Turf Defended
"To the Sports Editor:
If Bill Pennington really visited Chicago (''Worse Than Cursed? A Legacy of Losing in Anonymity,'' April 3), he would have easily understood that there are many places to imbibe a beer in the neighborhood of Bridgeport near Comiskey Park (I still can't bring myself to call it ''The Cell'').
The watering holes just aren't located a short foul ball or home run away, as they are on the North Side, and the people of Bridgeport have always wanted it that way. Additionally, fans can tailgate in the parking lot before and after games; that does not occur outside Wrigley Field.
It is unfortunate that Pennington's article profiled one neighborhood as a backwater, juxtaposed with Wrigleyville, which supposedly shines as a beacon.
Joe Balitewicz  Chicago"