Let's begin today's adventure with a very short spelling bee. Your kid is in second grade and is asked to spell the word "socks". He or she doesn't hesitate or ask to use it in a sentence. Out it comes: S-O-X. Sorry kid, take a seat. So how come the White and the Red are spelled wrong the teacher is asked.
OK, KIDS, here comes the lesson. In the late 1800's baseball teams had names like Blue Stockings, Brown Stockings, and Red Stockings. Shortening the nickname seemed logical. Charlie Comiskey named his team the WHITE SOX in 1901. The RED SOX took that S-O-X thing in 1907.
The shortened version of socks was, many believe, first seen in descriptions of games written by writers covering games for the CHICAGO TRIBUNE. The Red Sox had also been known as the Plymouth Rocks and the Beaneaters. Red Sox was an improvement. The White Sox became the Black Sox when some of the guys threw the World Series in 1919 and many on the South Side have called them the SUXX when things go in the tank.
The Astros just saw the RED and won just one of 4. They are now seeing the WHITE and are 1-0 with 2 to go. Houston doesn't want the first part of it's nickname shortened.