CHICAGO — White Sox basic supervisor Rick Hahn left little doubt as to the place the blame ought to fall for his group’s disappointing 7-19 begin to the 2023 season.
“Put it on me. That’s the job. It’s the absolute gig,” mentioned a candid and nonetheless assured Hahn previous to Thursday night time’s series-opening 14-5 loss to the Rays. “Let’s make this actual clear — it positive as heck isn’t on [first-year manager] Pedro [Grifol] and his teaching employees.
“They are doing everything in their power to prepare, focus on what’s controllable, what’s fixable, addressing the problems as they arise. And they are really doing everything in their power to get this thing right. It’s absolutely not on the manager and the coaches.”
The White Sox have misplaced eight straight video games for a 3rd time for the reason that begin of the 2022 marketing campaign, together with an 0-6 street journey that includes sweeps by the Rays and the Blue Jays. The group is slashing .184/.245/.301 with 49 runs scored in its previous 17 video games, though two runs got here in opposition to outfielder Luke Raley within the ninth inning Thursday after he got here on to pitch with an 11-run lead.
That street journey completed with a 24-inning scoreless drought — which grew to 25 earlier than the White Sox scored on Lenyn Sosa’s double within the second — and three runs within the last 4 video games. Hahn understands the followers’ anger, particularly after the final supervisor talked in Spring Training about incomes their belief again, and Grifol spoke of watching the group on the sector earlier than making any resolution coming off its struggles in 2022, when Chicago completed 81-81.
“They’re not alone. We’re upset,” Hahn mentioned. “We’re feeling each emotion within the ebook, starting from rage to disappointment, and we’ve executed maybe the precise reverse of what we got down to do when it comes to regaining our followers’ confidence and belief in what we’re about right here.
“At the tip of the day, we’ve to win. That’s the way in which we’re going to earn this again. We can sit right here and speak about the way it’s early. We can sit right here and speak about all these different groups that had tough begins however nonetheless turned it round and even gained the World Series after these tough begins. But in the long run, it’s not going to matter except we begin successful.
“We still have not just that important hole in the standings to dig out from, but that hole in terms of regaining our fans’ trust,” Hahn added. “We completely understand that and more than just empathize with the emotions they’re feeling. We’re living it day in and day out.”
To Grifol’s credit score, an strategy he believes in hasn’t modified in the course of the tough begin to his managerial profession. He continues with a slim focus of 1 sequence at a time — down to 1 recreation at a time — and he works together with his employees to arrange his gamers for fulfillment.
Grifol reiterated Thursday how he believes this group will flip issues round. He has not misplaced any confidence.
“I’m not happy about it. Nobody in this clubhouse is happy about it, nobody in this building is happy about it,” Grifol mentioned. “But we’ve 130-something video games left, and once more, we’ve guys which have carried out right here, and so they’re simply not going to not carry out.
“We’re all here to get better. We have a plan in place today to get better today to win a baseball game. We’ve got to go out and leave it on the field and try to execute as best we can. That’s really about it. What else can you do? Not show up to the ballpark? This game’s unforgiving. This game is every single day. Whether you win or lose the day before, you’ve got to come out and do the same thing again today.”
A purpose of reaching the playoffs and contending for the World Series stays the main focus for Hahn and his front-office employees. He additionally understands that if the White Sox spiral continues, his job might be — and needs to be — below scrutiny.
“I’m not a king,” Hahn mentioned. “I don’t sit on this chair by divine birthright. It’s an absolute privilege to be basic supervisor of the White Sox, one which I have to proceed to earn. It’s professional sports. These issues ultimately come to an finish. …
“But the day I assumed this job or anyone assumes a general manager’s job, you know it’s going to end at some point. Never has it been my focus, and it’s not today. It’s more about, again, getting this team right for 2023. And what happens later in this season or after the season or five years from now will happen when it happens.”
Content Source: www.mlb.com