Here's what Venable is thinking after first week with White Sox
Scott Merkin
@scottmerkinCHICAGO -- It has been a busy week for Will Venable since the White Sox hired him as the 44th manager in franchise history.
Venable traveled to San Antonio for the General Managers Meetings on Monday, joining general manager Chris Getz and the front office as they finalize coaching staff moves and sync up for the upcoming season. Venable arrived Thursday in Chicago to make numerous stops around the city, which included a few visits for the organization, a trip to the Shedd Aquarium with his family and attendance of a Bulls game.
This action was punctuated by a Friday morning press conference at Guaranteed Rate Field, where Venable was presented his No. 1 jersey by Getz. The team had Venable and Getz via Zoom on Halloween, and Venable has done numerous rounds of media during the week, adding to that very full schedule.
One of the more interesting questions for Venable is a simple but direct one: why take this job? Its prevalence and reality is understandable, considering the White Sox set a single-season record in the Modern Era (since 1901) with 121 losses in 2024 and are coming off a combined 222 losses over the past two seasons. It¡¯s one of 30 jobs of this nature in all of Major League Baseball, for a franchise celebrating its 125th anniversary, but despite the infrastructure being built by Getz and his crew, it could stay stagnant before the rebuild drastically improves.
For Venable, the past failures or the far-ranging future aren¡¯t the driving forces.
¡°I understand the perception and the questions, but those things just are not -- I don¡¯t want to say they are not relevant, but they are not what I think about,¡± Venable told MLB.com prior to the jersey presentation. ¡°I think about this year and the things that we can accomplish this year to help us continue to move forward.
¡°There¡¯s a reality of what has happened the last couple of years, but that¡¯s not something I¡¯m thinking about. I¡¯m looking forward to what we are going to accomplish this offseason and in Spring Training and during the summer.¡±
Discussions began this week between Venable and some of the White Sox players, with the manager reaching out via text or phone call to 8 to 12 players, by his estimation. There¡¯s no set plans for Venable to visit with any in person, with other organization needs prioritized above those trips at this point. But he added the idea is on the table and he¡¯s open to it.
The new manager also has read numerous reports and talked to people internally to help him understand where these players are at, and things they are working on and continuing to address over the offseason. Through this first week, Getz has found the sort of co-pilot to help guide this process to what they hope is vast success.
¡°Every group going into every year has their work cut out for them,¡± Venable said after the press conference. ¡°And I'm excited for the challenge that this group presents.¡±
Dayton Moore, the Rangers¡¯ senior advisor of baseball operations, won the 2015 World Series title with Getz as part of the front office in Kansas City and won the ¡¯23 World Series title in Texas with Venable as part of the coaching staff. Moore sees an exceptional fit and Venable¡¯s choice of the White Sox befitting his character.
¡°I¡¯m speculating here, but I kind of know how Will is wired,¡± Moore said in a phone interview before the press conference. ¡°And so OK, he can win another one [in Texas]. That¡¯s great. Do you worry about replacing a guy like Bruce Bochy, a Hall of Famer? I don¡¯t think Will would worry about it, but why not go somewhere and do it yourself?
¡°Why not go somewhere and someplace you can breathe life into? Everybody in baseball is going to pick the Sox to be 30th next year. OK, let¡¯s go do something. That¡¯s what competitors do, man. The challenge and the courage it takes to do it.¡±
COACHING STAFF GETTING CLOSE
Getz said he thought the coaching staff would be finalized in the next two weeks, but there¡¯s no rush at the expense of getting it right. Hitting coach Marcus Thames is returning, as is Grady Sizemore, the respected interim manager prior to Venable.
¡°Grady is going to be a part of that,¡± Venable said. ¡°We just have yet to define what everyone's roles and responsibilities are going to be. ... It's going to be about how to best utilize him and how to best complement his skill set.¡±