Exclusive Interview

[DaTank]

Chris Rongey is the host of the pre-game and post-game shows for the Chicago White Sox and also the host of "White Sox Weekly" on Saturdays. Enjoy everyone. (edited - will re-edit upon further consideration)

 

- What are your predictions for the White Sox this year?

 

Rongey: As far as the record goes, I think they'll be at least a .500 team, and I don't think that's a stretch to say that. I highly doubt the offense will be the worst in baseball as it was last year, and that bullpen should have improved. Of course you never know how 'pens will perform from year to year, but they should be better. The question is, how will the young starters perform? I think Danks will be ok, and I think Floyd will be better than people think. Contreras is the real key here I believe. It will be an interesting year because the Tigers do not have strong pitching and the Indians have a supsect bullpen. However, both of those offenses are very good. Detroit will have a lot of 9-8 games I think.

 

- Do you think Contreras can return to 05' form?

 

Rongey: My instinct is that he will never be THAT good again, however he can be close to that. We'll see how much of last year was due to the personal problems and his arm soreness last year. If those were his only issues, then he can be good again. If it was that age is taking a toll, than he'll have problems. He doesn't have to be '05 good for this team to compete. And really, what you're talking about is "end of '05 - beginning of '06" good. He doesn't have to be that sharp, just better than last year.

 

- How do you feel about Ozzie Guillen's reinvented bad ass attitude?

 

Rongey: That's funny. Well I don't think he's going to be much different this year than he was last year. Maybe the difference hes talking about is how he behaved to his players behind closed doors. I don't mind his attitude and I think that many of the players respond to that. What's unfortunate is that some of the thing she says publicly are note always the smartest things to say. What most people don't realize is that he is not an idiot. He is VERY baseball smart and has a tremendous understanding of the game. I think that he doesn't' always have the easiest time expressing himself in English which appears to people that he doesn't know what he's talking about but trust me, he's not stupid.

 

- Also, what do you think about Kenny Williams apparently screaming at Nick Swisher to hustle?

 

Rongey: I kind of think that's funny too. Listen, these guys aren't babies. They're adult Major Leaguers and he is certainly not the kind of guy that has a hard time with criticism. They want a different attitude from the players this spring which hopefully will carry over into the season. I have no problem with that. Kenny is a salty guy, but he expects a lot from the players. Why shouldn't he?

 

- What do you think about Bobby Jenks' future, with and without the team?

 

Rongey: I guess there's always a chance that a hard throwing guy like Jenks could have injury problems in the future, but I think he has decent mechanics which should limit that. If he does what he did last season on a consistent basis than he will get more all-star nods in the future. For now though, he's one of the better closers in the game which is more than can be said for many teams in baseball...including the Tigers and Indians.

 

- What do you think about the White Sox' offseason moves? Which did you like and which didn't you like?

 

Rongey: I didn't have a problem with any of the moves made this offseason and let's start with Uribe. This one seems to tick off a lot of fans, but let's make this perfectly clear: at the time, THEY HAD NO CHOICE. They had a deadline and they had to either sign him or let him go, and they had to make a decision RIGHT THEN. At this time, you don't know if you'll be able to land a better option at SS. So, the dumb thing for Kenny to have done at that time would've been to let him go with no real contingency plan. Because if he walks, and they can't get someone like Cabrera, then they have nothing and they're screwed. It was the only thing to do at the time. Plus, if you're negotiating with a team to make a trade for a SS or a free agent to sign and they know you don't have any other options, they will take you to the cleaners. It's all about negotiating power. At least then, Kenny could say "fine, if you don't want to deal with us, we still have a SS on our club." If he doesn't have Uribe, than maybe Cabrera costs him Garland PLUS a prospect. Linebrink and Dotel are good pickups and maybe he overpaid, but it's better than doing nothing. It's not as if these guys are bums. They're proven relievers. We'll see how they do now, but they should help a lot. And it's not like we're talking about 5 year deals for $90 mil. Maybe they'll blow up, but they shouldn't. Linebrink was as good away from Petco as he was at home. He had a bad month with Milwaukee which is amplified by the fact EVERYONE in Chicago was paying attention to the Brewers at the time because of the Cubs run.

And Swisher is a good deal for now and the future. He's proven, he's young and he's a good player. I hate to see Gio and Fautino go because I wanted to see how they pan out. But the keywords are "pan out". It would have been fun to watch them develop but there is no guarantee they'll do anything significant in the Majors. The upside is there, but the guarantee is not. You already know what Swisher can do and you have him for 5 years if you want him. Even if the two pitchers turn out to be MLB contributors, it does not mean this was a bad deal for the Sox. Deals can be good for both teams and this one is. Swisher is entering his prime and his offensive numbers should spike in this park. And I hate to see Garland go, but the reality is that he likely wouldn't have signed here after this season. You can't afford to have more than 3 well payed starters on your team...at some point, you have to turn it over to the youngsters. That's how all teams do it. Some fans act as if they let Garland go and Uribe was still playing SS. Folks, they got an All Star, Gold Glove shortstop in return. It's not like they got Rey Ordonez. Cabrera makes them better.

Edited February 27, 2008 by kapkomet

[kapkomet]

Hey guy - check your pm's, please.

 

With that said, you're doing a good job with these interviews... when did you conduct them and how, seeing as how they're tied up in AZ a lot?

[DaTank]

Hey guy - check your pm's, please.

 

With that said, you're doing a good job with these interviews... when did you conduct them and how, seeing as how they're tied up in AZ a lot?

 

Well, I contacted Chris Rongey on AOL instant messenger, which I got on his facebook, and he was more than happy to help. He won't be going to AZ until about mid-March though. And my interview with Chris De Luca was conducted on facebook, and he was also more than happy to help out.

[kapkomet]

Facebook is a pretty powerful thing, eh?

[knightni]

I emailed him about Skanberg's cartoon awhile back. He got a kick out of his portrayal. He used to talk about getting more pie in his postgame show after that.

[DaTank]

Facebook is a pretty powerful thing, eh?

 

Indeed, it is. Also trying to get Cowley through facebook at the moment.

Edited February 27, 2008 by jenks45monster

[knightni]

Why not just email them through the newspapers'/radio station's websites?

 

That's how I got Rongey, Bob Valvano and Jayson Stark.

[DaTank]

Why not just email them through the newspapers'/radio station's websites?

 

That's how I got Rongey, Bob Valvano and Jayson Stark.

 

I tried Cowley on Sunday, but no respond. And I just found Rongey and didn't realize who is was at first, and took down his AOL Instant Messenger screen name when I figured out it was him, and it was by far easier. Same with De Luca.