Jermaine Dye spends much of his retired life in San Diego shuttling his kids around to practices -– “I feel like a taxi-cab driver” -– and using his driver to play golf.
The man who averaged 32.8 homers in his five seasons with the White Sox is also well aware of his former team’s struggles –- and the debate regarding manager Robin Ventura.
“I’ve talked to Robin a bunch,” Dye said. “He’s totally opposite from what Ozzie (Guillen) is –- the fiery guy who will come in the clubhouse and say whatever he feels. Sometimes that works. It just depends on the kind of players you have and how they will react to it.
“Ozzie knew when to put the attention on himself. He’d say something crazy in the paper, usually when we were going through a tough time, and we could just relax and go out and play. Whereas Robin is not a real vocal guy; he’s a laid-back manager. But I still think Robin can turn that team around and get them on a good track in the second half.”
Dye is back in town to play in the celebrity portion of the Encompass Championship, the Champions Tour event at North Shore Country Club in Glenview that begins Friday. He was set to play Thursday afternoon in the pro-am with Kenny Perry.
Dye is a single-digit handicap (in the 5-9 range) who played in the 2013 celebrity golf event at Lake Tahoe. He finished a solid 33rd out of 85 competitors.
“I first picked up a club in Atlanta my rookie year (1996),” he said. “I went out with Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine and Fred McGriff. They did get my money. They gave me a lot of strokes, but it didn’t matter.
“Now I go out there one day a week and hit balls and practice. I just love the game.”