The City Series has had some memorable managerial moments through the years, from Lou Piniella ripping broadcaster Steve Stone in a pregame rant to Ozzie Guillen kicking catcher Geovany Soto’s masks.
I’m not precisely certain the place Pedro Grifol’s “mea culpa” on Tuesday charges within the 26 years I’ve been protecting these interleague video games, however it was fascinating to listen to the White Sox supervisor take the blame for the underachieving methods of his workforce.
“There’s a ton of different components, and we’re addressing them all,” Grifol stated earlier than the sport in opposition to the Cubs. “All of them. There’s no stone unturned right here, consider me, with regards to us making an attempt to get this factor proper, making an attempt to complete sturdy and transfer on to subsequent season.
“There’s a style of baseball that we want to play. There’s a culture that we want to build. It hasn’t happened, and that’s on me. On me, nobody else. That’s on me.”
I’m certain many Sox followers would beg to vary. General supervisor Rick Hahn stated earlier this 12 months it’s all on him, and that appears to be the consensus opinion, besides for many who blame Hahn, Ken Williams and chairman Jerry Reinsdorf as a tag workforce.
But Grifol, who got here into his first season speaking about how various things can be after the disastrous 2022 marketing campaign led by Tony La Russa, was adamant that it was his fault.
“I’m the manager,” he stated. “I sat proper there in entrance of all people and informed all people we had excessive expectations and we have been going to get this factor finished. And we haven’t. I’m not going guilty this factor on anyone. It’s on me. And I’m definitely not going to take a seat right here earlier than or after or throughout a recreation and throw our gamers below the bus.
“I’m not going to do that. It doesn’t mean I’m not having difficult conversations with them. It just means I’m not going to sit here and tell you guys about it. But believe me, I don’t have my eyes shut and say, ‘Oh, we’re doing good.’”
One of the largest criticisms geared toward Grifol has been his reluctance to level out the truth that the White Sox should not good. But it’s encouraging to see he has acknowledged what everybody else already knew.
“This is not what I signed up for,” he continued. “So whether it’s personnel changes or whether it’s cultural changes or whatever the case may be, it’s going to happen. This is too good of an organization, too good of an owner for it not to happen. We’re in the process of that. And at the same time, we’re in the process of preparing to beat the Cubs tonight.”
I requested Grifol what he meant by “cultural changes.” What precisely is the issue with the Sox tradition?
“Everything around us,” he stated. “Cultural, fundamentals, the details, me, the staff, everybody. Everybody has to look at themselves in the mirror and reflect on, ‘Was I as good as I could be?’ Myself included. Was I as good as I could’ve been? Probably not. There’s a lot of things I would do differently. I’m not going to hide from that either. But we’re going to be headed in the right direction. We are headed in the right direction.”
Um, no. The Sox are headed within the mistaken path, which is why they want all of the adjustments Grifol was referring to.
If it looks as if half the workforce is on the commerce block, it’s solely as a result of lots of them should be gone, together with many of the bullpen, some starters, the catcher and some infielders. If the tradition is corrupted, then it seemingly goes again to the La Russa period, the place this notion of gamers not working laborious to keep away from accidents started. Grifol has continued it, enjoying Eloy Jiménez regardless of a groin challenge and telling him to not go 100%.
Nothing aggravates Sox followers greater than gamers not working laborious.
“It’s not like he’s playing through pain, he’s playing through discomfort,” Grifol stated. “And to some extent the place if he goes forward and provides us 100% down the road, it would develop into ache. The resolution right here is solely mine. The query I’ve to ask myself is, ‘Do I want him hitting fourth for us and utilizing his bat and his offensive production?’ Or do I would like him working laborious down the road?
“In a perfect world, I want to see both. But we’re not in a perfect world right now. I said it then, I’ll say it again here, I choose the bat over his legs. That’s my decision. The day before, he had a good day, he hit a home run, had a base hit. He helped put us in a position to win that ballgame.”
It would appear as if Jiménez’s long-term well being is extra essential than successful a recreation once you’re trailing the division chief by double-digits, however hey, he’s making an attempt. At some level perhaps he must shut them down. On Tuesday each Jiménez and Andrew Vaughn have been within the lineup.
“Vaughn, he’ll be limping around a little bit,” Grifol stated. “He’s going to be playing through a bone bruise, so you won’t see him go 100% down the line. But again, I choose his bat.”
The bat has been chosen. Long dwell the bat.
And for Grifol, a brand new problem quickly awaits when the sell-off is over and the change of tradition begins.
()
Source: www.bostonherald.com