Cubs, Sox and Equity

I'm one of those rare Chicagoans who really is a Cub and a Sox fan, with a slight edge to the Cubs (but a soft spot for the Sox as being the underdog). Nobody who knows MLB would translate the Sox fantastic start this season into a championship season of any sort. Reality check: this is still mid-May. That said, the Sox start got me thinking about the relative position of the two franchises. The Sox rise has been spiked by the Cubs lack of success this season. This weekend, more than any other, we're getting a glimpse of what type of support the Sox will have this season: 100,000+ advanced sales went in for the 4 game Sox-O's series. That was pretty impressive. What effect would a most successful Sox season have in closing the preceived gap between the two teams? Could the playing field literally be leveled? And a related issue: Many people view the North Side as the dominant, power side of town. Chicago gentrification, rampant on the North Side for an eternity, has spread to the South and West. The South Side is redeveloping in a way similiar to the North and the area around the Cell will probably be more like the area around Wrigley. I think people downplay the degree of North Side/South Side on the Cubs/Sox relationship. The growth of the South Side, the increase in disposable income, could affect relative popularity. Do you think that a South Side developing along the lines of the North, with more young folks, larger disposable incomes, etc., could create a new fan base for the Sox and make it more like the Cubs in time One disclaimer here: I am not, in any way, suggesting that the South Side renovation is going the way it should. I don't want to see the South Side become a clone of the North. Meanwhile, Chicago still graples with issues of race and, even more so, economic diversity, often with a noted lack of success. I don't have to be happy with the direction of South Side gentrification to be aware that it could have a positive effect on Sox attendance and support.>