More evidence that you can’t keep a good man down. When the irrepressible Ozzie Guillen leaves Comiskey Park on Sunday, he’ll walk away with his head high and a smile. He might even respond with a farewell salute. But even so, don’t bet he won’t return.
“I might come back as a coach or a scout,” Guillen said. “Or maybe I’ll come back as a manager.”
But Guillen is thinking two or three years down the line. Starting Monday, when his free agency kicks in, he will begin fielding offers from other teams. That he is willing to sign for half his previous $4.5 million salary, and possibly less, is likely to attract some bargain hunters.
“I have a lot of friends in baseball,” Guillen said. “I’ll play for somebody.”
He also said he might be willing, if necessary, to ship on in a utility role although he expressed confidence he is is capable of playing every day.
“I just hope somebody gives me a job,” Guillen said.
Then he laughed.
“But I hope they don’t read the White Sox scouting reports. According to what they say, I’ve lost my range and I’m not what I used to be. I’ve lost a step or two. I don’t argue about that. But I’m not ready for the graveyard. I can play at least another two years, maybe three.”
Guillen revealed that if he doesn’t hook on with another team, Sox Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf and General Manager Ron Schueler told him “their door will always be open.”
But he doesn’t plan to knock on the door, not yet. First, he’ll listen to other offers.
“There are going to be 29 (other) teams,” Guillen said. “And if I get a job, I’ll never play for the White Sox. I’ll finish up somewhere else. After that, I could come back.”
Which is when Guillen mentioned the possibility of returning in a managerial role.
Asked if he would first agree to a minor-league apprenticeship, Guillen said, “No, definitely, no. I don’t have to learn anything. I know more about baseball than a lot of people around me. A lot of managers who are working don’t know as much as I do.”
How many?
“About five.”
Smart fellow that he is, Guillen refused to identify them.
“I don’t know about off the field, what goes on upstairs (in the front office), but I know I could handle the job on the field,” he said.
Chances are he’s right. Most managers aren’t exactly diamond geniuses. Even Whitey Herzog, now retired, but generally recognized as as a dugout wizard when he managed in Kansas City and St. Louis, often said he was only as good as his players, and especially his bullpen.
“A great bullpen makes for a great manager,” Herzog insisted.
He also said that even the best of managers, during the long 162-game season, are responsible for only four or five victories.
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Jack Clark, a slugging first baseman who played for Herzog, claimed Herzog was being modest because “Whitey won 30 or 40 games for us.”
Clark may have been buttering up. Most insiders insist it’s a maximum of six or eight victories, but not more.
Whatever, game strategy is overrated. More important is seeing to it that the players play hard. This is called getting the most out of your players. No. 2 is selecting the starting lineup. And No. 3–this will be a surprise to most fans–is handling the media.
“And I can handle the media,” Guillen said. “I’ve been here 13 years and I don’t remember having an argument with any of the baseball writers. I’ve always been honest with them. That’s half the battle.”
As Guillen surely knows, managers have a short shelf life. The White Sox, who are typical, have had four managers in the last 11 years–Jim Fregosi, Jeff Torborg, Gene Lamont and Terry Bevington, who is expected to depart soon, possibly after Sunday’s finale.
If Guillen hangs in, who knows? He may take over with the dawn of the 21st Century.