Latest Post | Last 10 Posts | Archives
Previous Post: *** UPDATED x2 - GOMB, COGFA stand by projections *** Rauner issues his own stopgap deficit projection
Next Post: Rate Munger’s first TV ad
Posted in:
* Tribune…
Robin Ventura has managed the White Sox to five straight seasons without the playoffs, but the team reportedly will retain him beyond this season if he wants to return.
Ventura’s contract expires after this season, and many viewed him on the hot seat, as he has compiled a 373-432 record since being hired before the 2012 season. That includes a 76-81 record with five games to play this season.
But according to USA Today’s Bob Nightengale, the Sox front office refuses to blame Ventura for the club’s issues and will give him a new contract should he want to come back. […]
Over Ventura’s five seasons as manager so far, the Sox have suffered a late collapse to miss the playoffs in 2012 and lost 99 games in 2013, the fourth-most in franchise history. Unless they win the final five games of the season, they will finish under .500 for the fourth straight season. They have also failed to make the playoffs for the eighth straight year in 2016.
* The Question: Is it time for Ventura to go? Take the poll and then explain your answer in comments, please.
posted by Rich Miller
Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 3:10 pm
Sorry, comments are closed at this time.
Previous Post: *** UPDATED x2 - GOMB, COGFA stand by projections *** Rauner issues his own stopgap deficit projection
Next Post: Rate Munger’s first TV ad
WordPress Mobile Edition available at alexking.org.
powered by WordPress.
Is this one of those Internet polls where I can vote 1000 times? Boy, does Ventura need to go.
Comment by Keyrock Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 3:13 pm
Best record in the AL….the Texas Rangers…..just saying
Comment by Doug Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 3:17 pm
Voted NO. Cubs fan!
Comment by Big Muddy Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 3:18 pm
As a Cubs fan, I could’ve said no. But I have a lot of friends who are Sox fans and y’all deserve better. Should probably rid themselves of Kenny too
Comment by Joe Bidenopolous Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 3:20 pm
You bet, should a been gone 2 years ago.
Paraphrasing: Because…Reinsdork.
Comment by sal-says Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 3:20 pm
Keeping him signals management does not care about winning.
Comment by Last Bull Moose Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 3:20 pm
This team needs to be broken down and rebuilt. Trade everyone except Anderson and Rodon. Get prospects. Robin is not the guy to lead this project.
Comment by Red Ranger Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 3:21 pm
Exactly Last Bull Moose. You think attendance was bad this year…wait until next year.
Comment by Red Ranger Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 3:22 pm
Voted Yes. If he comes back, I’m leaving.
Comment by Ducky LaMoore Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 3:30 pm
Blame the front office and ownership for refusing to rebuild the team.
Comment by Anonymous Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 3:31 pm
Voted yes. Not a Sox fan, but if I were, it would be unacceptable to me. How Williams and Hahn have kept their jobs remains a mystery.
Comment by Davos Seaworth Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 3:31 pm
==Keeping him signals management does not care about winning.==
I agree. It’s hard to figure out what ownership and management care about with this team. With attendance as bad as it is, why spend any money at all. Dump everyone worth anything and commit to a full rebuild. Yet here they are, they’ll make one big trade, keep payroll around 100M and possibly flirt with .500 again next year.
Comment by Sox Fan Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 3:33 pm
Yes, I wanna see him go — no manager or coach in any sport should survive four straight losing seasons.
But Ventura is not the Sox’ biggest problem, it’s a front office that has been stunningly poor at developing position players.
Aaron Rowand is the last White Sox non-pitcher to be drafted and developed into an all-star caliber big leaguer (he was picked in 1998.) They haven’t scouted, signed and developed a successful Latin American position player since Carlos Lee, who debuted in 1999. (Jose Abreu and Alexei Ramirez don’t count. They signed major league contracts, they weren’t developed by the Sox’ system.)
Time to clear out the White Sox-lifers in the front office, not just the dugout.
Comment by Bill C. Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 3:33 pm
Voted “No” because Robin’s time to go was at least a season ago.
Comment by Dirty Red Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 3:39 pm
Definitely time for him to go. The paragraphs quoted above say it all.
BTW, I’m a Cubs fan, and I wouldn’t be happy if he were managing my team.
Comment by Tim Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 3:41 pm
Yes. A .463 winning percentage will get you fired in most all sports. Maybe the Sox should first hire Nolan Ryan as GM, and then Ryan and Ventura can hash this out just like this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIZB9O24BEE
Comment by Steve Rogers Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 3:42 pm
Five years!!! I was ready to say give him one more season, I had no idea it’s been that long. I don’t care if the problems are his fault or not, this McCaskey says 5 years is too long.
Comment by siriusly Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 3:44 pm
They need to blow up the team and start from scratch, like the Cubs and Phillies.
With the club he’s been given, there’s no real basis to evaluate Ventura.
Kenny Williams and Rick Hahn are the real issue. Firing Ventura is equivalent to arranging deck chairs on the Titanic.
Comment by Truth be told Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 3:46 pm
Definitely got to go, Hahn gone, Kenny gone, Shields if you can. New rule, No National League Bust Outs
Comment by Nail Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 3:46 pm
Yes he definitely needs to go. He doesn’t add anything - except for fan apathy.
Meanwhile, in other news, the Cubs announce a new five-year extension with Theo Epstein.
Comment by Some Guy Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 3:49 pm
It’s time to bring in Paul Konerko
Comment by MissingG Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 3:50 pm
Yes. It’s time to go and Robin will go. I think he will say he made the choice himself to move on and the Sox will give him that opportunity for dignity and face-saving. To those of us who have been fans for a while he will always be a Sox star from his playing days. Being a not-so-good manager doesn’t change that.
Comment by Responsa Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 3:52 pm
no - more aggressive managing this past year; he’s finally getting it. Front office disappointed — the replacement as catcher as a better offense weapon has a worse batting average than the guy he replaced! Will they gel next year? Perhaps — the core team seems solid.
Comment by Capitol View Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 3:52 pm
“Is it time for Ventura to go?”
Voted Yes.
Managers own.
– MrJM
Comment by @MisterJayEm Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 3:53 pm
It’s time. He’s overmatched in almost every contest and clearly cannot motivate players to perform to - or above - the capabilities. He’s also not good with the fans and isn’t doing anything to bring more fans to the park.
And, if I have to watch the video of Nolan Ryan kicking his a$$ one more time, I think I’ll be sick.
Comment by Anon Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 3:55 pm
Fire Williams and Hahn. Make the new GM’s first job to hire a new manager. Second job is a new head of player development…Thanks Rich for letting us dream.
Comment by Bogey Golfer Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 3:55 pm
Yes. Time for a change. If he was going to show that spark like the best managers do to indicate he is a winner, he would have done it by now.
Comment by Ron Burgundy Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 3:56 pm
My heart says no…but I voted Yes. He’s a guy who I wish would have done much better. I hope he chooses to leave on his own and stay around in another capacity. I’ve always liked him a lot.
Comment by A guy Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 3:56 pm
===It’s time to bring in Paul Konerko===
Please no. And no to Jim Thome and AJ. If those guys want to be managers, let them learn on the job somewhere else, or as an assistant with the Sox. If the person has to have Sox ties, bring in someone who’s learned from the best (Dave Martinez).
Comment by Sox Fan Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 3:59 pm
The bullpen was a big problem this year. Ok, and Shields. Is that a Cooper thing? Or a GM thing? Need a new closer.
Comment by Amalia Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 4:01 pm
NO NO NO, a thousand times NO. Only a club with no sense of loyalty would fire a manager after only a half dozen years of ineptitude.
Comment by Madigan's Lapdog Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 4:03 pm
What??? They’ve won 101 games with 5 more to go. Oh wait, that’s the other Chicago baseball team.
Comment by Cubs in '16 Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 4:03 pm
Great third baseman, good guy, and lousy manager.
Comment by Veil of Ignorance Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 4:06 pm
I agree with - Sox Fan -
I love Pauly, but no more White Sox-lifers please! The dugout and front office are full of them. Jerry Reinsdorf’s greatest asset — loyalty — is becoming a liability. Time for new blood and a new approach.
Comment by Bill C. Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 4:07 pm
Maybe Drake LaRoche is available. Adam Eaton says he’s a great leader — and he’s probably 15 now!
It’s an obvious yes. Robin never wanted the job and it’s showed. He never should have taken the job if he wasn’t going to give it everything.
You can be a sleepy, hands-off manager when you’re team hustles every day but that certainly hasn’t been the case of White Sox teams in recent years.
The players are fundamentally unsound and undisciplined at the plate, in the field and on the basepaths.
A couple of weeks ago, I watched Adam Eaton blow a bubble as he dogged it jogging after a routine line drive he should have had easily. Billy Martin, Bobby Cox or Joe Torres would have removed him from the game and sent him home, right then.
Ozzie is an obvious choice, and he’s a great game manager. He’s loose in the clubhouse, but you better respect the game on the field, or he’ll let it rip, no matter who you are. He took on Frank Thomas as a player and a manager, and that’s the best player in White Sox history.
There are plenty of players on this Sox game who should be playing a little scared.
Comment by wordslinger Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 4:09 pm
I voted yes but it really doesnt matter if Kenny Williams is running the team. Oswego Willy could come in and do just as good a job with sub par talent that team has been provided.
Comment by Regular democrat Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 4:18 pm
What we really need is a new owner. In retrospect, maybe that should’ve been the question.
Comment by Rich Miller Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 4:19 pm
Rich Miller: you win best post of the day.
Comment by GA Watcher Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 4:22 pm
Good points being made about no OJT with former beloved players. Cubs did not do it with Ryno and got their guy. Sox owners could learn a thing or two.
Comment by Madigan's Lapdog Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 4:25 pm
As your article states — 4th season under .500. That’s enough justification to launch him right there.
Comment by Carrolllaw Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 4:27 pm
I voted yes but the real problem is ownership. It is all about hiring the friends of the owner and those who will not disagree with Williams. It has become a sad mess as Reinsdorf has gotten older, it seems to me.
Comment by blogman Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 4:29 pm
As a Cub fan, I hope they keep him forever.
Comment by Michael Westen Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 4:33 pm
Rich, great stuff these last few weeks. This Post is another continuation on why this is the place to hang.
To the Post,
Simply put…
The only way you keep Ventura is if the program going forward. If the program, the way to build this club, is on track, you keep Ventura for continuity. The question then becomes, “Is that where the Sox are?”
Dunno.
Now… the only way Robin should want to return, (not angry, but want, “desire”, excited to return) is if his handling of the ball club in the clubhouse or “in game” works, with the growth of the ball club.
Again? Dunno.
I vote… “No”
Comment by Oswego Willy Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 4:36 pm
Teams win when either lightning strikes (1986 Bears and 2005 Sox) or, more reliably, when a system is put in place that breeds winning. This must include the coach/manager. Look at the 90s Bulls, the recent Hawks teams, and the current Cubs system.
The Bears coaching/GM carousel and the Sox hiring of Reinsdorf’s buddies (and now the Bulls hiring yahoos) demonstrate a keen lack of understanding of this (or more likely indifference as mentioned above).
Comment by Lefty Lefty Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 4:39 pm
==I love Pauly, but no more White Sox-lifers please!===
To add on to this. Ozzie and Robin were two of my favorites from those early 90’s team, only to develop a strong dislike for both as managers. I don’t want to have to do that with the next crop of my favorites.
Comment by Sox Fan Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 4:46 pm
I’d suggest a full rebuild and my Sox buddies agree.
I hope it goes nearly as well as my Cubbies’ rebuild. A couple years of pain, but a lifetime of hope.
Now if it were the Cards in this position, then I’d hope for a rebuild like the Bears.
Comment by Chicago_Downstater Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 4:54 pm
It’s time for a closeout sale. Mark everything down 25% and clear the decks for new inventory.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B-nZqlt5h7zTR2FVZl9tYU1ONHM/view?usp=drivesdk
Comment by Jimbo2 Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 4:59 pm
–Teams win when either lightning strikes (1986 Bears and 2005 Sox) –
No lightning strike with that Bears team. They were loaded with talent from drafts by Jim Finks and Jerry Vainisi.
The ‘83 draft alone yielded eight Super Bowl starters. The what-if? They passed on Dan Marino twice in the first round because they had drafted McMahon in the first round the year before.
Marino running that 80s Bears team? Ring after ring after ring.
Comment by wordslinger Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 5:02 pm
Forgot Farmer, take him too
Comment by Nail Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 5:08 pm
I’d say Yes, although I could live with No. Now, the GM on the other hand needs to find a new place to work…
Comment by The_Equalizer Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 5:11 pm
I am a huge Cubs fan. However, my father is a huge White Sox fan. I don’t want to see my father unhappy and just seeing the White Sox disrespect their fan base this way is just troubling. They will see losses at the turnstiles and ratings next year.
Comment by Rahm's Parking Meter Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 5:26 pm
Kenny has been trying (and failing) to capture lightning in a bottle since 2005. How he and Robin have stayed employed this long is remarkable.
Comment by Jocko Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 5:29 pm
Should clean house from the top down. Hire a new president of ops, let him choose a new GM and then let the GM hire a new manager. Seemed to work well on the North side.
Comment by a drop in Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 7:20 pm
As Rick Hahn said earlier this summer: the Sox are “mired in mediocrity.” Gee Rick and Kenny Williams, who is responsible for that?
Comment by John Etheredge Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 7:25 pm
Voted “No” because it is difficult to say if it is really Ventura’s fault given the Sox front office.
It is worth remembering that Reinsdorf managed to underachieve and foul up with managers such as LaRussa and Fregosi who went on to do good things elsewhere for other teams.
Comment by Anonymous Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 9:28 pm
Yes - Good Guy but does not have players.
Agree the ownership is the issue - How much do you need Jerry?
Comment by cannon649 Wednesday, Sep 28, 16 @ 9:29 pm
Voted yes, though honestly, its the people above him that are more responsible, since they refuse to develop a decent team of players.
Comment by goodbye Thursday, Sep 29, 16 @ 9:55 am