The End of an Era

We all knew this was going to come sooner or later.

The Chicago White Sox, after much speculation, decided to release Ozzie from his contract yesterday, which means that he will more than likely become the next Florida (Miami) Marlins manager. Fittingly enough, Guillen ended his run with a 4-3 Sox victory over the Toronto Blue Jays.

In his managerial career on the South Side, Ozzie went 678-617, placing him third on the team's all-time managerial wins list, trailing only Al Lopez (840-650) and Jimmie Dykes (894-933). Among Sox managers with at least 400 or more wins, Ozzie is third in winning percentage (.524), trailing only Paul Richards (.529) and Al Lopez (.564). Guillen is also the only manager in Sox history to reach the postseason twice (2005 and 2008).

Even though this year wasn't entirely Guillen's fault, the aura surrounding the team was becoming toxic enough to the point where someone had to go, and that usually falls on the manager. I'll miss the fact that he was exactly what the team needed following the disastrous end to the Jerry Manuel era in 2003, when I started to believe for the first time that I would never see a White Sox world championship. Ozzie was brash, loud, opinionated and on top of all of that, he was a former Sox player who knew the franchise in and out. Jerry Manuel was a nice guy, but he was too laid back and too quiet for Chicago, and he was an outsider when he came in. Ozzie brought fire, energy and more importantly, attention to a franchise that was sorely lacking it. Not only that, he achieved something that no Sox fan ever imagined witnessing: a World Championship in 2005. Wire-to-wire regular season, 11-1 postseason, including a World Series sweep.

Throughout the long history of the White Sox, there have been plenty of great managers that have come through the South Side. However, Ozzie was able to do something that Al Lopez, Paul Richards, Jimmie Dykes, Gene Lamont, Jerry Manuel or Tony LaRussa couldn't do: bring a World Series trophy to Chicago.

Thanks for everything Ozzie, and best of luck to you in Miami! On a side note, let the speculation commence as to who will become the next White Sox manager. Personally, I'd rather not go the route of Tony LaRussa version 2.0.

Mercy...

Blowing a seven run lead on Saturday. Losing 18-2 yesterday. Having your GM and hitting coach go at each other. Having your manager plead for a contract extension near the end of a disappointing, lackluster season. Although Ozzie's plea occurred before the Detroit series, the 2011 season reached its nadir over the weekend, when the Sox could not muster a single win against the division-leading Tigers. What was more disappointing was how the Sox lost the last two games, in perhaps the most disappointing series I have witnessed since the 2003 season.

It goes without saying that blowing a seven run lead is inexcusable during any point in the season. However, you would expect a team fighting for survival to come back and put up a good fight in the next game. That didn't happen, as the Sox just rolled over and were pronounced dead at the scene following last night's game.

Now that this season is effectively over, the biggest question is no longer whether or not Ozzie Guillen stays. He's good as gone now. I am wondering if the entire coaching staff will be axed along with Ozzie. Since Walker was nearly fired on Friday, I cannot imagine him sticking around for too long, and the only people I see that would have a remote chance of returning would be first-base coach Harold Baines and possibly pitching coach Don Cooper. "Coop" is one of the more underrated pitching coaches in the game, and it would be a real shame if the Sox were to lose him. Nonetheless, he may be an unfortunate loss if the Sox go through a full cleansing of the the coaching staff.

Another person I am curious about is bench coach Joey Cora. He interviewed for the Brewers managerial position last year, and he will eventually get scooped up by a big-league club looking for a new manager. I wonder if that club is right there in the South Side? I do not know if he will have the same approach as Ozzie, but he will certainly be a lot quieter (and sadly, less entertaining).

All I know is that the Sox on the field are no longer worth following this season. They are listless, apathetic and honestly, only a handful of players look like they actually give a damn on the team right now. The real drama will unfold after the final out is made on September 28. Stay tuned.

The Strange Case of Ozzie Guillen: Should he stay or should he go?

Dealing with the question of whether or not a franchise icon should stick around is always difficult to approach. Often times, it's because objectivity is thrown out the window, and emotions begin to take control of the decision-making process. You want to show him the door, but how do you do it? After everything he has done for the franchise? Another side of you will think that "ah, it was just a mediocre year, many other teams/players would love to trade places with us. He's worth keeping around." However, where do you draw the line for accountability?

It has reached that point for Ozzie Guillen. Before I get into whether or not he should stick around, keep in mind that Guillen is a major figure in Sox history. He played shortstop for the them from 1985-1997, garnering a Rookie of the Year award in '85, along with a Gold Glove in 1990 and three All-Star appearances. His blue-collar work ethic endeared him to many fans on the South Side, and his temperament seemed like the perfect solution for the Sox's problems following the disappointing 2003 season, when the team parted ways with the laid-back Jerry Manuel. Ozzie was the perfect choice to manage the Sox because the team needed a fiery, aggressive manager and because he was a Sox guy, through-and-through. He understood the mindset of the fanbase and he knew Chicago.

His first season saw injuries to Frank Thomas and Magglio Ordonez, the major catalysts in their offense, and the team limped to an 83-79 finish. However, the Sox did the improbable in 2005, going wire-to-wire and sweeping the World Series, something only two other teams had ever accomplished in major-league history (the 1927 Yankees and the 1990 Reds were the others). The 2006 season began with a considerable amount of promise, as the team stormed to a 57-31 mark by the All-Star break. Unfortunately, the pitching staff was gassed by that point, and the team crumbled to a disappointing 33-41 second half record, finishing 90-72. They would miss the postseason.

Since then, the Sox have been largely mediocre, save for a miserable 2007 campaign in which they lost 90 games. They reached the postseason again in 2008, but nobody was mistaking that team for the 2005 Sox or even the 2000 team.

The accountability that a manager should have for his team's success (or lack thereof) is always tricky to ascertain. Really, the players are the ones who make the manager look smart. Do you think Tony LaRussa has all of the wins he does because he's an exponentially better manager than say, Bruce Bochy? No. It's because Tony always seems to have top-notch talent on his teams (i.e. Mark McGwire, Jose Canseco, Rickey Henderson, Bob Welch, Dave Stewart, Albert Pujols, Adam Wainwright, Chris Carpenter, Jim Edmonds, etc.). If you go back to Tony's Chicago years, you will find that they are largely unimpressive (except for 1983) because...wait for it....many of his players flat out stunk.

Which brings us back to the dilemma with Ozzie this year. It's easy for people to get on him for the team's lack of success this year. However, can Ozzie make Adam Dunn bat .300? Can Ozzie make Alex Rios hit they way he did last year? Could Ozzie have made his bullpen pitch better than it did to start the season, which is a major contributor to where the team is at now in the standings? A manager cannot go out there and make his players play out of their minds, and really, he is at the mercy of their performances. Ozzie is a great manager, and an even better motivator. Do you believe that the White Sox could have made the comeback they did in 2010 had Ozzie not been a good motivator and had given up on the team?

The Sox have also played decently since the middle of May, fighting back from what could have been the start to an awful year. Unfortunately, the team has not been able to get on an extended hot streak like they did last year to move into first. Is that Ozzie's fault? While I still believe he is a great motivator, you almost have to wonder if he is still getting through to his players. Was he simply dealt a bad hand with the group he has?

Despite his puzzling lineup decisions (Dunn hitting in the middle of the order?!), if the people who were expected to be key contributors actually came through, this wouldn't be an issue. If Dunn were on pace to hit at his career norms (.244 average, 38 homers, 96 RBIs according to Baseball Reference) and if Rios were to have a similar year as last year (.284 average, 21 homers, 88 RBIs, 34 steals) the Sox wouldn't just be in first, they would be running away with the division. Instead Dunn is having a historically bad season, and Rios is reverting to his apathetic style of play he had in his final years in Toronto. Also, the bullpen has a combined 17 blown saves this season, with many of them coming in the first two months of the season (see table below). You think if that number were cut in half, things wouldn't be considerably different with the state of this team? Thankfully, the bullpen stabilized itself after the first couple of months, and they have been nailing it down since.

	BSv 6
Jesse Crain	5
Sergio Santos	4
Matt Thornton*	4
Tony Pena	2
Will Ohman*	1
Chris Sale*	1
Brian Bruney	0
Gavin Floyd	0
Jason Frasor	0
Jeff Gray	0
Lucas Harrell	0
Philip Humber	0
Josh Kinney	0
Jake Peavy	0
Hector Santiago*	0
Zach Stewart	0
League Average
Team Total	17

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 9/1/2011.

Nonetheless, the combination of these unfortunate events has likely led Ozzie to lose his patience, which is probably further straining his relationship with GM Kenny Williams. Ozzie is already pressuring the team into extending him beyond 2012, threatening to leave if his wish isn't granted. A public plea for an extension with the team six games back in September will not earn you many supporters. The situation appears that's Ozzie's good as gone, but I'm not so sure another manager could do a better job. The decision to get rid of him is not as easy as some think it is, nor is it a cut-and-dry issue. However, if Ozzie stays or goes, I'm fine either way.

Well, that didn't take long...

Ozzie has responded this time to Jenks, and it was with the fury of an erupting volcano. With all that Ozzie and the organization has done for Bobby, I don't think Ozzie's comments were out of line at all. Hopefully this feud dies out during Spring Training for the sake of both parties, much like the Ozzie/Magglio Ordonez feud back in 2005.

Just let it go already.

Well, it seems as if someone just can't let bygones be bygones. Former Sox closer Bobby Jenks is continuing to disparage his former employer, saying that "a lot of the stuff with Ozzie and the front office gets old," among other things.

I've remained silent on this topic for a while, as Jenks made a statement earlier in the offseason about how he was "looking forward to playing for a manager who knows how to run a bullpen." For all of the times that Ozzie has made cringe-worthy, foot-in-mouth statements, does anybody find it interesting that he's the one who is looking better in this situation?

While I know Ozzie's son Oney called Jenks a "punk" after making his comments, Oney is no longer employed by the team, so it really shouldn't matter at this point what someone in Ozzie's family thinks about a player who is no longer on the team. However, I do not recall Ozzie even wasting all that much time to lash back at Jenks for his comments. Can you believe that Ozzie is actually taking the high road for once, and he's just trying to move on?

Jenks needs to seriously let go of whatever grudges he had with the Sox organization, and just concentrate on playing for the Red Sox. Besides, I don't necessarily agree with him criticizing the Sox, especially after Ozzie was loyal to a fault with him last year, in spite of his struggles closing out ballgames. Ozzie had plenty of other options he could have used to close out games, but he still stuck with Jenks, much to the consternation of many, myself included.

I'm not going to pretend to know what goes on inside of the clubhouse, but I can analyze and evaluate what I see Ozzie and the team doing on the field on a nightly basis. Judging from what I've seen and read since late 2005, Jenks should really be thanking the Sox organization for giving him the chance to succeed in the majors, rather than throwing barbs at them for the way they do things. Besides, if the drama with Ozzie and Kenny Williams is such a distraction, why isn't it affecting guys like Konerko, Buehrle and Pierzynski? If they are such a distraction, then why were the Sox able to lure Adam Dunn to Chicago, when he could have just as easily signed somewhere else? Why did reliever Jesse Crain leave the two-time reigning division champion Twins to join the Sox?

My point is that in spite of all of the drama surrounding this team, there is a measure of accountability that each player must live up to in the organization. If they aren't up to the task, they will easily find someone who is up to it, and they really don't care if they are hurting someone's feelings in the process. The demand for excellence is high within the Sox organization, and Jenks unfortunately was no longer living up to the standard of excellence the team has come to expect from him. It's strictly a business decision, but there's no need to criticize the organization who gave you the chance to succeed at the major league level.

He's baaaaaaccck! Well, sort of.

According to Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune, Sox manager Ozzie Guillen's contract option for 2012 was picked up by the White Sox today, as GM Kenny Williams announced the move at Sox Fest. This is great news, considering that the team won't have to deal with that question night in and night out during the course of this season, even if things should go sour (let's hope not).

Even though I don't necessarily agree with everything Ozzie says or does (and the same can go for GM Williams), I appreciate the amount of stability the two have brought to the team over the last seven years, and I appreciate even more their outspoken nature. Baseball has way too many stiffs giving the "company line" kind of answers, and I appreciate that whenever they offer their opinion on something, they are honest, and they do not hold back. Plus, these two have brought the Sox back to relevancy again, and I would hate to see a boring-ass manager like Jerry Manuel leading the Sox again.

I don't think anybody else could do a better job with the Sox than Guillen, and I am very happy to know that he'll be leading this team for at the very least all of next season. Hopefully.

Ugh...is this really how it's going to end?

It was another series loss for the Sox this weekend, and this time, it was at the hands of the lowly Kansas City Royals. After three lengthy extra inning games at Kauffman Stadium, it really stings when you lose two out of three to a team you are supposed to beat. It stings even more when you lose those games in the thick of a pennant race. As Ozzie Guillen told the Chicago Tribune after Sunday's loss, "it was a very horseshit roadtrip."

This weekend's series also represented the fifth consecutive series loss for the Sox dating back to early August. Their last series victory came way back on August 3-5, when they took three of four from the Tigers in Detroit. Since then, they have lost three out of four to Baltimore, four out of six against Minnesota (in two combined series), two out of three against Detroit and two out of three last weekend against Kansas City. They're 3-7 in their last ten games, while Minnesota is 7-3. Now with the Sox being 4.5 games behind the Twins entering tonight, one has to wonder how much the Sox have left in them.

It would be one thing if the Sox were losing series against teams like the Yankees, Rays and Rangers. However, in the five series they have lost, the Twins were the only team they faced that had a winning record. Since the Twins are the team they are battling against for the AL Central title, you think it would be beneficial to at least split the six games they played against them, right? Wrong. The Sox lost both series.

Let's face it, if you are unable to beat the Twins head-to-head, you better be able to beat up on the dregs of the American League to make up that ground you lost. Unfortunately, the Sox have not been able to do this. Every loss stings during the heat of a pennant race, especially when there is very little time left, but it stings even more when they are dropping games in bunches against horrible teams. Since the Sox begin a three game set tonight at home against Baltimore, let's hope that this series will mark the beginning of a turnaround. If the Sox cannot take two of three against Baltimore, this season might be over.

Keep up the good work, Ozzie!

If you were watching the World Series during last night's one hour and twenty minute rain delay, you got a big dose of Ozzie Guillen and his thoughts on the World Series so far. Even though the Series is not over yet, I have to commend Ozzie on the great job he has done on Fox's panel. He has given thoughtful analysis on players from both teams, and has provided outstanding insight into the world of managing during the World Series as well. Also, he has managed to make it to Game 4 without letting a cuss word slip, so I have to give him props for that as well.

There was one moment that I particularly enjoyed during last night's rain delay. It was when Chris Rose, Eric Karros, Mark Grace and Ozzie were all talking about how the World Series gives players the opportunity to live out part of their childhood dreams, or something of that nature. While they were talking, the camera proceeded to show pictures of Mark Grace and Eric Karros when they were twelve years old. When they were doing this, I was licking my chops in anticipation of the moment when they would show a little Ozzie on there, so I, along with the rest of the nation, could kindheartedly ridicule Ozzie on his youthful appearance. Once it got to the moment when you thought they would show Ozzie's picture, they did not show it. Ozzie, keeping the humor at an all-time high on there, would say that his family did not have a camera when he was that young, and that they did not even have uniforms for him when he was that young. If those words came out of the mouth of anybody else, it would have been depressing. However, since it came out of Ozzie's mouth, it was comedic gold.

Things became more hilarious after this. After explaining why there was not any pictures of him as a child featured on there, Ozzie would end up ridiculing Chris Rose. Ozzie set the whole stage up by telling Rose, "Chris, buddy, I have something for you to see." The cameras then revealed the picture of a dorky-looking, 12 year old Chris Rose in all of its awkward glory. Guillen, Karros and Grace would all end up taking their shots at Rose because of this.

Ozzie's decision to appear on Fox's pre-game and post-game panel has been a great one so far, and the viewers at home are benefitting from this. ¡Viva Ozzie Guillen y viva su leyenda!

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In other affairs, the Yankees won 8-5 last night to take a 2-1 Series lead. The Phillies would now have to send the Series back to New York for them to have a chance of winning it all. They are also going to need the bats of Ryan Howard and Raul Ibanez to wake up if they want to have a chance of winning it all, too. The two have combined to hit 5-25 in the Series ("good" for a .200 batting average), with no home runs and three RBIs. The pitcher that they will have to face will be no walk in the park, either, as CC Sabathia is slated to toe the rubber for the Yanks in Game 4. The Phillies will counter by sending Joe Blanton out to the hill. Both pitchers are making their second career World Series start. The Phillies better hope that Ibanez and Howard can wake up, and that Blanton can come through big with a good start, or else this series will be over faster than they can realize.

Hang on to your *&%$@#% butts, it's Ozzie Time!

Game 1 of the World Series is slated to begin at approximately 7:57 EST on Fox tonight. That pretty much means that the actual game itself will probably start around 8:30, once all of the pomp and circumstance that surrounds Game 1 of the World Series is finally complete. Also, considering how postseason games usually go, the game will likely end around midnight or 1 a.m., which means you are going to get roughly five hours of sleep if you are lucky. More often than not, you would probably eschew the pre-game show because it is just white noise, and you would probably say to hell with the post-game show because it is simply too damn late. Nonetheless, my friends, the pre-game and post-game show will be worth watching this year, because the one and only Ozzie bleeping Guillen will be on the show.

All Sox fans (myself included) know about Ozzie's loose cannon and his "tell it like it is" managerial style. In fact, Ozzie has had so many tirades in front of the media that most Sox fans can point out their favorite one, much like one would point out their favorite movie in a rental store. Whether it was the Ozzie vs. Magglio Ordonez showdown in 2005 or Ozzie's most recent tirade concerning his players watching too much football after an embarrassing loss (my personal favorite, by the way), one thing is for certain: if Ozzie is happy or upset, everybody knows. He won't give you the same manufactured response that most managers will give reporters after a good day or a bad one. Ozzie speaks from his heart, and he will tell you how he genuinely feels.

It is precisely for this reason why Fox's pre-game and post-game show will be considerably more interesting this year. Not because I expect Ozzie to drop a f-bomb over the air, but because he gives baseball fans want they want to hear. They want someone who is genuine, someone who speaks the truth and will not hold back. Somebody who will praise someone when it is deserved and offer criticism when it is deserved. Someone who has a deep passion for the game and wears it on his sleeve. Baseball could use more people like Ozzie Guillen. Tonight I will watch the pre-game and post-game show in their entirety not just because I am a Sox fan, but because I am a baseball fan who wants someone to just "tell it like it is." I have no doubt that Ozzie will not disappoint.