The current Chicago White Sox are actually named after their old crosstown rivals from the National League, the Chicago White Stockings (now the Cubs). The White Stockings, a successful early franchise, were so named because of the long white stockings they played in. Many of those early clubs, including the Hartford Dark Blues, St. Louis Brown Stockings, Cincinnati Red Stockings, and Providence Grays, took their names from their clothing. Sox owner Charlie Comiskey supposedly shortened the team name in order to make it easier to fit into newspaper headlines.
