All Activity

NO! Everything he does is s%*# or everything he does is awesome! There is no room in-between for independent rational thought. I thought you knew this.

If it's so ridiculous, why is there no mention of it anywhere in his bio? Wander Franco was a generational talent, his biggest signing ever and the first $100+ million contract for the Rays. Obviously it wasn't Rodriguez's fault...anymore than Sherrone Moore's delfish individual actions can only be blamed on himself and not Harbaugh/UM. From having lived in that Latin American world, one can certainly see everyday the temptations and potential snares that are out there for young and rich athletes who transformed entire villages with inheard of wealth virtually overnight. But sometimes it's also just time to move on for both sides. A fresh start. The same thing kind of gut check reassessments happened in the Marlins' organization when Jose Fernandez passed away. There are a number of individuals who felt responsible then, all the way up to the owner's box. At any rate, Rodriguez would probably tell you the same exact thing after 16 years with the same organization. Time for a change and challenging new opportunity.

You’ve never had a job where a moron was in charge and you couldn’t do anything about it?

Not sure I can get too excited when super star Chris Getz was also our assistant GM and even his greatness couldn't overcome a tough situation.

Get has surrounded himself with people who are more qualified than him. That's a good thing, especially if he listens to them, which he seems to be doing. Could bite him in the ass later, though, as there are several folks now who could easily replace him if Ishbia makes a change when he takes over.

Just ignore him on this one…it was a ridiculous take and should probably be deleted to avoid giving it further attention.

Just saw that he has also played some 1B outside of mostly RF. Problem is that he is out of options.

I can’t say I know much of anything about this guy, but from the looks of it, it seems like he is more qualified to be the GM than Getz is.

Part of me hopes fans start a "Fire Warren" chant, just because he wanted the spotlight SO badly right now.

https://soxmachine.com/2025/05/white-sox-baseball-cant-break-will-venables-relentless-positivity

I’m guessing this was all Getz, but Ishbia pushing for more smart baseball minds would be a good thing as well.

yes.

lol they signed him when he was 16, is one supposed to predict that a child may end up being a pedophile years later?

The thought entered my mind.

La Russa?

Yep. That was the single worst hire I have ever seen in baseball.

Who besides Getz would hire an Assistant GM? Are you suggesting Jerry or Ishbia might have played a role in pushing this?

I can't help wondering if anyone besides Getz pulled the trigger on this hire. If it was all Getz, then good for him.

Will be interesting to see how they split areas of responsibility between Rodriguez and Barfield. It seems likely to me that our international operations will go under Rodriguez. Keller has always had a weird title and I feel like that might change now with Rodriguez in place and likely sitting in between him and Getz. Both Rodriguez and Barfield have backgrounds in player development so not sure what happens there. No idea on ops, acquisitions, pro scouting, amateur scouting, strategy, sports performance, etc. R&D / systems infrastructure probably needs it own senior leader that isn’t one of the Assistant GMs given the technical knowledge there. Jin Wong should continue to have his own area of responsibilities focus on budgeting, payroll planning, contract negotiations, etc.

The foundational changes he has made should not be understated. He basically wiped out the previous group of international scouts and has built a brand new team under David Keller. He has modernized what was a terribly broken Analytics department and has integrated it throughout all major functional areas of the org. He has built a new, beefed up Acquistions group under Matt Grabowski to bring a more data-centric element to player evaluation alongside traditional pro scouting under Gene Watson in new position in that area. He’s invested in key technologies like Hawk-Eye and iPitch machines to enhance both our biomechanics and player development functions. He’s added designated leaders to oversee pitching and hitting across the org. He’s greatly expanded the size of the front office by hiring three Assistant GMs with specific responsibilities and has added other new roles including a Director of Major League Strategy and Director of Leadship, Culture, & Education. I’m sure there are many other changes & hires I’m not outlining above, but his efforts have been substantial and should warrant some praise from fans.

Not sure why you continue to resurrect a dead issue with hundreds of posts. Ishbia, is never going to lease land from an Iranian criminal instead of from IL taxpayers. Not going to happen and there are many reasons why. i.e, limited ingress/egress, complicated development issues*, and, contrary to what you have argued here, the "78" is not within walking distance to any entertainment venue. Even if it was, that area would not be safe for fans to be walking around especially given that the majority of White Sox home games are at night. What you hope for would further risk the future of the White Sox franchise in Chicago, something that is already a concern. But anyway, proceed. *from AI: Key Findings and Project Details Site History and Soil Composition: The 62-acre site, located along the Chicago River, is former railyard land, and the river itself previously ran through a portion of the proposed location. Geotechnical surveys have identified challenging subsurface conditions: River Muck: Borings indicated a layer of very soft, organic river muck with very low soil strength near the river's elevation. Fill Material: The surface generally consists of 1 to 2.5 feet of fill, including gravel, sand, silt, bricks, and clay. Contamination: A strong petroleum odor was noted at some boring locations, and the general history of industrial use means the soil may require environmental remediation. Construction Approach: Due to these conditions, the project team, a joint venture including Pepper Construction, GMA Construction Group, and ALL Construction, is emphasizing specific foundation and soil remediation strategies to ensure structural integrity. Soil stabilization is a primary challenge for the riverfront construction. Note: Any further development beyond the Fire stadium, including commercial or residential, would require the same environmental and structural evaluation.

If you can’t see the positives around what Getz’ vision seems to be and the people around the league buying into it, then you are just continuing the narrative you want to have. He is selling himself to some pretty damn bright baseball minds.

"The Rays have formally announced the departure of longtime Assistant General Manager Carlos Rodriguez. When Chaim Bloom (current StL GM) departed the Rays to run the Red Sox in 2019, the team did not elevate a General Manager due to the equity found in talent between Peter Bendix, James Click, and Carlos Rodriguez. Since that time, James Click was recruited to be the General Manager of the Houston Astros in 2020 (winning the World Series in 2022), and Peter Bendix was named General Manager ahead of the 2022 season before being recruited to become President of Baseball Operations of the Miami Marlins after the 2023 season..." https://www.draysbay.com/rays/85871/rays-announce-departure-of-agm-carlos-rodriguez This article neatly summarizes the rationale for Rodriguez's departure. Basically as part of a four headed Asst GM situation and under both Eric Neander and advisor Jon Daniels (ex Rangers)...there was nowhere left to go organizationally under new ownership as Matthew Silverman and Auld both stepped down from top exec roles. https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/46295886/rays-presidents-silverman-auld-step-part-sale&sa=U&ved=2ahUKEwifz_aA38aRAxUAHUQIHUNCL2AQFnoECBQQAg&usg=AOvVaw2NwCh9zLK7AsmRKOQjryjA Rays during the Carlos Rodriguez years 2010 96 wins 2011 91 2012 90 2013 92 2014-2017 *77/80/*68/80 2018 90 2019 96 2020 40-20 (108-54 pace) 2021 100 2022 86 2023 99 2024 80 2025 *77

"As for Rodriguez, it’s not surprising to see the Cubs explore poaching a Rays’ executive. The Rays have proven adept at building a farm system that should keep Tampa competitive for years to come. Former Rays’ executives hold top positions in Los Angeles, Boston, and Houston, and they’ve proven successful both in and outside of Tampa Bay. Rodriguez is their vice president of player development and international scouting. For the Cubs, they are desperate to build a development team that can do a better job of sustaining success than their previous efforts." https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2021/10/cubs-narrow-search-for-new-general-manager.html Out of those Cubs' interviews, James Harris went on to interview for the Houston Astros' GM position and is still one of three Asst GMs with Cleveland under Chris Antonetti and Mike Chernoff. https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2022/01/guardians-announce-several-organizational-promotions.html