Dick Allen

We really can't speculate how good or bad Thome would be as a coach unless someone has some experience with him other than watching him play. Personally, I don't see him being a hitting coach, but he has worked an awful lot with Charlie Manuel who is known as a hitting guru. Maybe they are going to do what Hawk has always thought should be the case, have 2 hitting coaches. Maybe Thome could be a coach/player. Maybe this Thome stuff is all BS.

Maybe he's looking at the next Jon Garland or Jeff Marquez.

Harold also re-signed, why doesn't Ozzie call him KW's b****? I knew the Guillens couldn't move on. Another uneccessary column from Cowley. And Ozzie didn't leave? Didn't he have another year on his contract? Didn't he say he wouldn't come back without an extension even with the year left on his contract? People can call Ozzie smart all they want, but the reality is he is a dumbass.

QUOTE (jwmann2 @ Oct 14, 2011 -> 10:49 AM) Dunn needs to see the field of play more often, not just DH. That's his problem. And I ain't talking left field like he was in Cincinnati. He should either split time with Konerko at 1st or play third. I'm sure the play 3rd is a typo, and normally I would agree about playing the field considering how he used to oppose being the DH, but Dunn only hit .115 while playing the field this season with 2 homers, his only extra base hits in 122 AB. Its really stunning how bad he was. I think he will improve next year, but still be garbage. Hit around .200 with 20 homers if he plays the same amount.

QUOTE (JorgeFabregas @ Oct 15, 2011 -> 08:47 PM) It'd be nice if one of these vanity businesses worked out for Frank. This one doesn't seem like a winner. Chances are, unlike his music business ventures, Frank has zero to very little money invested in this. He's probably getting paid to use his name and make some appearances. I doubt if Big Hurt Beer is a bust it will at least hurt him financially. It would probably cost him money, but not that he already has.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Oct 14, 2011 -> 08:04 PM) Absolutely. Or they could pay him to stay home and not work at all. Not if Theo doesn't want to go to another place. Unlike players, his contract is non transferrable. If Theo wants to go to the Cubs and doesn't want to go anywhere else, the Red Sox have one team to negotiate with, and with what has already transpired, if you are the Cubs, why would you give them anything of value? Their smear campaign is going to cost them at least some compensation.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Oct 14, 2011 -> 04:57 PM) Wait, so this isn't done yet? I don't see where the Red Sox have much leverage in compensation now. Its not like Theo can go back to Boston. If I'm the Cubs, I'll give them something, but if Boston insists on any real significant prospects, or players, I'd call their bluff. If you have to wait a year, wait a year, I doubt it would come to that. Not only would Boston have to pay Theo his regular salary, but a $3.5 million bonus.

Ozzie Guillen, 2003: "Obviously you want to make money in your job, but this job is not about money. It’s about winning."

They can't get rid of him. When Ventura gets kicked out of a game, won't KW want Paulie to run the team?

QUOTE (Brian @ Oct 12, 2011 -> 08:08 PM) Thought if you were DFA'd and didn't accept assignment and were released, contract was void and you were FA? Didn't Jeff Weaver do that and go to the Cards in 06 among other guys in the past? No, you get paid. Your next team pays you the pro-rated minimum, and that amount is subtracted from what your old team owes. When guys get released in the NBA it worked differently. Their old team paid them what they owed them and they also collected money from a new team if they were picked up. That's why some guys agree to buyouts.

QUOTE (Brian @ Oct 12, 2011 -> 08:00 PM) Someone tell Joe Buck that Inge would of been giving up a lot of money if he didn't accept that minor league assignment and was released. Why would he give up money if he's released? The contract is guaranteed.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Oct 11, 2011 -> 10:33 PM) I wasn't the one who made a post concerned about one of his boring answers today. I was responding to it. I prefer funny showmen like Ozzie, but Ventura deserves our support even if he is very very very bland. Not that it really matters, but he's actually a good interview and very funny. The only bland thing about him is his delivery. If you listen to what he says, he's wise and funny. With Ozzie, he was all about the delivery. I was shocked and happy when they announced this move. I'm even happier about it after hearing Robin speak about the job. He'll make mistakes, every manager does, but I really think the players are going to love him and will play hard and be accountable. Once he gets a hang on using his bullpen, he may turn out to be one of the better managers in baseball.

QUOTE (Soxfest @ Oct 10, 2011 -> 12:59 PM) Sharing an agent years ago adds alot in game tactics. No but if you share agents you sometimes become more familiar with each other. From everything I have read, Parent seems like a pretty solid choice.

QUOTE (justBLAZE @ Oct 9, 2011 -> 12:11 PM) Interesting, he is the current third base coach for Boston Red Sox. Would they bring him in to be the bench coach? With Francona gone, they may let his coaches go elsewhere, so maybe coaching 3rd base.

QUOTE (robinventura23 @ Oct 9, 2011 -> 01:15 PM) Take this FWIW, @cst_Cowley cst_Cowley Mark Parent is the front-runner for the bench coach job, according to Sox sources. One said it's all but a done deal, other said not yet. So Cowley has it covered either way. He's truly a buffoon.

QUOTE (Tex @ Oct 9, 2011 -> 06:45 AM) And, if you are going to take another run with the same 25 man roster, wouldn't you go with a new manager that is 180 degrees from the last? We wanted a guy that will manage more from the book and less from his gut, I am going to see how he manages before passing judgement. Steve Phillips addressed that when he was giving the Dave Martinez lacks presence interview, he said inevitiably, most teams hire the exact opposite when replacing a manager. Ozzie took over for Jerry Manuel. When Robin's tenure ends, look for a loudmouth to take over.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Oct 8, 2011 -> 07:06 AM) That is a lot harder when it is your manager who is distracting you... A player told Kurtjian the team talked more about Ozzie/KW than the game, so ending that fiasco probably makes the team better already.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Oct 7, 2011 -> 08:28 PM) You'd think ONE of them might be a guy who Ventura's familiar with from the last 7-8 years living in SoCal. Someone from the Angels, Dodgers, Padres...just a guess. F From all the interviews, it doesn't seem like Robin is really involved in choosing coaches.

I heard Parent and/or Sandberg, but I think they will add someone with MLB managerial experience. I would think it could be Leyva or Fregosi.

QUOTE (RockRaines @ Oct 7, 2011 -> 10:18 AM) Better PR would have been a coach who won a WS like TLA or Francona. Robin has years of playing and leadership experience in an MLB clubhouse. Its not that difficult to move from that to managing a clubhouse. They arent calling plays or inventing some new sort of baseball, he is leading a team that already has a player/coach in Konerko and several young kids that respect him from their offseasons and ST working with him. I agree. Its not like they have to explain the game to Robin. People are thinking this is way more complicated than it really is. Ozzie Guillen, despite what the Sox loved to say, has the IQ of a grape and he won a WS his second year managing after being a 3rd base coach which is watching games from a different spot. Robin has watched plenty of baseball. He knows what's going on.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Oct 7, 2011 -> 02:46 AM) I just read all the Trib articles and Lamont's quotes and this is a scary hire. Yes I believe Cowley. If he's wrong, he's putting his job on the line. What Cooper did is really sleazy. Nobody likes a backstabber. It's WRONG. If this was the 1950s, Ozzie would beat his ass. But nowadays he'll spend time in prison for smashing Coop a good one in the nose. (I'm assuming the article is true; if not, my bad). You read the Lamont quotes, but dismissed all the quotes about the lack of experience not being a big issue? Its baseball. If it were that complicated this message board should be shut down, because none of us would have the credentials to voice an opinion. Remember, your boy Ozzie didn't have the experience Lamont says you need. He waved at people in the stands and waved them in from 3rd base, and now all he does is win championships. Cowley is wrong. Look at his past articles. Didnt he say the Sox would hire Daryl Boston as a puppet? Then didn't he brag about the Sun Times being the first to break the news that Dave Martinez is their choice even though he was never interviewed? He doesn't know. They won't fire him for being wrong. If they did, Marriotti would have lasted a week and Cowley would have been gone a long time ago.

QUOTE (Quinarvy @ Oct 6, 2011 -> 09:21 PM) It's funny cause Cowley is a bad journalist. This. Guys, its MLB manager. The decisions aren't hard with modern day stats ready 24/7, unless you're Ozzie. If he can help people, which he has enough baseball knowledge and seemingly-not-asshole persona that he probably can. Is it the best hire? No. He would have been my fourth choice, but come on. Its also strange Cowley will be wasting his writing talents tomorrow on a team he said became irrelevant once Ozzie left.

Archive Florida Marlins manager Ozzie Guillen's contract for 2012 will be $250,000 less than the amount he would have made managing the Chicago White Sox next season. Guillen will make $10 million over the life of his four-year deal (for an annual base of $2.5 million) to lead the newly named Miami Marlins, major league sources told ESPNChicago.com. The same sources confirmed that Guillen made $2.5 million with the White Sox in 2011 and was scheduled to make $2.75 million in 2012.

Its obviously a fluff piece and what else are they going to say, but I don't think respect will be a problem from the players: http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseb...7,0,73915.story

QUOTE (sircaffey @ Oct 6, 2011 -> 09:20 PM) Yes, Robin will get manager money. So would Martinez, except Martinez actually has negotiating leverage. I can't imagine what Robin would have said to try to negotiate. Probably that he likes to be home in CA and really doesn't need to work, but if you want to make it worthwhile..........................