night," by Dua Lipa, an example of a new song that Faust will be adding to her repertoire for her comeback.
Next, the Chicago classic "Lake Shore Drive" by Aliotta Haynes Jeremiah.
And of course, "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye."
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Their total paid attendance for the three-game series: 19,768. – Classy gesture from Hall of Fame pitcher Randy Johnson who told the Seattle Mariners that he'd be honored to have his jersey No. 51 retired, but only if it occurs next season so that it doesn't interfere with Ichiro Suzuki's Hall of Fame celebration this year. He also wanted to remind Mariners fans that he did not leave Seattle on his own volition but was traded to Houston in July 1998. He signed a four-year, $52 million contract with the Diamondbacks in the offseason where he won four consecutive Cy Young awards and a World Series. It's considered perhaps greatest return on a multi-year contract in free agency history. 'I was traded," Johnson said. 'I didn't walk away. I think that is something I hear from fans still occasionally." – Eyeglass wear companies should be beating down Dodgers third baseman Max Muncy's door for advertisements. Muncy was hitting .180 with no homers, four RBIs and a .531 OPS in the first 28 games of this season before he tried wearing glasses. Since the glasses? He's hitting .268 with nine homers, 31 RBIs and a .991 OPS. – New York Yankees reliever Mark Leiter Jr. can't stop raving about the impact Aaron Judge has had on him and everyone in the Yankees' clubhouse. 'He's unbelievable,'' Leiter said. 'He's the best player on the planet, but he's even a better person. You already know how good he is as a player, but he blows you away what kind of person he is, what kind of leader he is, and makes every single guy in the room feel good. Pretty special human being. It's an honor to be his teammate, to be honest with you." – Does any bullpen have more fun than the Minnesota Twins? When they arrive, according to the Minnesota Star Tribune, they pull out cans of Red Bull, gather around in a circle, drop to one knee, with bullpen catcher Frank Nigro then pouring a shot of Red Bull into their mouths. Nigro proceeds by throwing empty cans against the wall before a fiery speech. – How historic was the D-backs' 11-10 victory over Atlanta when trailing 10-4 entering the ninth inning last week? It was the first time Atlanta lost a game when leading by six or more runs after eight innings since July 17, 1973, spanning 766 games. And it was the first time Arizona had a comeback of six or more runs in the ninth in franchise history having gone 0-419. – Boston Red Sox starter Walker Buehler, who signed a one-year, $21.05 million contract, realizes that he hardly has lived up to expectations with his 4-4 record and 5.18 ERA in 10 starts. 'This organization put a lot of faith in me this offseason," Buehler told reporters after lasting just two innings in his last start, 'and I've been [expletive] embarrassing for us." Then again, how do you think fellow Red Sox starter Lucas Giolito feels? He signed a two-year, $37 million deal after the 2023 season, missed all of last season after elbow surgery, and now is 1-1 with a 6.42 ERA, pitching just 32 ⅔ innings in seven starts. – Pretty cool for former Angels starter Clyde Wright, who began coaching Kyle Hendricks when he was 12 years old, to be at Angels Stadium to congratulate Hendricks on winning his 100th career game Friday night, matching Wright. 'I told him, it only took 23 years after our first lesson," Hendricks told reporters. – The Dodgers have become a traveling secretary's worst nightmare this season, much less manager Dave Roberts. They have made 22 transactions through the first week of June, and have already employed 13 different starting pitchers. They have had 20 pitchers go on the injured list this season, and still have 15 on it. Their bullpen leads the major leagues in innings pitched (270) while their starters have thrown the second-fewest innings. 'Not ideal," Roberts says. – The Yankees, who are pulling away in the AL East, now are expected to have slugger Giancarlo Stanton back for the first time this season. Stanton is scheduled to undergo a rehab assignment next week. – No one is winning at small ball more than the San Diego Padres. They have won an MLB-leading 22 games this season when scoring no more than two runs, with 11 shutout victories. – Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh, who has an MLB-leading 24 home runs, also has become the first to volunteer for the Home Run Derby this year in Atlanta. Raleigh is halfway to Kansas City Royals catcher Salvador Perez's record for homers by a catcher with 48 in 2021. – Don't look now, but here come those homeless Tampa Bay Rays once again. They entered Saturday with a 13-3 record since May 20 with the pitching staff yielding a 1.96 ERA. They have held opponents to four or fewer runs in 17 consecutive games. If the season ended today, they would be in the postseason, but with no idea where they'd play their home games. – Max Fried is doing his best Ron Guidry impersonation since joining the Yankees. He's 8-1 with a 1.78 ERA in 13 starts this season, and is 21-3 with a 1.67 ERA in 30 career starts against the American League. In Guidry's first 13 starts of the 1978 season, he was 10-0 with a 1.57 ERA, finishing the season with a 25-3 record and 1.74 ERA. – Everyone is telling Atlanta ace Spencer Strider that he needs to be patient just four starts into his return after undergoing elbow surgery 14 months ago. Sorry, but Strider, 0-4, 5.68 ERA, refuses to listen. 'I don't have the ability to be patient, honestly," Strider told reporters this week. 'We've got to win games, and when it's my turn to pitch, I've got to give us a chance to win. If I can't do that, then I don't know what value I'm providing, besides reps.' Remember when Phillies starter Jesus Luzardo was cruising along with a 5-0 record and a 2.25 ERA in his first 11 starts this season, giving up a total of just 19 runs? Well, he has given up 20 earned runs in his last two starts alone, recording just 17 outs. It is the most runs given up in back-to-back starts by a Phillies' pitcher since Bill Hubbell in 1922. – Veteran reliever Craig Kimbrel's return to Atlanta lasted all of one game. He was DFA'd after giving up one hit and one walk in one inning. – Just when you think it's impossible to make Shohei Ohtani look bad at the plate, along comes Mets starter David Peterson. Ohtani's last seven at-bats against Peterson: five strikeouts and two singles. – How did Fredi Gonzalez celebrate his return to Atlanta as the third base coach after being dismissed as manager in 2016? Gonzalez and manager Brian Snitker drove to see their mentor, Hall of Fame manager Bobby Cox, at his home in Atlanta. – Kansas City Royals rookie Jac Caglianone, who made his major-league debut this week in St. Louis certainly has had a whirlwind tour these past 12 months. He has played for the Florida Gators, Quad City River Bandits, Surprise Saguaros, Northwest Arkansas Naturals, Omaha Storm Chasers and now the Royals. – The Cincinnati Reds may want to start lobbying to be placed in a different division away from the Milwaukee Brewers when MLB undergoes realignment. The Reds have lost 20 of their last 25 games to the Brewers in Cincinnati, and 30 of 40 games overall. – There's nothing more entertaining than listening to Angels manager Ron Washington's pre-game media sessions, and he delivered a beaut this past week in Boston. 'I still have my passion because there's so much youth in the game today and they need guys like me," Washington, 73, said. 'We are a dying breed. I'm not talking about the managing part of it. I'm talking about trying to get them to understand how the game is played, how you come out here every day and give your best, how you become a great teammate. 'All of that stuff is part of baseball, but the glamour stuff has taken over. Back in the day, if you hit a home run and you do what these kids do today, you'd get one in the neck. And everybody in baseball knows it was going to happen.' And just how long does Washington plan to stick around? 'It's simple, I'm going to leave the game of baseball when Ron Washington is ready,' he said. 'Think I'm going to let some 20- or 19- or 22-year-old run me out of the game of baseball? What I do, I'll adjust. I'm not going to change who I am. When I feel like I can't do that, then I'll go home.'' Follow Nightengale on X: @Bnightengale
New York Times
5 hours ago
- New York Times
The ‘aura' of Kyle Tucker as Cubs try to maximize a unique season
The Chicago Cubs had a nice group of hardworking players and a competent coaching staff to keep everything organized. Between a weak division and an extra wild card, the floor would be playing meaningful September games at Wrigley Field, which draws around 3 million fans annually, regardless of the club's performance. Breaking through that 83-win ceiling, however, required a catalyst. Advertisement Kyle Tucker's production, thus far, can be measured in traditional counting stats such as home runs (12), stolen bases (16) and RBIs (40). By OPS+, he is roughly 60 percent better than the average major-league hitter. His WAR is worth 2.7, according to FanGraphs, with 98 games remaining. It's more than the numbers, though. What his presence means to this particular group is intangible and undeniable. 'There's rah-rah energy,' Cubs shortstop Dansby Swanson said. 'There's intensity, energy. And then there's some guys that being who they are, exudes (their) own aura and confidence.' Tucker being Tucker gives the Cubs a different energy and some understated swagger. There is no exact formula for clubhouse chemistry, other than winning remains the primary ingredient. But it was clear the Cubs, in recent years, were desperately missing that singular force. Whether managed by David Ross in 2023 or Craig Counsell last year, the Cubs put together winning months, extended stretches when they looked like a real playoff contender. And when things went wrong, they continued to play with effort and focus, keeping the public griping and finger-pointing to a minimum. By and large, these are earnest players who believe in process, care about their craft and prepare intently. Which is all great, but … 'You got to go out and be a dog at 7 o'clock when the lights are on,' Cubs pitcher Jameson Taillon said. 'When you're facing aces, they don't give a s— what kind of work you did before the game. It's about swinging at the right pitch at the right time and having that presence in the box and having that slow heartbeat. There is a little bit of a lesson to be had there for everyone. We got to go out there and do it when the moment matters.' In what passes as a playoff atmosphere for June, Taillon shut down the American League's best team for seven innings during Saturday's 6-1 win over the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park. The Cubs are 40-24 with a clear direction for the July 31 trade deadline — a year after they notched their 40th win on the Fourth of July and then simultaneously executed buy and sell deals. Advertisement Those Cubs could not contain last May's rough patch, which turned into a two-month spiral. The 2023 Cubs could not pull themselves out of a September nosedive, when their 90th percentile playoff odds plunged to zero. Within the clubhouse and the front office, the Cubs acknowledged they needed more star power, someone who could bail out pitchers with a three-run homer, take pressure off other hitters and limit the team's down periods. Tucker, a low-key personality with a dry sense of humor, makes the 162-game grind a little more manageable. Seiya Suzuki, for example, has cited Tucker as an influence on his more decisive approach. Tucker's red-hot start to the season gave Pete Crow-Armstrong more breathing room to work through his offensive struggles and find what's turning him into an MVP candidate. clutch, tuck. — Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) June 7, 2025 Though so many things have gone right for this first-place team, the Cubs have also shut down two All-Star pitchers, cycled through three closers and weathered a brutal opening schedule. 'Especially in our sport, the ability to show up the same way every day is harder than it looks,' Counsell said. 'That's one of the things that Kyle's really good at. We get so many results thrown at us. There's a daily result. There's the in-game, multiple results for hitters. To not let those results kind of skew your preparation or cloud it in any way — guys really respect that. And they admire it. Because it's hard to do. The emotion of failure hurts everybody. It hurts all of us.' Tucker, though, doesn't seem to let anything bother him, quoting the legendary manager he once had with the Houston Astros: 'Dusty Baker would always say, 'If you're going to show up, you might as well win.'' 'We kind of keep that attitude,' Tucker said. 'You don't want to just show up to go through the motions and lose games. We try to come out here and support each other and do what we can to win games for this team and the fans.' Advertisement In terms of preparation, Tucker sort of does his own thing, taking a minimalist approach. During spring training, Counsell told reporters they would rarely see Tucker hitting on the field. Counsell also joked the hitting coaches would love Tucker because he's extremely talented and won't wear them out in the batting cage. At the same time, Tucker quickly added to the team's sense of camaraderie. 'Tuck's always on the music and stuff like that, always interacting on the bus rides and the planes,' Taillon said. 'He's definitely got a very cool confidence to him while not being a cocky, stuck-up dude. There is a little bit of: 'I don't need to take 100 swings when I can take 20 really good ones.'' Tucker's outlook reminds Taillon of a certain All-Star pitcher he used to work with in New York. 'Gerrit Cole was like that,' Taillon said. 'I watched him throw five-pitch bullpens, sometimes, if he accomplished what he wanted: 'That's the feeling I've wanted. I wanted to nail my down-and-away fastball. I'm done. I'm good.' It could be 88 miles an hour. It doesn't matter. There's confidence in knowing what you need and knowing the work you need to do.' Now there is no wait until next year for the Cubs and Tucker. When a superstar is this close to free agency, and his team is on pace to win around 100 games, the outcomes are never guaranteed. Going big at the trade deadline is the only option. What looks like a magical season needs to be maximized. Cubs officials demonstrated that sense of urgency when they acquired Tucker in a blockbuster trade with the Astros, giving up 14 possible years of club control over Cam Smith, Isaac Paredes and Hayden Wesneski for a potential rental player. On some level, then, this season would become a long recruiting presentation. So far, so good. 'In spring training, I kind of started to realize how good of a team that we had collectively,' Tucker said. 'We got a lot more games to see that through. But we've had a really good start, both pitching-wise, defense and offensively. If we can keep those things going, I think we'll be in a good spot at the end of the year.'
