This past Friday, it had been reported by many that the Chicago White Sox had found their guy in Astros’ bench coach Joe Espada. Many have become disgruntled towards those who reported it. To be clear, an article was posted on the Sports Illustrated website so let’s cut them all some slack as SI does not normally allow unconfirmed information to be posted on their site. Either way, the White Sox managerial search continues. Many of you may be asking, where do we go from here?
While it appears Espada may be out and no longer in consideration, there are some very interesting candidates still in play and I will not fully count Espada out of consideration. His hiring would most likely not be announced until the Astros’ season ended, who are up 3-0 on the New York Yankees in the ALCS and most likely World Series bound. Let us delve into some other candidates and names who have been floated out as possible matches for the White Sox vacancy in the dugout. First and foremost, we have an old friend of the organization, Ozzie Guillen, whose name seems to have caused quite the division amongst fans as to whether he should be brought back. Next on the list is Ron Washington, who also has previous managerial experience. Then we move to candidates who have been in MLB coaching roles, but never actually managed. Matt Quatraro is one who many fans have brought up and seem to be very high on. There is also a dark horse candidate that has not been on reported much however is seen by many whose time it is to finally land a manager gig, whom I will be getting into later in this article.
First, let’s start with the man from the magical White Sox 2005 World Series season, Ozzie Guillen. Obviously, if the credentials required include previous managerial experience, he has managed both the White Sox and Marlins. There have been mixed reports as to whether he would get an interview this time around as previously, when the Sox hired Tony La Russa, owner Jerry Reinsdorf publicly said Ozzie would not be considered for the job. Have Jerry and right-hand man Kenny Williams now warmed up to the idea of bringing Ozzie back to get this young core back on track? It appears so, and to the best of my knowledge, Ozzie has received at least two interviews and considered to be a favorite on the list to land the job. On top of that, there have been reports that Willie Harris, who played for Ozzie during part of his career, would be open to the idea of joining Ozzie’s staff if he does in fact get the job
Another name previously mentioned is Ron Washington, who as most know managed the Texas Rangers with some success from 2007-2014 before resigning and has since returned as a coach for the Atlanta Braves. If you a looking for someone to push fundamentals on the roster, Washington has a relatively old school approach to managing and is your guy.
Next let’s move on to Matt Quatraro, who has spent time as a major league coach in both the Cleveland and Tampa organizations and considered to be one of the young and upcoming managerial candidates. Quatraro uses more of an analytical approach which appears to be the direction that the game is moving towards. If Espada is in fact no longer being considered, Quatraro would be the candidate to bet on if you want a younger and more analytical approach to be taken.
The dark horse candidate who has had a lack of media coverage is Sandy Alomar Jr. While there have not been any reports tying him to the White Sox managerial search, it would be rather foolish to at least not give the man an interview. He has spent time in Cleveland bouncing between base coach, bench coach, and acting manager, which we know are now the true foes of the White Sox after the pounding they handed them all season long this previous year. The big thing to focus on here is he has served under Terry Francona for quite some time and in my opinion, Francona must be considered one of the best managers in baseball.
If the White Sox choose to go out of their comfort zone and hire someone from outside the organization, there are obviously a plethora of options. In my opinion, Quatraro and Alomar would be great choices as though both have been associated with organizations that have had plenty of winning success and who generally develop young talent and promote a rather fundamental approach to the game. Whether they go this route or not remains to be seen, as there are other qualified options that I have not mentioned who could also swoop in to land the job.
Whether you are a fan of bringing Ozzie back, or want the White Sox get out of their comfort zone, it appears the process is wrapping up and if I had to guess would be culminating in the next week or so. Regardless, the vacancy in the managerial spot for the Chicago White Sox is at the top of the most desired job openings in all of baseball. A team with so much young talent and promise needs to get back on track and get back to winning. The question remains, who will be the right candidate to get the job done?
Great read ! Thanks for the updates , hopefully things go well
Great post! I'm a Sandy Alomar, Jr man. Catchers run a certain amount of the game on the field, he was defensive minded, has the experience, played for a short time for the White Sox and speaks Spanish, which is a plus with the current roster. Plus, we are taking Cleveland's bench coach from them, with quite a bit of information about the team.
I would not be opposed to either Matt Quatraro or Joe Espada. But Ozzie is Ozzie, and his act gets old quick. He is much better suited to his post-game role on TV. Besides, he hasn't managed in a while and his departures from both the Sox and Marlins weren't graceful. Ron Washington would be a great coach, but I'd rather not have a manager his age again.
Just my 2 cents of course, since no one from the Sox has reached out for my opinion.
Keep up the good work!