Poll: KW media negotiations or bickering?

[103 mph screwball]

I am a huge Kenny Williams fan and I have grown to appreciate his offseason moves. Although I consider Mr. Williams one of the best in the business, I think his comments to the media involving players contracts are not helpful from a public relations and marketing standpoint. Although, I understand that the Sox can not sign all of their players and field a 150 million dollar payroll, constantly discussing money and the possibility of not bringing players back is counterproductive. I appreciate Mr. Williams candor. I feel that it is especially important to be honest with his team in order to be an effective general manager. However, the media feeds on these comments and spins them into the perception that the Sox are cheap despite a payroll near 100 million. I feel it would be beneficial to the White Sox if Mr. Williams would keep his comments positive or vague when discussing his players and their contract status publicly. We fans have grown to love many of the Sox players and being reminded of the business aspect of the game and the potential loss of these players to free agency does not make it any easier for fans if the players do move on. In fact, comments that may be perceived as bickering over money or that devalue such players in some way, reflect poorly upon the White Sox even if they are the cold hard truth. Mr. Williams faces many difficult decisions with the Sox and I am proud to have such an effective, aggressive, and skilled general manager to make those decisions. From this fan's perspective, a change in his relationship with the media to a more positive and private stance would benefit the White Sox.

 

This is how I feel about it. If the poll gets enough responses, I will e-mail Brooks Boyer with my opinion and include a link to the poll.

[fathom]

KW needs to stop whining in the media about contracts. We're the wrong fan base to start complaining about salaries to.

[PHAT ALBERT]

KW needs to stop whining in the media about contracts. We're the wrong fan base to start complaining about salaries to.

 

I think he is just being more honest than people are used to hearing from management. I prefer to know than to be lied to.

[Al Lopez's Ghost]

It's none of the above. Just KW answering questions with his take on things. What he says has no impact on negotiations. In fact, the negotiations impact on what he says. Buehrle in his last year with us - that can surprise no one who has a realist view of baseball's economics. Nor should it anger anyone - it just is the way things are. KW's job, and I think he's good at it, is to react to the economics and deal with them as best he can.

[Felix]

I think that KW needs to be a little more discreet, but I do agree with his thoughts in general about the contracts being given out today. None of the poll options fit my opinion however, so I'll be holding back on voting.

[LVSoxFan]

Yes but it's not a business to US. He can explain afteward why he did something but we fans do not look at people like Mark Buehrle as an entry on a ledger sheet.

 

Buehrle is probably my favorite Sox player and somebody I consider the "face" of the Sox. His sense of humor, his watching every game intently from the dugout, his tarp-sliding and of course his pitching make him enormously popular. I personally suffered when he struggled last year because one of my heroes was going through a terrible time.

 

Let KW be a badass with his agent, or behind closed doors--business is business. But I don't like and I don't appreciate KW making negative comments about current players in front of fans like me who appreciate him for reasons having nothing to do with money.

 

Let me put it this way: KW can give us all the business reasons why Buehrle's gone after he's gone. But there's no business reason to start chopping down a fan favorite in front of them. This accomplishes nothing. Except making KW look petty and thin-skinned and... possibly having a CYA complex.

 

BTW the bossman himself could put a stop to all this by telling EVERYBODY to shut up and play ball. He can tell them to cut their hair for "image" reasons but is going to allow this to go public? Pssst... we liked the long hair. We don't like this.

Edited January 27, 2007 by LVSoxFan

[Balta1701]

Somehow, it's just my opinion with Kenny that there's always more of a motive to the words he says than just their simple meaning. I'm one of the ones who's become used to him signing a player a few weeks after saying there's nothign going on, or adapting to a situation a week after saying "Oh it's hopeless".

[103 mph screwball]

Wow! Thanks! It takes a big man.

Williams makes nice with Buehrle

Regardless of the direction these negotiations eventually go, Williams has vowed to go against his natural character the rest of the way. Williams' first instinct is to answer a direct question with a direct and honest response, instead of giving false hope where none might exist.

 

But where contract extensions involving valuable and respected commodities such as Buehrle, Jermaine Dye, Joe Crede or Tadahito Iguchi are concerned, a no comment might be the most prudent avenue to travel. The White Sox general manger does not want to paint his leaders in a bad light, even if they could be on their way out after 2007, another point he made to Buehrle and his family Saturday.

 

"If you ever find a comment from me that has said anything other than positive things about Mark Buehrle, please show it to me," said Williams, who talked about Saturday's informal meeting on his own accord to set the record straight. "It'll be the first. So when I pick up the paper and turn on the radio and I hear all this stuff, this isn't me and this isn't him.

I no longer see any reason to e-mail Brooks. Someone in the organization must have read our advice earlier today. Maybe that shouldn't be in green.

[CaliSoxFanViaSWside]

Wow! Thanks! It takes a big man.

Williams makes nice with Buehrle

 

I no longer see any reason to e-mail Brooks. Someone in the organization must have read our advice earlier today. Maybe that shouldn't be in green.

 

 

"Maybe something will happen," added Williams of future negotiations with Buehrle, pointing out he didn't believe at one point long-term deals could be reached with Jon Garland, Jose Contreras or Paul Konerko, and they all were accomplished. "I was just asked a question what I felt at that time, and what I feel at this time. If this has shown me anything, it's shown me I've got to change the way I conduct business."

 

You got your wish. Good timing with the poll.

[shipps]

I love KW ,but when you look at the most highly regarded organizations in sports you dont see their GM doing business like KW has been doing.But just like Ozzie,Kenny is going too be himself and he is not going to change that.But when you go out in the media like he has with what should be" behind the doors kind of business" you are making it uncomfortable for your team and it is disrespectful.

[winninguglyin83]

i don't like it that so many sox players leave pissed off -- black jack, Alex Fernandez, Pudge, Ozzie, Maggs, Frank and others.

 

Buehrle gave us a world title.

 

If we don't want to pay him too much money, I understand.

 

but I don't want to hear weeks and weeks of b****ing about the cost of today's pitchers -- especially when they keep jackingup the price of everything from parking to bottled water.

 

Sox fans support this team.

 

they don't want to hear management b**** that they're not making enough money.

[KevHead0881]

Meh, whatever. As long as Kenny puts out a winner, I don't care if he's too honest or does everything behind closed doors. Personally, I prefer that the leaders of the team that I follow don't bulls*** me and are open and honest about whats going on in the organization, but maybe thats just me.

 

Just my opinion, but I believe its a non-issue.