Pushing the right buttons
I played for six managers in the major leagues and am often asked to pick my favorite. For many, that person is the manager who made them feel the most comfortable. And while a personal favorite might come to my mind, he may not necessarily be the manager who helped me achieve the most success.
A manager's personality definitely dictates the presence of his team. Anyone who knows baseball can make a pitching change or call for a pinch hitter. A truly qualified manager will set the right tone in the clubhouse, and that tone will carry on to the field.
Among the current skippers, I think Ozzie Guillen is pushing all the right buttons. He has the Chicago White Sox tied atop the AL Central, and they're keeping pace with the best in baseball. In just his first season at the helm, Guillen may be showing he already is one of the best.
I was a teammate of Guillen's with the White Sox. As a player he was known to the public as a hyper, fun-loving shortstop who often fooled around on the field. In the clubhouse, however, he was quite different. Sure he had tons of fun, but as a teammate he was respected as much as anyone.
From a baseball perspective he played the game hard, knew what it took to win games and stayed focused on the little things. He also was a gatekeeper for those ideals as a leader.
Despite his relatively diminutive size, he was the first in line to get on a teammate who was dogging it or one whom we felt wasn't on the same page. He had a passion for playing the game the right way.
The White Sox locker room is taking on his qualities these days, and the result is showing up in the box scores. Expectations on a team always will trickle down from the top, and Guillen expects his players to work and play hard – just as he expected from his teammates in his prior life as a player.
As that player, Guillen preached the ease of taking extra bases just by anticipating and pushing the defense. And now the White Sox are taking on his aggressiveness in the basepaths – an aggressiveness I remember watching as Guillen helped a young Robin Ventura become one of the best base runners in the game.
Chicago already had plenty of home run pop. Now the White Sox are utilizing good base running as a vital weapon.
Guillen has a unique personality that truly balances fun and work. He is not frivolously fun nor is he hard-nosed to a fault. For this reason, he draws people toward him and commands their respect rather than demanding it.
Much was made of the fact that he was given a team that was expected to contend this season. This often is a daunting task for a first-year manager.
But make no mistake. This team already is Guillen's team. He already has put his stamp on these players, and it's showing in the win column.
