For the second time in as many seasons, the White Sox want to get ahead on a job search before the offseason starts. Last season Jerry Reinsdorf fired Vice President Kenny Williams and General Manager Rick Hahn in late August before announcing they promoted Chris Getz to the general manager role. Now Getz finds himself in a position to do the hiring after firing White Sox manager Pedro Grifol and several members of his coaching staff on Thursday.
Staff that was let go included bench coach Charlie Montoyo, third base coach Eddie Rodriguez, and assistant hitting coach Mike Tosar. Hours after Grifol’s firing was announced Getz told reporters that he had promoted Grady Sizemore to interim manager. However, Getz added that Sizemore would not be the team’s permanent manager moving forward. The question now is what’s next?
The White Sox are not currently a desirable landing spot. The team showed massive regression during Grifol’s tenure, including going 89-190 while the 54-year-old was at the helm. This season the team set a new franchise record with 21 consecutive losses and is currently on track for the worst record in MLB history after starting the season 28-89. Grifols .319 winning percentage would have been the first worst for a manager in MLB history if he had lasted enough games to qualify. Because the White Sox are so far off from contending it will be nearly impossible to lure a candidate such as Terry Francona to take the manager job.
“These two seasons have been very challenging. Unfortunately, the results were not there, and a change is necessary as we look to our future and the development of a new energy around the team,” Getz said in a statement.
When Hahn hired Grifol before the 2023 season it marked the first time the White Sox had hired a manager with no prior ties to the organization since Charlie Manuel in 1998. This was viewed as a step in the right direction for an organization notorious for promoting from within and taking shortcuts. The fear was that Grifol had done such a bad job that Reinsdorf would be hesitant to venture outside of the organization again. However, Getz says this is not the case.
Getz says he anticipates hiring someone from outside of the organization to be the permanent manager. He added that he is focused on candidates who are currently in uniform with other clubs. This essentially rules out any possibility of Ozzie Guillen or AJ Pierzynski being named the next manager. Getz also said that the team will not consider anyone in their own system for the job. He also stated that the White Sox are open to personnel who have no managerial experience, but would prefer it.
MLB Network’s Jon Morosi listed Marlins manager Skip Schumacher, Mets bench coach John Gibbons, and Tigers pitching coach Chris Fetter as potential options. Schumacher’s contract is up at the end of the season, while Gibbons served as Getz’s final MLB manager while he was a player in Toronto. The Tiger’s pitching staff has made gains under Fetter, ranking 14th in the MLB in ERA. Like Getz, Fetter is also a University of Michigan alumni.
