CHICAGO (AP) — Ozzie Guillen's eight years as
manager of the Chicago White Sox were never dull. His pre-game briefings were
great theater. Opinions flew, so did four-letter words, brazen answers, often
raucous laughter and interesting yarns.
Guillen did OK on the field, too, leading the White
Sox to the World Series championship in 2005, their first since 1917. And even
though Chicago has returned to the playoffs just once since that remarkable
run, Guillen's managerial talents didn't seem to have diminished.
Certainly not in his mind.
With the White Sox struggling through a
disappointing season and Guillen signed only through next year after his option
was picked up in January, he wanted a contract extension.
Owner Jerry Reinsdorf listened but declined to give
Guillen the extra years and money he wanted. So Guillen asked to be released
from his contract and the White Sox agreed to do so Monday night, ending a long
relationship that began when Guillen spent 13 seasons as the team's shortstop
from 1985-1997.
"I told my wife I wouldn't cry," Guillen
said — and he didn't during his final news conference.
He said he did get emotional when he gathered his
players before Monday night's game against Toronto — the White Sox sent him out
a winner, 4-3 — and told them he was leaving.
"No regrets, no regrets," Guillen said.
"Very disappointed in this year, yes."
Next stop? He's leaving for a vacation to Spain on
Friday. But his name is being linked to the Florida Marlins with Jack McKeon
announcing his retirement. Guillen was the Marlins' third base coach under
McKeon when they won the World Series in 2003.
"I like Ozzie," McKeon said Monday.
"I think he's a very, very intelligent manager. He was a smart player.
He's a good man. I like him."
If Guillen did become manager of the Marlins, it
would cost Miami some sort of compensation.
The Marlins talked to Chicago last year about acquiring
Guillen, but the deal never materialized. They could bring him in now to lead
the club into a new ballpark next season.
Guillen said he had no idea where he might end up
but he's aware of the reports about the Marlins.
"It could be anybody. They sound like they are
interested," Guillen said. "They just let me go to talk to whoever I
want, anyone I want. Right now, a lot of people are talking about Florida
because as a team, a lot of rumors are out there."
Guillen, who had a 678-617 record with the White
Sox, will not be in uniform for the remaining two games this year. Bench coach
Joey Cora will run the team.
Guillen has credentials. He's the only manager in
franchise history to lead the White Sox to more than one division or league
title. Chicago also made the playoffs under Guillen in 2008.
He thought his body of work deserved more than
being a lame duck manager next season. And he said his rocky relationship with
general manager Ken Williams was really not the issue.
"It was my call and I appreciated the White
Sox organization letting me do what I like to do and what is best," he
said.
"Maybe not the best, maybe it's the worst. You
don't know what is out there. Maybe I'm dreaming. I might not appreciate what I
got here. You don't know. You have to close the page and move on. That's life.
Hopefully the next book treats me the way this book treated me."
In the 2005 championship year, the White Sox nearly
let a 15-game lead evaporate before rebounding in the final week of the regular
season. Then they went 11-1 in the postseason, clinching all three of their
series against the Red Sox, the Angels and the Astros on the road.
Now he's gone. Guillen said the fans would never
forget him, he'd still keep a home in Chicago and he and Reinsdorf would always
be friends.
The White Sox clubhouse will never be the same, but
first baseman Paul Konerko — one of Guillen's favorite players — said it was
time for a change.
"This probably needed to be done, on both
sides of it," Konerko said.
"I'm happy for Ozzie. I think he's been burned
out on this whole thing and probably likewise on the other side. That's how it
goes. It doesn't always have to be that someone's right, someone's wrong, this
person's right, this person's wrong. Sometimes in sports — any business — but
especially sports, a coaching staff or a manager, head coach, whatever it might
be, that kind of regime runs its course and that's what we have here."
After teaming with general manager Ken Williams to
end the 88-year title drought, their relationship has become strained over the
last two years.
"Was it time for a change? I don't think
so," Williams said. "I guess things were accelerated. We had no
intention of firing him. This was kind of acquiescing to some of his desires
more than anything. It is what it is.
"This is a case of a man making a business
decision for himself and his family. And we respected it, we respected it
enough to allow this to happen. Obviously we didn't agree to the request for an
extension."
Williams said the White Sox are ready to move on
and find a new manager.
"I will say very briefly that because of the
warnings, we've had ample time to dwindle a list down to a few select
candidates. We think that we can act swiftly," he said.
The White Sox (78-82) were built to win this year
but middle-of-the-order players like Adam Dunn and Alex Rios slumped all season
and bogged down the offense.
Chicago had early losing streaks of seven and five
games and by May 1, Guillen's club was 10 games out of first. The White Sox
pulled within 3½ games of the lead on Aug. 17 but that was as close as they
would get the rest of the way.
Guillen was a managerial trend setter with a
Twitter account and a website. And social media, like his opinions expressed in
other forums, got him in trouble at times.
After he was ejected this season at Yankee Stadium
by umpire Todd Tichenoran, the manager went on Twitter and called his ejection
pathetic. That got him a two-game suspension and fine, and it was the first
time baseball has penalized a player, coach or manager for using the social
networking site during a game.
Social media played a role in creating the tension
between Williams and Guillen in 2010. Guillen's son, Oney, left the team's
scouting department after posting some comments on Twitter that were critical
of the team's front office.
Since Guillen took over in 2004, there has been a
long list of Ozzie blowups and tirades and opinionated rants.
In 2006, Guillen was fined and ordered by
Commissioner Bud Selig to undergo sensitivity training after he described then
Chicago Sun-Times columnist Jay Mariotti with a derogatory term.
Copyright
2011 The Associated Press.
(AP
Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)
