With Spring Training just a few months away, teams already have their coaching staffs in place. For the White Sox, specifically, the team hired Rick Renteria to be their manager back in October.
However, teams may still be looking to fill roles in their front office. For example, the Arizona Diamondbacks hired Dan Haren as a Special Pitching Assistant. This suggests that franchises could look to bring in former players or managers as consultants for the 2017 season.
If they succeed in that role and prove that they’re worthwhile additions to the team, perhaps they can gain a bigger role within the organization going forward.
Phil Rogers, an MLB Insider for MLB.com, recently he wrote an article about moves that “every team” should make. Rogers believes that any of these moves could help each team going forward.
BRING BACK OZZIE
Most of the moves consisted of trades of MLB-ready talent or suggested free agent signings; however, there was one outlier. Rogers wrote this about a former World-Series-winning White Sox manager:
Hire Ozzie Guillen. He’s only 52, but he has been out of uniform for four years since he was dismissed after one season as Miami’s manager. Guillen’s teams with the White Sox and Marlins were a combined +20 in the Pythagorean standings, which points to the value that’s wasted while he remains on the sidelines. He was his own worst enemy at times late in his managerial run, but he still has much to offer. It would be great to see him back in uniform in Spring Training, even as a consultant.
Ozzie Guillen is one of the more polarizing figures in recent memory; however, having managed and won a World Series, that experience is incredibly valuable and could undoubtedly prove vital for a franchise in need of success.
For his nine-year managerial career, Guillen holds a 678-617 record with the 2005 White Sox being the feather in his proverbial cap.
So, what’s the problem? Well, he hasn’t been in MLB since 2012, when he was the manager of the Miami Marlins. He was fired after one season with the team.
Guillen would likely have to start in that consultant role. If he could prove to teams that he is worthy of being apart of an MLB franchise again, there is a chance that he could get another chance in the league. If a team is interested in making a “splash” signing, Guillen could fit the bill.
With that being said, it is unlikely that Guillen would return to the White Sox. He and VP Ken Williams have had issues in the past. While Williams has said he would support Guillen’s return to baseball, the South Sider’s likely want to keep all ties with the former manager cut.
Guillen has said in the past that he would love to coach in the MLB again. Perhaps a team is willing to give him a chance. If Phil Rogers gets his way, Ozzie Guillen would be with an MLB franchise before the beginning of the 2017 season.
Feel free to continue the conversation on Twitter: @DFappiano14.
