Tony La Russa will not return to the Chicago White Sox next season. According to Bob Nightengale, the 77-year-old manager plans on announcing his retirement tomorrow. He posted a 169-144 record during his second stint with the team.
The news confirms the whispers that La Russa was on his way out.
Nightengale first reported that there was “a deep divide in the Chicago White Sox organization” on whether they should run it back with La Russa.
Decision That Makes Sense For Both Sides
The decision makes sense for both sides. La Russa was forced to leave the team with health concerns. The grind of another 162-game season isn’t going to do anything to help his heart condition. Even if La Russa was healthy enough to return, it is apparent he isn’t the man to lead this team to the World Series.
After being removed from the dugout for nearly a decade, it wasn’t surprising that La Russa lacked energy and perspective. When Jerry Reisdoft overruled his front office and lured the Hall of Famer out of retirement, he was banking on the fact that La Russa would be able to adapt to today’s game. La Russa failed to do so.
He was able to beat up on a weak division with a stacked roster in 2021, leading the White Sox to 93 wins and an American League Central title. But the White Sox were completely outclassed by the Houston Astros in the ALDS and bounced in four short games.
A Tarnished Legacy
This season La Russa turned into a weekly distraction. Everything from looking like he fell asleep in the dugout, intentionally walking hitters on 1-2 counts, to batting Leury Garcia third. Things got so bad that he was mocked by the Dodgers broadcast team, and “fire Tony” chants became commonplace at Guaranteed Rate Field.
La Russa’s final game was on August 28th, before getting news from his doctors that he needed to step away from the team. Miguel Cairo served as the team’s interim manager to finish the season.
His final move as manager was to pinch-hit Leury Garcia for Seby Zavala in the 9th inning. Garcia struck out. It was a fitting end to the La Russa White Sox tenure that undoubtedly tarnished his legacy as one of the best managers in baseball history.
The announcement enables Jerry Reinsdoft to avoid making the difficult decision of firing his friend. Retiring also allows La Russa to leave on his own terms without facing the embarrassment of being fired again.
The search for a new manager will now begin.
You said that La Russa lead the team to 93 wins. Actually, the team stumbled to 93 wins! After being 54-35 at the 2021 All Star Break, the team barely played over .500 the second half of the season. This cost them home field in the playoffs! 2022 picked up where 2021 left off! La Russa killed team morale with the way he handled the Yermin Mercedes incident! Actually, it wasn’t an incident until La Russa made it one! Mercedes performance tanked after that! La Russa was an anchor weighing down the whole ship! He was there just to collect… Read more »