Chris Getz to take over player development

[caulfield12]

And until I mentioned him, you have never heard of him. How many of their draft picks are on their roster?

 

How come you never mentioned Capra?

 

They are both cogs in a machine, one effective (the Cubs), the other badly in need of a replacement or complete overhaul.

 

There's simply no need (to waste time) to pick on Capra or Steverson when JR, KW, Hahn and Bell all need to go.

 

It's like Wells Fargo firing all their marketing people and bank cashiers to protect the three top leaders who are most responsible.

 

Finally, the majority of minor league columns tend to be puff pieces (milb.com, etc.), so it's really hard to determine what's going on because those types of problems will never be pointed out to someone from outside the "family" in a meaningful way, at least not until that person has already left the organization, and even then, it's more intimations and hints and reading tea leaves to sort through and divine.

Edited October 17, 2016 by caulfield12

[Dick Allen]

There is no replacement for executive experience, of which Getz has zero. This isn't a job like MLB hitting coach where you could argue experience isn't really necessary it's more about gravitas and ability to work with huge egos and get the best out of them.

 

As Director, he will be responsible for the entire organization of the minor league instructional setup or by extension the people he hires will. Making those decisions will be the most important things he does. There is nothing in his resume that suggests he'll be a good executive and as anyone that has run a business can tell you it really doesn't matter how prepared or smart you think you are experience is by far the best teacher. Experience with your own decision making really.

 

It's just a s***ty hire from a s***ty management team.

He is still under Buddy Bell, who is under Rick Hahn who is under Kenny Williams who is under Jerr Reinsdorf. He may have a director title but he is still an assistant in reality. The buck doesn't stop on his desk. And he has 2 years experience with the Royals. He went to Wake Forest and Michigan, so he probably is pretty bright, and apparently knows a thing or two about baseball. Hopefully he knows a thing or two about developing talent, and hopefully Hostetler and his crew and Paddy and his crew, can put him in a position to succeed by bringing in some nice talent.

[southsider2k5]

The point I am making is perhaps this guy is pretty qualified. Maybe they did interview several others. He is a hire from another organization so it isn't like they remained in house. I really think if Getz came up with the Dodgers and never played for the White Sox, those who find this move so wrong in so many ways would be OK with it.

 

He hasn't been part of the White Sox way. Again, we don't even know wher Buddy Bell and others jobs end and his begins. They probably have a pecking order, but the organization appears to use or at least imply they use a lot of collaboration. I don't know if he is any good or not, but the Twitter world baseball people seem to think he is a good idea. We will see. Sideways or up is really the only 2 was the arrow can point from here.

 

This just isn't a loyalty hire. Maybe they don't hire him if they didn't know him previously, but it isn't like they have been dying to get Chris Getz in the organization in some capacity like they have others over the years. This is different.

 

I would love to see who they interviewed. Who was it?

[Dick Allen]

I would love to see who they interviewed. Who was it?

I don't know, but I would guess they looked a few people.

[southsider2k5]

I don't know, but I would guess they looked a few people.

 

Why is that?

[Balta1701]

Here's my other attempt at this one:

 

Chris Getz could absolutely be great at this position - that is within the realm of possibility. There's no record of him either way, so maybe he totally nailed a discussion with management and that's why they brought him in.

 

It is absolutely possible to find diamonds in the rough/get lucky/whatever you want to call it. Perhaps after doing their due diligence with Getz, they believe they have one. I could buy that. Furthermore, I could see a franchise with a recent record of success making a move exactly like this - bring back a guy who had experience in your organization so that your philosophy stays the same.

 

But then put that in context of every other staff hire they've made and you run into one major problem - if everyone at every level is good at their job, and the hiring process shouldn't be questioned, then why the 4th place finishes? Renteria is manager without a competitive interview process. Basically his entire staff is filled out from within the organization. Even if I don't consider this the FO being lazy as I noted was possible earlier here, when I step back there's a problem here.

 

It's certainly possible that several of these guys are really good at what they do, just as it is possible that Getz is really good at what he's going to do. However - if all these guys are very good at what they're doing, then we are left with the open question of how this team keeps declaring they're the best team in the division and winding up in 4th place.

 

These 2 realities do not agree. If the guys in the organization, and the hiring method of the organization, are regularly producing results such that you want to keep the guys around, and the system is working well, then the team should not only not be a 4th place team, they should especially not be declaring themselves competitive and then winding up in 4th place.

 

I keep saying that I will be convinced this organization is unhappy with where they sit when they make moves consistent with that. I'm still waiting. If the White Sox had won 10 division titles in a row and their manager decided to retire, I'd imagine that the moves would look very much like this - a series of promotions from within, directly promoting the bench coach, and bringing in guys who came up through their system in order to sustain the setup that had produced 10 division titles in a row even if they didn't seem to have a lot of experience. As soon as they start making moves to suggest they're unhappy with how things worked the last few offseasons, I'll give them credit for that. Until then, you can expect threads like this one.

[Dick Allen]

Why is that?

Because they didn't hire from within.

 

Why is Renteria an outsider but Getz an insider loyalty hire? Why didn't they hire him when he retired? Renteria has coached 50 more White Sox games than Getz played.

Edited October 18, 2016 by Dick Allen

[southsider2k5]

Because they didn't hire from within.

 

Why is Renteria an outsider but Getz an insider loyalty hire? Why didn't they hire him when he retired? Renteria has coached 50 more White Sox games than Getz played.

 

Yet there are zero proved cases of interviews being done in either case, and the job was filled in less than a week.

[Dick Allen]

Dick, even as the board contrarian....at this point, why would the White Sox deserve the benefit of the doubt in any sort of baseball situation? What have they done in the last 10 seasons to deserve any sort of trust?

That is my point. This position didn't matter much until they hired someone and the thread is pretty much the same no matter who they hired. I think it is pretty funny Getz is a failure. We will see in a few years.

[caulfield12]

Suggested interview questions for Getz:

 

1) How did this big jump in your coaching career come about? What it a case where you contacted the White Sox about a possible opening (when Capra was moved to the big league staff) or did they contact you initially?

 

2) What was the interview process (if any) like? Who conducted it?

 

3) What have you learned in your two years in the Royals' organization that has helped prepare you for this huge jump in responsibility? What did being part of that organization when they won a World Series in 2015 teach you, and how can it be applied to the Sox minor league system?

 

4) What is your perspective on analytics?

 

5) What do you feel is your strength as a coach? One area you would like to improve?

 

6) How does your background as a "gritty" player who got the most out of his talent complement the drafting and development process put in place by Nick Hostetler? Are you familiar with Nick and his focus on high "baseball IQ" players with elevated OBP's and translatable baseball skills?

 

7) Will you report to Buddy Bell as your direct superior?

 

8) What are some things that worked well for the Royals' in their developmental process that you could bring over with your own unique stamp and incorporate? What are some of your core beliefs about teaching fundamentals, fielding and baserunning?

 

9) Where do you see yourself in 5 or 10 years in the White Sox organizational structure?

 

10) Many other major league directors have a strong background in scouting as well as minor league managerial experience...how will you make up for this lack of experience and "get up to speed" since you're on such a steep learning curve? What do you think the White Sox saw in you that made you an especially attractive candidate for the position?

Edited October 18, 2016 by caulfield12

[caulfield12]

As far as measuring failure and success in black and white terms, that's virtually impossible, since 65-70% of it is drafting talented players with major league ability.

 

Simply going by the win-loss percentage of the big league club in 2018-2020 would be one indicator, but probably not the fairest one...

[Dick Allen]

Yet there are zero proved cases of interviews being done in either case, and the job was filled in less than a week.

And there is zero proof that Getz was the only candidate. But go with it.

[Dick Allen]

As far as measuring failure and success in black and white terms, that's virtually impossible, since 65-70% of it is drafting talented players with major league ability.

 

Simply going by the win-loss percentage of the big league club in 2018-2020 would be one indicator, but probably not the fairest one...

So the hire is bad but we will never be able really tell. LMAO.

[caulfield12]

The hire, at the very least, should have been a more exhaustive process with at least 3-5 outside candidates along with 2-3 internal ones. As Balta said, we can draw the conclusion that they did at least go through an exhaustive search process before settling on Getz, who's the most inexperienced at his particular position (Director of Player Development) in the major leagues, or we can just as easily assume they half-assed it and went with the comfortable candidate who wouldn't make waves or rock the boat, someone who could easily be controlled or spied on/spy on others, depending on the latest version of who you believe is winning the soap opera-ish battle for control of the Sox front office.

 

The fact of the matter is that we heard for four plus years that Robin Ventura was capable of being a Hall of Fame manager when/if he was presented a talented team to manage, and that his name could rank up with Torre/LaRussa/Leyland/Cox.

 

At any rate, let's follow the career/s of Ventura and Chris Getz and see if they still have jobs in baseball five or ten years from now.

 

If they don't, it's pretty easy to reach the conclusion that their services were not greatly in demand across MLB. We shall see.

 

[southsider2k5]

That is my point. This position didn't matter much until they hired someone and the thread is pretty much the same no matter who they hired. I think it is pretty funny Getz is a failure. We will see in a few years.

 

Another strawman. Again, people have talked about player development for years now.

[Dick Allen]

Another strawman. Again, people have talked about player development for years now.

Show me any talk about the director of player development, then pop off,

[Soxfest]

Ex Sox player hire or bust as always. Pattern is beyond absurd. A year and a half is not enough experience to get the job he got.

Edited October 18, 2016 by Soxfest

[chitownsportsfan]

Balta I didn't want to quote your entire post but it's 100% accurate. Like, in some alt universe (or hell, let's hope: this one!) where Chris Getz turns out to the like the next Hollywood fairytale scout or some s*** and leads the Sox to the best farm system in MLB in the next three years this is an awesome hire.

 

In the context of the entire org's failure over the past decade, with all the nepotism (real or imagined, Dick), and Chris' complete lack of qualifications for the position this is AN AWFUL f***ING HIRE.

 

that said, I hope it really turns out great and signals a turning point in the Hahn/KW era. Seriously, I do. But I don't expect it.

[southsider2k5]

And there is zero proof that Getz was the only candidate. But go with it.

 

Where is the proof that anyone else was interviewed?

[southsider2k5]

Show me any talk about the director of player development, then pop off,

 

You have latched on to that non-point pretty tightly. Again, there is no pre-qualification of needing to say someone's name to be allowed to talk about Chris Getz. Soxtalk doesn't operate like that.

[Dick Allen]

You have latched on to that non-point pretty tightly. Again, there is no pre-qualification of needing to say someone's name to be allowed to talk about Chris Getz. Soxtalk doesn't operate like that.

It's not a non point. EVERYONE thought Nick Capra was so insignificant in the grand scheme of things, he was never brought up on this board. Only when he had a quote about a player. Now it is one of the most imperative positions with the franchise turned over to Chris Getz who although he knows more than anyone hear, apparently doesn't know crap because he was in the White Sox system a couple of years ago, and this move will keep the team from winning for a long while.

 

Its a mid level position at best.

Edited October 18, 2016 by Dick Allen

[Thad Bosley]

It's not a non point. EVERYONE thought Nick Capra was so insignificant in the grand scheme of things, he was never brought up on this board. Only when he had a quote about a player. Now it is one of the most imperative positions with the franchise turned over to Chris Getz who although he knows more than anyone hear, apparently doesn't know crap because he was in the White Sox system a couple of years ago, and this move will keep the team from winning for a long while.

 

Its a mid level position at best.

1. People can have a point of view on the Getz hiring without every having one on Nick Capra.

 

2. While Getz may know more than anyone here, that's not the point. The point people not interested in just arguing for the sake of arguing are trying to make is does he know more than other potentially available people out there who might have more experience than him? Or was this another move like so many in the past has been made where his simple association with the Sox in the past was the primary qualification the team was looking for. See Robin Ventura.

Edited October 18, 2016 by Thad Bosley

[Dick Allen]

1. People can have a point of view on the Getz hiring without every having one on Nick Capra.

 

2. While Getz may know more than anyone here, that's not the point. The point people not interested in just arguing for the sake of arguing are trying to make is does he know more than other potentially available people out there who might have more experience than him? Or was this another move like so many in the past has been made where his simple association with the Sox in the past was the primary qualification the team was looking for. See Robin Ventura.

The point is it's complaining about something no one ever considered complaining about before. Right up your alley.

 

No one knows anything about Chris Getz's ability to perform the job, so it is assumed, just like with whoever they hired, that he obviously is unqualified and JR just went into his little black book and made a call to hire him. He is not an inside hire.

Edited October 18, 2016 by Dick Allen

[southsider2k5]

It's not a non point. EVERYONE thought Nick Capra was so insignificant in the grand scheme of things, he was never brought up on this board. Only when he had a quote about a player. Now it is one of the most imperative positions with the franchise turned over to Chris Getz who although he knows more than anyone hear, apparently doesn't know crap because he was in the White Sox system a couple of years ago, and this move will keep the team from winning for a long while.

 

Its a mid level position at best.

 

Your argument is that because no one said "Nick Capra" that now it can't be talked about, is just being argumentative. Player development has been a central theme of Soxtalk for years, and you know that. This fake SAY MY NAME argument isn't really a thing. It is "rigged election" in terms of reality. Every Sox fan knows that player development has been a central theme of discussions for years, well except apparently you.

[Dick Allen]

Your argument is that because no one said "Nick Capra" that now it can't be talked about, is just being argumentative. Player development has been a central theme of Soxtalk for years, and you know that. This fake SAY MY NAME argument isn't really a thing. It is "rigged election" in terms of reality. Every Sox fan knows that player development has been a central theme of discussions for years, well except apparently you.

I never said now it can't be talked about. Show me one post where I wrote that. I just said it was funny Getz is discussed more before he even started and anyone knows what he's about than Capra got in 5 years, when there was plenty of complaining that could have been directed his way. Even in the new coaches thread, not a peep about Capra's job performance.

 

Quit making things up.