White Sox chairman discusses membership’s future throughout introduction of latest GM Getz
46 minutes in the past
CHICAGO — Jerry Reinsdorf understands the anger.
The White Sox chairman is in his forty third season in Major League Baseball after heading the restricted partnership that bought the White Sox in January 1981. But he’s an admitted fan, too, with baseball in his blood, as he identified throughout a 30-minute interview with chosen media members previous to the news convention saying Chris Getz as his group’s new basic supervisor on Thursday at Guaranteed Rate Field.
So he feels the identical ache the followers are throughout this depressing 53-81 (up to now) marketing campaign.
“It was absolutely the worst season I’ve ever been through. It was a nightmare,” Reinsdorf mentioned. “It’s nonetheless a nightmare. It’s embarrassing. It’s disgusting. All the dangerous phrases you’ll be able to consider is the best way I really feel in regards to the 2023 season. It completely was simply terrible.
“If I were a fan, I’d be pissed. I’d be very angry. But at the same time, this is the first really, really bad year. We won the division in ’21, we were .500 last year. That’s nobody’s goal to be .500, but that’s still average. This is the first disaster. This is the first real disaster.”
Reinsdorf’s focus is on Getz’s promotion and getting this group again on observe.
The most up-to-date rebuild netted the White Sox their first back-to-back playoff appearances in 2020-21, however solely two postseason wins in whole, and repeating that course of has been dominated out.
“Since I’m older, I feel more of a sense of urgency,” mentioned Reinsdorf, who turns 88 in February. “But I wished to win from the primary day. If you ever sat with me throughout a recreation, you’d see someone who desires to win even once we are 30 video games underneath .500.
“I don’t want to make predictions, but in this division and with the core of talent that we have, I would hope and I expect that next year is going to be a lot better than this year. How much better? I don’t know. But look at the core of this team.”
But no person in that core is untouchable, Getz mentioned throughout his introductory news convention, though Luis Robert Jr. must be fairly darn shut.
Getz can have full autonomy within the baseball decision-making besides in the case of spending cash.
“Every owner reserves that right,” Reinsdorf mentioned. “We spent some huge cash this yr. People speak about, ‘Why won’t the White Sox spend?’ I believe we had a payroll of $180 million this yr. We’ll do what Chris thinks we must do to make us higher.
“Look, we’re not going to be within the [Shohei] Ohtani race, I’ll inform you that proper now. And we’re not going to signal pitchers to 10-year offers. But we’re going to attempt to get higher, and meaning trades, it doubtlessly means signing free brokers, it means enjoying smarter baseball. It’s a variety of issues. I don’t have a variety of time left. I don’t wish to undergo an extended rebuild. I solely anticipate to be right here one other 10 years.
“Everybody talks about when you build a building, the foundation comes first,” he added. “We’ve got a foundation here. We’re not going to take the guys that we have now and clean out and start over again. We’re definitely not going to do that.”
The choice to exchange government vp Ken Williams and GM Rick Hahn was made by Reinsdorf a few days earlier than it was introduced on Aug. 22. He spent a month enthusiastic about it and speaking to individuals each inside and out of doors the group.
All options had been thought-about, together with dismissing one or the opposite, earlier than he opted for a contemporary begin and let each go.
“They worked decently together, and I still believe that if I kept them in place, they had the capability to rebuild the organization,” Reinsdorf mentioned. “But one of the things that a number of people told me was, ‘You may believe that, but the record’s the record.’ And I was urged to make a decision by quite a number of people just based on the record.”
Before closing his media session, Reinsdorf was requested for a remaining message to the followers.
“My message is, we are going to do everything in our power to get back to where we want to get to,” Reinsdorf mentioned. “If we don’t succeed, it won’t be for lack of trying. Nobody wants to be bad. We gotta get better.”
