Podcast: Pedro Grifol, The Brown-Noser
Record Date: 9/17/2023
Rundown:
- Pedro Grifol continued praise of Chris Getz is annoying. Too bad he can’t motivate his player to perform better.
- Lack of honoring the 1993 AL West Champion White Sox irks Josh.
- MLB races coming down to the wire. How Jake Burger is becoming a hero for Miami, the Chicago Cubs are fading, and who we like to earn the final postseason spots.
Why would any well qualified candidate, for any position, accept a job with the White Sox?
Which is why we’re stuck with the likes of Daryl Boston…who, btw, was drafted in 1981 (Jerry’s 1st draft as owner) and would back up Kenny Williams in the OF. Can’t wait to hear: “Daryl is the first guy in all my years owning the team who has coached 1B the way I want it coached!”
Thank you Jim and Josh. This podcast was cathartic. It expresses perfectly my sentiments towards Grifol. I had this uneasy feeling when Tony LaRussa was the manager. Didn’t want to see him there. Couldn’t stand his comments. His lineups. His in game weird decisions. However, with Grifol, I just feel a tremendous repulsion towards the manager/person. Tony was a senile very successful major league manager with some unsavory baggage, but Grifol is nothing. No baggage, but most certainly not a major league manager. I don’t like him as a manager. I don’t like him as a person. I want him away from y favorite baseball team.
I am convinced Hahn picked him because Hahn knew Grifol would be the manager that made his life easier by not demanding anything and provide just praise and the kind of word salads that disguise accountability just the way Hahn loves. Hahn wasn’t looking for baseball wisdom. Hahn was looking for a yes-man. Mediocre people love to surround themselves with mediocre people, and it is not because “misery loves company”. It’s because one of the worst fear of mediocre people in position of success is to be exposed. They aren’t smart, and they know it. They don’t want smart people around them because their stupidity shows. Grifol entered the picture, and Hahn beamed.
About competing in 2024? There is no way the White Sox can turn this around in 1 year.
I feel like the 1993 team is more relevant to the fan base and worth celebrating — the last time they honored that team was at a game back in July 2018.
This morning, I used sandalwood-scented shaving soap, so thanks for making me feel as good about myself as Grifol makes Getz feel with his flattery.
One reason the 1993 team isn’t getting feted might be that it would have to involve Frank and Ozzie being on the field after months of them (deservedly) criticizing the current team on TV. Nobody from 1983 is holding the 2023 edition accountable, so it’s all sunny nostalgia for Reinsdorf’s first postseason success.
A team Hall of Fame is a great idea. For the Mets, it has allowed the team to celebrate loved figures who wouldn’t merit a retired number, like Ed Kranepool or announcer Bob Murphy. The White Sox hae a legion of suitable canddates, and giving Wood such an honor while he’s still with us would make him and the fans happy. Same with Tommy John and Chet Lemon. It would have been nice to honor Joel Horlen and Dick Allen before they died.
I don’t see honoring Wood, the 1959 team, the 1977 team, or any other pre-1981 aspects of the organization happening. That all occurred before Reinsdorf showed up, and his obsession with the 1983 division winners indicates he has a narcissist’s view of history.
I was telling friends yesterday that it feels like the 1983 team is honored more often and is more revered by the organization than even the 2005 team. I was 7 years old in 1983, and that was the team that got me interested in baseball. So, I do like the 1983 team, but that said, that season seems to get more air time than it deserves.
The White Sox have more than 120 years of history. In fact, the history and branding should be regarded as a strength with regard to marketing the team. But they seem to ignore most of that history. It’s unfortunate. They don’t seem to know how to connect with their fan base, young, middle-aged or old. Frankly, I don’t need to hear any more stories about Ron Kittle’s ROY award or roof shots.
When only four of your seasons over the past century include winning a game in the Championship Series or later you gotta celebrate that success!
The 1993 team won one more postseason game than the 1983 team did. Just sayin’.
I think the reason there are a few reasons why the 1993 team doesn’t get the same recognition as the 1983 team, the biggest is that it’s hard to separate the ’93 team from the ’94 team and the big role that Jerry played in ending that window for success.
Another reason I think is there’s more of a merchandising opportunity with the ’83 team since they had different uniforms and different logos. While there are some subtle differences between the uniforms wore in ’93 and now, it’s probably not enough to make someone say “I want to buy that 1993 jersey,” or more likely “I want to buy that ’93 hat,” because it’s the same hat.
As for the pre-Reisndorf teams, they did recognize the ’72 team in 2012 I think, but that’s the only other non-JR team other than the 1959 team that I can recall them honoring in any way shape or form.
They did the 1917 throwback jersey’s as the first of its kind in 1990, so, there’s that. and of course, the field of dreams game.
I think they don’t celebrate the 1993 team as much because it just reminds fans of the lost promise of 1994 and who was responsible for that.
The White Sox were “blown away”by this guy, who wasn’t really considered for a job with one of the worst teams in baseball and the only team that knew him as a coach.
This is an organization that has employed Robin Ventura and an octogenarian who literally slept through months of seasons that were supposed to be part of our competitive window…and yet, this is literally the most embarrassing and underqualified manager I have seen in my four decades of Sox fandom.
I think for Pedro to be “one and done” would be to give him too much benefit of the doubt. He is clearly out of his depth. The team is not playing hard for him. He should be “most and toast”.
<1 and done, fire him the day before the last game
I wouldn’t oppose to that. Make it even earlier than the last game.
It is becoming more and more difficult to even get excited about the offseason and any future this team has. If Getz stays with Grifol, next season is over already. I am becoming more apathetic towards this team with each passing day. I already have a good idea what my offseason plan will be, but am 100% certain that none the moves I am suggesting will take place. If nothing changes, I may not even follow the team next year. Thanks, Jerry. You made this happen for me and countless others on this site. What a shame.
Not following this team is sage advice. There is no team that has worse people running it up and down the org, or is in a worse position in terms of roster and farm system than this disaster.
They went 7 straight seasons under .500 after 2012. I’m guessing something similar is what the near term future of this team will look like. No need to pay attention.
It’s not like this organization doesn’t celebrate former players. For example, our manager wears #5 in honor of Royals legend George Brett.
The Reds house their HOF in a building adjacent to their ballpark.
That might work better. I can almost never visit the HOF of a specific team because I have nowhere to put the beer I just purchased. I’m a poor planner and prioritize beer. Can you blame a beer connoisseur? Then again, outside the Reds stadium I didn’t join the 108 and instead went to the Yard House for damn fine beer (where the meetup was, the only beer I enjoy is Blue Moon and frankly, I can get that almost anywhere that sells beer). Because I can’t be bothered with being out of my comfort
beerzone.I had my first Blue Moon in the Bullpen Bar at New Comiskey. For a while there it was the only bar I frequented that sold it so it was always a special treat when I went and of course the BP bar was the only place you could get a beer after the 7th inning so we always stuck around for “extra innings”.
Jim seems like a pretty even-keeled customer. How could he not be, forced as he is to behold the revolting spectacle of White Sox baseball year upon year? So shout out to Pedro Grifol for pushing him into visceral disgust and palpable nausea. He’s getting the most out of someone at least.