As the season winds down, the White Sox will have three games to try and avoid being the worst team in baseball history, as they look to evade loss 121. Somehow, the White Sox miraculously swept the Angels, their first sweep since April.
While Grady Sizemore has his team playing with fire this late into the season, he is fighting to keep his job next season. He will have plenty of competition, as the White Sox will likely turn over every stone to find the right man for the job. Whether they actually hire from outside the organization remains to be seen, but that is the current plan.
However, one name that has recently come up in discussions is one from within the White Sox organization, just not at the major league level. According to James Fegan, Sergio Santos, the manager of the Birmingham Barons has asked Chris Getz to consider him for the White Sox manager position.
This is a very interesting turn of events, as Santos has done a fantastic job working in AA as their manager. As you can see from above, the Barons recently won the Championship for their league, quite an impressive feat. What makes this win even more special is the fact that the White Sox took most of the best players off the AA team as the season progressed.
To start the season, Drew Thorpe, Jairo Iriarte, Ky Bush, Jake Eder, and Mason Adams had the Barons pitching staff rolling, as they all were playing extremely well. This lead to the Barons clinching the best record in the first half, which gave them an automatic bid to the playoffs.
However, none of those players in the rotation remain with the team. Thorpe, Iriarte, and Eder are in the MLB, while Adams and Bush are in AAA.
Chris Getz also promoted some of the team’s best hitters, as Brooks Baldwin is on the MLB roster, while Edgar Quero and Tim Elko are on the AAA roster. For a team that was one of the best in the minor leagues, you’d think that losing eight of their best players, not even counting the few key bullpen arms that were promoted, that they would likely not win many more games. However, Sergio Santos remained focused and had his players prepared to play hard every day, no matter who was on the roster.
While some reinforcements from A+ ball came to help Santos out, most of the top prospects, minus Noah Schultz, were all promoted from the team. This is very impressive from Santos.
While Santos has only been the Barons manager for one season, he managed the Yankees A+ team in 2023. He doesn’t have much experience as a manager, but he has had success in his short tenure.
Most fans will know Santos from his time as a major league pitcher, as he played for the White Sox from 2010-2011. He bounced around a few teams after the White Sox and finished his career in 2015 with the New York Yankees. Santos had a solid career, as he had a 3.98 ERA with 39 saves over his six years in the major leagues.
Whether Chris Getz will truly consider Santos for the managerial spot, he should keep Santos around in the organization, as he could eventually work his way up to the major league staff if he continues his winning ways down in Birmingham. But, I think it is worth it to give him an interview and see what his thoughts on the team are. Ideally, you’d like someone with more major league coaching experience, but that hasn’t worked out for the White Sox as of late. Santos has impressed in the minor leagues, so you never know what could happen.
