Baseball leaders heap praise on Venable, who is 'incredible in every way'

CHICAGO -- There’s almost always a honeymoon period when a sports organization hires a new coach or manager.

Everything looks great. The right decision was made.

That sort of cup-is-half-full positive outlook has gone to another level across baseball regarding the selection of Will Venable as the 44th manager for the Chicago White Sox.

“Incredible, in every way,” said Scott Bradley, Venable’s baseball coach at Princeton. “This is one special person.”

“He’s one of those guys when he walks in the room, everything lights up,” said Rangers senior advisor Dayton Moore, who was connected with Venable in Texas over the past two seasons. “He has terrific presence.”

“You saw the wheels constantly turning, and you knew where this was going to end,” said Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer, who had Venable as a player and as a coach. “It was just a matter of when and where.”

Venable met the media via Zoom on Oct. 31, and he will be formally introduced in front of family, friends, and coworkers at Guaranteed Rate Field on Friday. With that press conference looming, here’s a deep dive into what makes Venable a special fit on the South Side.

Princeton
Major League scouts often referred to Venable as raw when talking to Bradley, who still runs the Princeton program. It was understandable, considering Venable only played basketball as a senior in high school and as a freshman for the Tigers. But Bradley vehemently disagreed, viewing it as inexperience.

“[Venable's] instincts were better than anybody we had,” Bradley said. “His ability to recognize pitches [and] his ability to steal bases.

“One thing that Will always did, his relationships with his teammates, the way he would interact with us, his coaches, just mature beyond his years … He’s an athlete, and has an ability to figure things out and compete.”

Bradley and his wife regularly welcomed players into their home for team dinners. Venable was one of the top players among the group, but he wasn’t above getting “elbow deep in dishwashing detergent,” per Bradley, to help clean.

“Washing everything, putting stuff away [and] wiping things down,” Bradley said. “It’s just the way he was raised. He just looked around and not only was he the best player, not only was he the best leader, but that day, he was going to be the best cleaner-upper. He was going to make sure he did all the dishes, and he helped put the chairs and table away. He wasn’t going to sit down and relax until he knew that he had helped.

“That’s a simple story, but it just goes to really show what type of human being we are talking about.”

Playing days
Nick Hundley, who serves as a special assistant to Texas general manager Chris Young, was Venable’s first roommate in pro ball. Hundley laughed when adding that he probably played more baseball with Venable than anybody else before they worked together on the Rangers' staff for the past two years.

“He’s really excited about learning and growing," Hundley said. "He can connect with a lot of different people on a lot of different levels, has amazing life experience [and] comes from a great family. Just a Grade-A human being, and I couldn’t be more excited for him.”

Hundley and Venable were part of a group that worked out together in San Diego during the offseason from 2007-09. It included Young, occasionally Mark Prior and one-time White Sox outfielder Brian Anderson.

Anderson, who lives in the Chicago area with his wife and daughter, remembers Venable as a “super diligent worker, polished and a funny guy.”

“Seriously, he’s great,” Anderson added. “Very well-rounded. You have your idea what you might picture [from] some of these Ivy League guys, really uptight and stuff. He’s just a quiet, fun guy. I’ve always had very fond memories of him. Just a tremendous worker and athlete.”

“We would go back and forth and challenge each other,” Hundley said. “What’s next? Where are we going? What can we do next? What’s the next offseason plan look like? He was never satisfied.”

After 967 games across nine big league seasons, Venable moved into coaching/front office work following the 2016 season with the Dodgers. It began a productive path that led him to Chicago.

Coaching
Moore frequently drank coffee and chatted with the Rangers' coaches before the start of daily Spring Training activities. He observed Venable, who was the associate manager to skipper Bruce Bochy, after serving as Boston's bench coach and the Cubs' third-base and first-base coach.

“[Will] was always the alpha in there,” Moore said. “Very prepared, but also very engaging and very inviting. His timing has always been good in meetings, and he said the right things as well.

“So, I think that is a great character trait he has. He has terrific leadership qualities. He knows what to say and when to say it. … He’s very positive with his beliefs [and has] a lot of conviction. I suspect he’ll do a very good job of working to build a consensus amongst his group.”

The consensus has Venable ready to take on this first managerial role. He’s also ready to guide a rebuilding team coming off 121 losses in 2024.

“No question he’s going to be a really good manager,” Hoyer said. “He’s a lifetime learner, really curious. He’ll be good to start and keep getting better.”

“Players are going to play so hard for him because they know he cares more about their career than his own,” Hundley said. “He genuinely cares.”