The Chicago White Sox honored Bobby Jenks Monday night, three days after their former pitcher died of cancer at 44 years old.
The White Sox posted a tribute video and held a moment of silence for Jenks prior to Monday’s game against the Toronto Blue Jays, their first home game since Jenks died. Players donned a No. 45 patch on their jerseys to commemorate Jenks’ former playing number that they will wear for the remainder of the season.
Jenks announced in February that he had Stage 4 adenocarcinoma, a form of stomach cancer. He made the announcement from a hospital bed in Portugal during an interview with MLB.com. Jenks had moved to Portugal from the United States to be closer with his wife’s family.
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At the time, Jenks didn’t provide a prognosis, but said that he’d hoped to be able to attend the White Sox’ 20th anniversary celebration of their 2005 World Series championship. That celebration is scheduled for Friday, six days after Jenks’ death.
Jenks played seven MLB seasons, six of them with the White Sox. He was a rookie reliever on that 2005 championship team that swept the Houston Astros in the World Series. Jenks earned the White Sox’ closing job in 2006 in and held it down for five seasons. An All-Star in 2006 and 2007, Jenks was one of the hardest throwers of his generation whose fastball eclipsed 100 mph.
The White Sox honored their late former All-Star, Bobby Jenks Monday night. Jenks died of stomach cancer on Friday. (Ron Vesely/MLB Photos via Getty Images)
(Ron Vesely via Getty Images)
White Sox GM, former teammate, Chris Getz remembers Jenks
White Sox general manager Chris Getz is a former player who played two seasons with Jenks in Chicago. He spoke about Jenks prior to Monday’s game.
“He’ll be dearly missed,” Getz gold reporters pregame. “You know, I’m just happy that I was able to play with him, because he really was a special person. …
“Just a big heart. He was just this most fun-loving kid. And obviously a tremendous competitor.”
Jenks finished his MLB career with a single season as a reliever for the Boston Red Sox in 2011. He got into coaching and managing later in life.
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Jenks was the pitching coach for the collegiate summer league Princeton WhistlePigs in 2023. He served as the manager of the minor-league Windy City Thunderbolts in Crestwood, Illinois that same year.
Jenks is survived by his wife, Elini and his six children.
