Surging White Sox have earned Ventura new contract

[Dick Allen]

The point where they go through a slide. It's not that hard. Robin has proven he can't deal with real, on the field adversity. Period. Thank god portions of this team have over performed.

 

And with regards to Thibs, the whole Bulls org hated him because he was a nutcase. Looking forward to watching his big guns play 46 minutes against the 76ers in Minnesota.

Their top 2 big bats have underperformed. They have an issue with a spot in the rotation. Had a big controversy in spring training where even some thought a couple of their best players needed to be traded because of what they said. I think they have had plenty of adversity, yet have prevailed. The people who don't like Robin can't give him credit. But if he was home in California and say Renteria was managing with the exact same results, I think Renteria would get a lot of credit, and deservedly so. I also think it would be used as proof that Robin was a goof.

 

Good players are more important than a great manager, and many guys who were or are considered great managers at one time were managing teams that lost a lot of games,. Joe Maddon is a genius, yet he lost 101 games his first season in Tampa and followed that up with a 96 loss season. Joe Torre was considered an idiot manager in a couple of cities. Bobby Cox first 5 years were no better than Ventura's. Tony LaRussa was considered an idiot by White Sox fans until they got rid of him and he managed better players. The last 3 are HOFers. Maddon may be one day.

[Dick Allen]

I think you're overestimating the impact the manager has. As long as he's not grossly misusing the bullpen (and aside from a couple headscratchers, Robin has been fine here), abusing the starters (might have rode them a bit too hard last year, but this year it's been fine), and utilizes the bench (I think Robin does a good job here), I don't think the manager really matters that much. Can't deal with real, on the field adversity? I'm not even sure what that means.

That is because it is made up ,move the goalpost BS. He can't determine if he manages well unless he pulls them out of a rut. Yet if that happened, he can always fall back on the only reason they were in the rut to begin with was because of inept managing. It would be never ending.

[greg775]

I'll trust Hahn on how to handle this one. Like the column said, Reinsdorf has been very loyal. True the contract is about up, but considering how badly the Sox have fared overall under Robin, it's probably fair to wait til the end of the season. Robin is doing fine, though, this season.

[caulfield12]

We can talk about Torre, Cox and LaRussa all we want, but if this team tanked and Ventura didn't have a job for next season, how many organizations would be lining up for his services?

 

Is Robin Ventura so loyal to only JR and the Sox organization he wouldn't work for another team...he'd just go home and spend time with his family and coaching Little League again? Does anyone get the sense he'd like to make it a career for the rest of his life?

 

As far as Illini's post goes, he does in some sense need to prove he can weather storms longer than 2 or 3 game losing streaks...which means how can he get the team to respond if they lose first place, one of their best players gets injured, the fifth starters continue to get pummeled or the Royals/Indians/Tigers dominate them in the first half of the season and really take off?

 

Obviously, that 4-11 finish in 2012 raised a lot of questions. Were the Tigers just the better team all along? Did the White Sox simply choke the lead away? Was it simply they got tired and weren't used to the heat of a pennant race with so many rookie pitchers going that season? Adam Dunn's slide? Addison Reed folding? Was that finish inevitable? Would the team have righted itself with Francona or Leyland at the reigns, etc.?

 

Dick Allen will surely defend Robin Ventura, and at least he's been consistent on this...but I don't think for a million years he will actually agree that the White Sox should give him an extension at this early stage. Or Renteria, for that matter. And there's always the possibility that "insiders" in the organization are attributing the team's rise in performance this year more to Renteria and new leadership emerging from Frazier/Rollins/Navarro/Jackson/Avila, etc. Hard to really know what's going on from the outside unless you're inside that clubhouse every day and/or were to ask the players "off the record" what they attribute the change to...?

 

It could be something as simple as the resolution of the Adam & Drake LaRoche controversy clearing the air...after all the hard feelings were put out there for the world. Sale and Eaton were both highly criticized, and they've been two of the top ten performers in baseball this early season.

Edited May 7, 2016 by caulfield12