Konerko for manager?

[WHITESOXRANDY]

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20...lb&c_id=mlb

 

This just shows that this organization is lost and clueless. They are going in circles with no good plan.

 

 

[macsandz]

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20...lb&c_id=mlb

 

This just shows that this organization is lost and clueless. They are going in circles with no good plan.

 

Please hurry up and save them from themselves.

[clyons]

KW and Jerry Angelo should just trade places for a season. The results probably couldn't be much worse, but we'd get lots more of these wacky hijinks. Plus hilarity would ensue.

[zenryan]

would have been pretty entertaining to see how it would play out during games.

[DonkeyKongerko]

Veeck woulda got a kick out of this one.

[bmags]

I honestly don't understand why people think that is so insane. I think it's insane that that practice went extinct. But I see no reason to believe Robin would be any better today than had he started managing and playing his last two years, ditto girardi.

[Rowand44]

I honestly don't understand why people think that is so insane. I think it's insane that that practice went extinct. But I see no reason to believe Robin would be any better today than had he started managing and playing his last two years, ditto girardi.

There's enough to worry about as a hitter yet alone having to think about making managerial moves in game.

[bmags]

There's enough to worry about as a hitter yet alone having to think about making managerial moves in game.

 

Delegate. And taking paulie's mind off of his at bats might make him even better.

[BigSqwert]

Delegate.

 

Then why even bother making him manager.

[bmags]

Then why even bother making him manager.

 

Why even bother having an offensive coordinator? Run the clubhouse, lineups, strategy, big in game decisions. Lean on your pitching and bench coach. It sounds real familiar to an actual manager.

[clyons]

I honestly don't understand why people think that is so insane. I think it's insane that that practice went extinct. But I see no reason to believe Robin would be any better today than had he started managing and playing his last two years, ditto girardi.

 

The practice has no place in today's game because of the proliferation of the modern media. Dealing with the media is so much more a component of the manager's daily activity than it was back in Lou Boudreau's day, or even 25 years ago for Pete Rose. It's there pre-game, post-game, and even in-game. Years ago, you had just local beat writers and one or two TV or radio guys. There was no Internet, ESPN, Baseball Tonight, or MLB network. The only reason we know of Lee Elia's famous rant is becuase of Les Grobstein's tape recorder. Today, it would be broadcast and You Tube'd all over.

 

There's no way a guy like Konerko or anybody else can fully keep up his every day routine as player while simultaneoulsy handling all the miscellaneous crap that goes along with being a manager, without one of those jobs suffering tremendously.

 

The ability to put together a line-up or manage a game has little to do with it being a really bad idea today.

[bmags]

That's the most compelling article to date, but I'd like a pie graph of the amount of time a surly manager needs to spend with the media and a star player.

[Kyyle23]

It would suck for your player/manager to get thrown out arguing a call and not only lose your manager but also lose your starting first baseman. Delegation couldnt prevent that kind of hole in your lineup

[bmags]

It would suck for your player/manager to get thrown out arguing a call and not only lose your manager but also lose your starting first baseman. Delegation couldnt prevent that kind of hole in your lineup

 

That's margins. Plenty of successful managers get thrown out very, very few times a year.

[southsider2k5]

The practice has no place in today's game because of the proliferation of the modern media. Dealing with the media is so much more a component of the manager's daily activity than it was back in Lou Boudreau's day, or even 25 years ago for Pete Rose. It's there pre-game, post-game, and even in-game. Years ago, you had just local beat writers and one or two TV or radio guys. There was no Internet, ESPN, Baseball Tonight, or MLB network. The only reason we know of Lee Elia's famous rant is becuase of Les Grobstein's tape recorder. Today, it would be broadcast and You Tube'd all over.

 

There's no way a guy like Konerko or anybody else can fully keep up his every day routine as player while simultaneoulsy handling all the miscellaneous crap that goes along with being a manager, without one of those jobs suffering tremendously.

 

The ability to put together a line-up or manage a game has little to do with it being a really bad idea today.

 

There has also been a proliferation of hires and technology to accompany that. Hell Guillen found time to run blogs, websites, facebook pages, radio shows, tv interviews, and still play with his kids. All of the decisions that used to be gut feelings now have any tidbit of statistical analysis at your finger tips so there isn't even any research necessary, unless you call googling something research.

[Quin]

Just throwing this out there, it's a lot easier to listen to a guy when you know he's busting his ass too.

[southsider2k5]

Some other good stuff in the chat.

 

http://espn.go.com/sportsnation/chicago/chat/_/id/40745

 

Artie (Chicago)

 

 

Why would Kenny Williams admit that Paul Konerko was an option to manage the team AFTER hiring Ventura? That's so strange to me. Plus, doesn't a player-manager smell a little bit like "we have no money so let's install a player-manager." More strange days on the South Side?

Doug Padilla

(1:59 PM)

 

 

He admited to it because hw as asked about it. He said that yes, he did entertain the thought, but it was far from something they almost did. It wasn't even close. Kenny said he thought about it because of his respect for Konerko's baseball savvy mind. It was meant as a compliment to Konerko and I think people have made way too much out of it.

[clyons]

There has also been a proliferation of hires and technology to accompany that. Hell Guillen found time to run blogs, websites, facebook pages, radio shows, tv interviews, and still play with his kids. All of the decisions that used to be gut feelings now have any tidbit of statistical analysis at your finger tips so there isn't even any research necessary, unless you call googling something research.

 

Until that technology includes cloning it will remain a bad idea. There's a reason it was a rare practice back in the day, and is even rarer in this age. The old schoolers didn't have to participate in televised, daily post-game pressers, particpate in video reviews, deal with the extended travel due to expansion, or lead and control a clubhouse full of blogging and tweeting multi-millionaires with their superagents, entourages, et al. Adding all of that to the mental and physcial grind of preparing for and playing a 162 game schedule is a recipe for disaster, imo.

 

 

[bmags]

particpate in video reviews, deal with the extended travel due to expansion, or lead and control a clubhouse full of blogging and tweeting multi-millionaires with their superagents, entourages,

 

I'm sure travel takes less time than when bus travel was common. As for video reviews and tweeting multi-millionaires, I'd bet video reviews are more efficient than whatever the hell scouting they had back then. ANd players back then were a bunch of alcoholics, probably not the easiest to manage either.

[Wedge]

Basically, this was a classic PR move by Williams.

 

-Fanbase wanted LaRussa, Francona, Martinez, or Alomar.

-Presumably, the White Sox could not deliver on those options for whatever reason.

-White Sox brass circles in on Ventura, who is less popular than the other four options.

-Realizing backlash, White Sox brass highlights another, even less popular option (Konerko as player-manager) as the other alternative considered. Fanbase is at least glad THAT didn't happen.

 

 

[clyons]

I'm sure travel takes less time than when bus travel was common. As for video reviews and tweeting multi-millionaires, I'd bet video reviews are more efficient than whatever the hell scouting they had back then. ANd players back then were a bunch of alcoholics, probably not the easiest to manage either.

 

There were only 8 teams in each league and thus 7 cities to visit until the late 1960's. There were no California teams until 1961. None in Arizona, Seattle or Texas either. St. Louis was both the farthest West and the Southernmost MLB city for nearly forever. With interleague play, there's more than double the cities to visit now (16 NL teams, 14 AL) and they're spread from coast to coast.

 

And alcoholism isn't exactly polio; it hasn't been cured. If anything, with steroids, cocaine, and amphetmines, substance abuse may be even more widespread today; See, Steve Howe, Daryl Strawberry, Lenny Dykstra, Bob Welch, Dwight Gooden, Dennis Eckersly, Keith Hernandez, Tim Raines, Mark Portugal, Dave Parker, Dale Berra, and the 2011 Boston Red Sox (that's a joke).

 

Plus, the free agency era didn't begin until Messersmith-McNally in 1975. Before then, there was no union, arbitrator, or agent to cry to if a manager had it out for a player or told him to stick it.

 

Despite airplanes and computers, there's a lot more to managing today than there was in Casey Stengel's time.

Edited October 13, 2011 by PlaySumFnJurny

[scenario]

Basically, this was a classic PR move by Williams.

 

-Fanbase wanted LaRussa, Francona, Martinez, or Alomar.

-Presumably, the White Sox could not deliver on those options for whatever reason.

-White Sox brass circles in on Ventura, who is less popular than the other four options.

-Realizing backlash, White Sox brass highlights another, even less popular option (Konerko as player-manager) as the other alternative considered. Fanbase is at least glad THAT didn't happen.

 

Classic married-guy strategy... give your wife something to complain about so she doesn't come up with something worse to complain about...

 

You can't stop the complaining, but you can control the topic.

 

 

[southsider2k5]

Basically, this was a classic PR move by Williams.

 

-Fanbase wanted LaRussa, Francona, Martinez, or Alomar.

-Presumably, the White Sox could not deliver on those options for whatever reason.

-White Sox brass circles in on Ventura, who is less popular than the other four options.

-Realizing backlash, White Sox brass highlights another, even less popular option (Konerko as player-manager) as the other alternative considered. Fanbase is at least glad THAT didn't happen.

 

That's actually a pretty interesting theory. Knowing Kenny, it is certainly plausible.

[clyons]

Classic married-guy strategy... give your wife something to complain about so she doesn't come up with something worse to complain about...

 

You can't stop the complaining, but you can control the topic.

 

I think I need you as my life-coach.

[Texsox]

Or, like many companies, in brain storming you create a list of every possible idea and start looking from there. I would hope they started with a list about 100 names deep.