Chicago White Sox: 2005 World Series (Collector's Edition)
Not for Chicago White Sox fans only, this boxed set chronicles a World Series championship nearly a century in the making. The last time the White Sox won the World Series, in 1917, John F. Kennedy was born. Woodrow Wilson was president. Walt Disney graduated high school, and a first-class stamp was three cents.  The drama, with its All-Star roster of heroes both sung (American League Champion Series MVP Paul Konerko, World Series MVP Jermaine Dye, and Cinderella story, closer Bobby Jenks) and unsung (Ken Williams, who, incredibly, was not named General Manager of the Year), unfolds over seven discs: The deciding game 3 of the American League Division Series against the 2004 champions, the Boston Red Sox; the deciding game 5 of the American League Championship Series against the improbably named Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim; and the four-game World Series sweep of the Houston Astros. The bonus disc will be of more parochial interest, with team interviews, a replay of the final three outs of the series, the White Sox's triumphant homecoming, and player speeches at the official city celebration (the highlight: Paul Konerko presents team owner Jerry Reinsdorf with the ball Konerko caught for the final out of the World Series). Each game is presented complete, with no commercials.Each game-disc slipcase sports box scores, team stats, game conditions, attendance, and trivia (number of foul balls in game 2 of the World Series: 55). Inside are complete inning-by-inning summaries, with scoring highlighted in red.  Baseball purists can watch the games in real time (more than 18 hours in all!). The less patient can progress through inning chapters to such heroics as White Sox second baseman Geoff Blum's game-winning homer in the 14th inning of game 3 of the World Series, or shortstop Juan Uribe leaping into the stands to snag a foul ball for the second out in game 4. Though this set doesn't quite cover all the bases (all of the postseason games would have been nice), this Collector's Edition will thrill baseball fans with a sense of history. It will certainly make White Sox fans happy, but they'll be even more ecstatic if there's a sequel.--Donald Liebenson