Keynan Middleton rips White Sox 'no rules' culture

[Vote4Pedro]

Wow….it’s seriously something new every single day with this organization. Embarrassment after embarrassment on a daily basis. 

[Autumn Dreamin]

He says he wouldn't blame the pitching staff, but his most specific complaints are about pitchers? Sleeping in the bullpen, skipping PFPs, and Lynn/Graveman playing in the WBC. 

[fathom]

4 minutes ago, Lip Man 1 said:

The story said that's basically what he was told when joining the team but that shouldn't be a surprise, after all guys were told not to run hard last season among other things. 

But when you consider the remarks Grifol made when he got the job about fundamentals, accountability, ready to kick ass et al Middleton's comments tonight put him squarely in the cross hairs. Nothing has changed under his watch if those comments are accurate (and based on what I've seen and the on-field results I think they are)

I’m sure Pedro told Rick how amazing the talent was on the team, and that Tony was the one who made the team look bad.  He played into Hahn’s ego, and the rest is history 

[TheBooneLoganEra]

Thank you Kenyan Middleton for speaking up. This is damning and Pedro should be fired tomorrow. I don't understand how there is an entire coaching staff that allows this to happen. What in blue hell is going on there? 

[Lip Man 1]

Just now, Vote4Pedro said:

Wow….it’s seriously something new every single day with this organization. Embarrassment after embarrassment on a daily basis. 

And as long as they are making a lot of money none of it matters. The embarrassing situations didn't just start in 2021 under this ownership it literally began the day the bought the franchise. From my interview with Mike Veeck:

ML: That group made the first in a long line of faux paux when Eddie Einhorn made a statement the day they bought the club along the lines of ‘we’re going to start running a first class operation.’ Many Sox fans and reportedly your dad were shocked and insulted by that comment. Making it worse was that your dad was right there when it was said. How did your dad and the Veeck family feel about that comment? 

MV: “We have never equated money with class. Just because we didn’t wear 200 hundred dollar shirts and 3,000 thousand dollar suits didn’t mean we didn’t have manners or didn’t respect other people. The one thing that my family has always done first and foremost was respect the fans of baseball and the game of baseball.” 

ML: I have heard that supposedly, Eddie Einhorn over the years privately apologized to your dad and tried to mend fences with him to no avail. Is that true? 

MV: “No… Eddie Einhorn never apologized for that remark, Jerry Reinsdorf did, and there is a difference between those two men.” 

And nothing it seems, no matter how embarrassing, how unseemly, how much bad PR it generates changes anything. JR still feels he's the smartest guy in the room and how dare you question or criticize anything the Sox do. 

Just a very sad situation.  

[HOFHurt35]

Grifol was a questionable hire 6 months ago, it's now reached embarrassment level.

Anyone involved with the hire process should be shown the door, including Chris Getz. 

There is no way they can bring this guy back after this fiasco.  None.  

[fathom]

I’m excited to see how Hahn dodges the media tomorrow

[Lip Man 1]

Just now, fathom said:

I’m excited to see how Hahn dodges the media tomorrow

Well he can dodge it by not even bothering to attempt to speak with them.

[Vote4Pedro]

“Accountability”

I wonder how Pedro will coddle his players tomorrow when asked about this 

[fathom]

Just now, Vote4Pedro said:

“Accountability”

I wonder how Pedro will coddle his players tomorrow when asked about this 

Mr “Deer in the Headlights” will dismiss it, saying they just had their two biggest wins of the season

[Vote4Pedro]

Cant wait till Ozzie speaks and rips this team to shreds tomorrow! Must see TV! 

[Pale Sox]

The saddest part about all of this is the fans of this team are probably more embarrassed by this stuff than the people in charge. 

[Lip Man 1]

Just now, Pale Sox said:

The saddest part about all of this is the fans of this team are probably more embarrassed by this stuff than the people in charge. 

Well said. Absolutely correct. And that's very unfortunate and unforgivable. 

[Balta1701]

I’m pretty sure I first posted this video to sum up the White Sox in 2013. Might have been 2015, but this attitude goes all the way back to Hahn’s first year. 

 

[Balta1701]

12 minutes ago, HOFHurt35 said:

Grifol was a questionable hire 6 months ago, it's now reached embarrassment level.

Anyone involved with the hire process should be shown the door, including Chris Getz. 

There is no way they can bring this guy back after this fiasco.  None.  

He can’t have operated like this with the Royals, can he? They’re not well run overall but but there can’t be that many organizations that tolerate this lack of professionalism, right? He was under Matheny and Yost there, that can’t be stuff they’d be ok with right? Both have won a lot of stuff and coached in multiple spots, including St Louis and Milwaukee.

[fathom]

1 minute ago, Balta1701 said:

He can’t have operated like this with the Royals, can he? They’re not well run overall but but there can’t be that many organizations that tolerate this lack of professionalism, right? He was under Matheny and Yost there, that can’t be stuff they’d be ok with right? Both have won a lot of stuff and coached in multiple spots, including St Louis and Milwaukee.

He had very little authority there 

[Balta1701]

Just now, fathom said:

He had very little authority there 

Still, he can’t have been sitting around saying “you know what the problem is? These guys are working too hard”, right? The guys above him are better than tolerating this. How did this become his attitude when he has the managers spot?

[Pale Sox]

1 minute ago, Balta1701 said:

He can’t have operated like this with the Royals, can he? They’re not well run overall but but there can’t be that many organizations that tolerate this lack of professionalism, right? He was under Matheny and Yost there, that can’t be stuff they’d be ok with right? Both have won a lot of stuff and coached in multiple spots, including St Louis and Milwaukee.

He wasn’t “the guy” though. He overlooked specific players at any given time, but in a coaching/mentor role. He wasn’t in a disciplinarian or leadership role, from my understanding. 

[PolishPrince34]

What a joke of an organization! Glad more and more players are speaking out.  I haven’t been to game and will continue until the whole front office is gone. 

[Lip Man 1]

3 minutes ago, Balta1701 said:

He can’t have operated like this with the Royals, can he? They’re not well run overall but but there can’t be that many organizations that tolerate this lack of professionalism, right? He was under Matheny and Yost there, that can’t be stuff they’d be ok with right? Both have won a lot of stuff and coached in multiple spots, including St Louis and Milwaukee.

He was what the bullpen coach? Something along those lines if I remember right. He couldn't have had a lot of say or a lot of authority. 

[South Side Hit Men]

34 minutes ago, Quin said:

So, in the end they either should have kept Ricky or hired Bochy.

Dear lord.

Yep. Ricky is the only manager in the Hahn era who instilled any sort of discipline or accountability on the team. Before him, neither Robin Ventura or Rick Hahn could handle a 13 year old child, had to call Daddy Kenny in to resolve the situation which led to a team schism.

Jerry should have fired Kenny, Rick and Cooper after Kenny nuked Ozzie's authority of his DRs by extending Kenny's clubhouse snitch Cooper behind Ozzie's back, despite having an agreement to jointly evaluate the coaching staff after the 2011 season.

Kenny, Rick and Robin should all have been fired in 2015, certainly in 2016. Then again Paxson should have been fired for choking Vinnie Del Negro, Ditto Kenny's "heated exchange" with Greg Walker. This culture is Jerry Reinsdorf's MO. He cherishes it, keep the rubbish beneath him fighting each other so they don't raise a spear at him.

https://www.sbnation.com/nba/2011/3/9/2038527/john-paxson-bulls-vinny-del-negro

https://www.nbcsports.com/mlb/news/white-sox-gm-kenny-williams-has-heated-exchange-with-hitting-coach-greg-walker

[Lip Man 1]

Just now, PolishPrince34 said:

What a joke of an organization! Glad more and more players are speaking out.  I haven’t been to game and will continue until the whole front office is gone. 

Careful Polish...some folks will feel you are being "disloyal" 😆

[Lip Man 1]

1 minute ago, South Side Hit Men said:

Yep. Ricky is the only manager in the Hahn era who instilled any sort of discipline or accountability on the team. Before him, neither Robin Ventura or Rick Hahn could handle a 13 year old child, had to call Daddy Kenny in to resolve the situation which led to a team schism.

Jerry should have fired Kenny, Rick and Cooper after Kenny nuked Ozzie's authority of his DRs by extending Kenny's clubhouse snitch Cooper behind Ozzie's back, despite having an agreement to jointly evaluate the coaching staff after the 2011 season.

Kenny, Rick and Robin should all have been fired in 2015, certainly in 2016. Then again Paxson should have been fired for choking Vinnie Del Negro, Ditto Kenny's "heated exchange" with Greg Walker. This culture is Jerry Reinsdorf's MO. He cherishes it, keep the rubbish beneath him fighting each other so they don't raise a spear at him.

https://www.sbnation.com/nba/2011/3/9/2038527/john-paxson-bulls-vinny-del-negro

https://www.nbcsports.com/mlb/news/white-sox-gm-kenny-williams-has-heated-exchange-with-hitting-coach-greg-walker

Well there was one time when even JR had enough. Remember when Ozzie and Kenny were going at it publicly almost daily. The Sox were in D.C. and JR had a extremely rare press conference up in the press box/owners box area where he publicly called on both of them to basically shut the hell up and get along.

It was the right thing to do at the time.

The problem was JR refuses to do this more often, hold people accountable and demand results. 

[Vote4Pedro]

 

[Boopa1219]

28 minutes ago, Lip Man 1 said:

But when you consider the remarks Grifol made when he got the job about fundamentals, accountability, ready to kick ass et al Middleton's comments tonight put him squarely in the cross hairs. Nothing has changed under his watch if those comments are accurate (and based on what I've seen and the on-field results I think they are)

This, this right here is exactly right.

You would think a manager would covet the opportunity to be able to come in and clean up a culture and instill a new one but Grifol has proven to be incapable of that.

The Sox need to cut bait, he’s awful in game. He doesn’t optimize the roster and he’s allowed for the culture to somehow get worse under his watch. Don’t even get home started on him salivating over Sal Perez. The dude is a clown.