👋 Good morning!

The Bishop of Rome is a Chicago-born White Sox fan.

Pope Leo XIV, born Robert Francis Prevost and raised in Dolton, taught math and science at St. Rita in the ‘70s.

His Holiness attended a World Series game on the South Side in 2005 and visited the Aurelio’s Pizza in Homewood last August.

What a time for Chicago Catholics. What a time for the Chicago White Sox.

But if one more person sends me the quip that Chicago got a pope before a 4,000-yard passer, I will lose my mind.

Amen.

– Patrick Norton

The Bears announced contracts for five of their eight draft picks, including first-round selection Colston Loveland. The club also released a full roster for rookie minicamp, which begins this morning at Halas Hall.

Below, you’ll find the Bears’ rookie minicamp roster:

While the list from the team says that jersey numbers are subject to change, the club did publish their draft class’s number selections in a separate post.

Great selections. Anybody giving Burden grief for No. 87 needs to realize the receiving legends he’s following in the blue and orange to don the number: Muhsin Muhammad, Tom Waddle…Jesper Horsted. Bears for life.

As for the rest of the camp roster, it’s nice to see Austin Reed and Theo Benedet included. Reed’s got an uphill battle ahead of him to stick around on the practice squad after the Bears added Case Keenum earlier this offseason, but he’ll get a nifty shot this weekend to showcase his talent to the new coaching staff.

Benedet’s in a similar spot, as he missed critical preseason play in his rookie year due to a groin injury sustained in the Hall of Fame Game.

If you listened to the CHGO Bears podcast this week, you’re already aware of former Tulane offensive lineman Vincent Murphy, who will be in minicamp for a tryout. Murphy has experience at all five spots on the offensive line.

I’ll be keeping an eye on Jonathan Kim, whom the Bears signed as an undrafted free agent ahead of the start of rookie minicamp. ALLCITY Draft Expert Fran Duffy identified the ex-Michigan State kicker as a potential UDFA who could legitimately compete for a spot on the 53-man roster later this year.

GO DEEPER: Check out Fran’s FULL report on the Bears’ UDFA class.

Q-uack Quack: Former Blackhawks head coach Joel Quenneville is back in the NHL after nearly four years away from the game following his firing from the Florida Panthers in 2021 due to his involvement in the Blackhawks’ abuse scandal from 2010.

On Thursday, Coach Q was introduced as the Anaheim Ducks’ newest bench boss.

Over 11 seasons, Quenneville accumulated a 452-249-96 record in 797 regular-season games with the Blackhawks, plus a 76-52 postseason record. Q’s 969 regular-season wins rank second all-time among head coaches, trailing Scotty Bowman by 275 victories.

Call Up: The Cubs are calling up Cade Horton from Triple-A Iowa to make his major league debut this weekend in New York against the Mets. Horton is the Cubs’ top pitching prospect and the No. 46 overall prospect in all of baseball.

Horton’s off to an excellent start in 2025, sporting just a 1.24 ERA in six starts with the I-Cubs. The 23-year-old is expected to take LHP Shota Imanaga’s spot in the rotation on Saturday after the Cubs’ ace was placed on the 15-day IL due to a hamstring strain suffered on Sunday against the Milwaukee Brewers.

In Memoriam: Former White Sox All-Star outfielder Chet Lemon died yesterday. He was 70 years old.

In seven years with the White Sox, Lemon played 785 games while slashing .288/.363/.451 and clubbing 73 home runs. The Sox sent Lemon to the Detroit Tigers in 1981, where he spent the final nine seasons of his career. He made his third-career All-Star team in 1984, helping the Tigers to a World Series championship later that season.

📺 CHGO Bears
2:00 on YouTube

📺 CHGO Blackhawks
2:00 on YouTube

📺 CHGO Bulls
4:00 on YouTube

⚾️ Cubs @ Mets
6:10 on Marquee

⚾️ White Sox vs. Marlins
6:40 on CHSN