Chicago White Sox begin a new era with hopes of a quick turnaround — but they face a gargantuan challenge – The Denver Post

The Chris Getz-Pedro Grifol era began Friday night at Guaranteed Rate Field when the Chicago White Sox played host to the Detroit Tigers at Guaranteed Rate Field.

Getz, who was promoted to general manager Thursday, gave his first-year manager a vote of confidence during his introductory news conference, confirming Grifol will return to the Sox dugout in 2024.

Getz has some work to do to make Sox fans believe he was the right man for the job. Retaining Grifol was his first big move, and the two are tasked with turning around a team even Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf conceded has been unwatchable this season.

“I have a hard time watching these games,” Reinsdorf said Thursday. “There are some nights when I don’t even watch the game. I record, and then if I win I watch it.”

As marketing campaigns go, “Tape the Sox game and don’t watch it if they lose” probably won’t win any awards. But at least Reinsdorf understands the gargantuan challenge the Sox face in convincing fans it’s OK to support their favorite team.

A manager’s job is to win, but as the only one in the organization expected to deal with the media twice a day, he also has to help sell hope for the future.

Grifol reacted to the news that his job was safe without any emotion, telling the media Friday that he never felt like it wasn’t safe.

“I didn’t just learn that (Thursday),” Grifol said. “We had some conversations prior to (Thursday). Not in complete detail, but I never once felt like my job was in jeopardy. Obviously he made it known to the public yesterday, but in all my conversations with him, and even with (fired executives Rick Hahn and Ken Williams) and Jerry prior to them being dismissed, I never felt that way.”

New GMs often look to hire their own managers, especially after a season as dreadful as this one for the White Sox. But Grifol and Getz have a relationship dating to Getz’s playing days with the Kansas City Royals.

Grifol said he had a lot of ideas for 2024. He didn’t reveal any Friday.

Asked if he expected to retain his coaching staff, Grifol said: “We have 30 games left. I’m not thinking about that right now. What I’m thinking about is the process we’re putting into place here. We have been for the last 2-3 weeks.”

While Getz conceded there could be “skepticism” among Sox fans upset with an in-house choice after a season like this, Grifol didn’t seem aware of the fact a sizable segment of fans wanted a change in the manager’s seat.

“There are no scholarships in baseball,” he said. “They either keep you or they don’t keep you. And if they keep you they’ve got their reasons why they keep you. I don’t make those decisions.”

Does Grifol feel he still has to prove himself to skeptical Sox fans?

“I do my job every single day,” he replied. “I’m not in the business of having to evaluate myself. I’m in the business of making sure that I cross-check myself and continue to get better every single day. The evaluation of me as a big-league manager comes from above me. I don’t make those decisions. Those decisions are made way above me. That’s the decision they have made.

“They’re seeing something (about) me that they think can help this team get to where it wants to go.”

One of the keys to getting the Sox to where they want to go will be staying healthy and reporting to camp physically and mentally prepared. Reinsdorf said everyone will go home with an offseason plan tailored to them.

“Every year we send players home with a plan. ‘This is what you’ve got to do,’ ” Reinsdorf said. “But this year, we’re going to police these plans. We’re going to make sure the players are following these plans so when they come to spring training, they’re ready. We’re not going to take their word that they’re doing what they’re supposed to be doing.

“So given the (mediocre) division and given that we have a really good core of players, I would expect next year would be better.”

Third baseman Yoán Moncada was one of those core players who was lost to an early-season back injury that torpedoed his season and forced the Sox to go with Hanser Alberto, who eventually was released, and then Jake Burger, who was dealt to the Miami Marlins after a breakthrough season.

“The team gives us a plan to work on throughout the offseason,” Moncada said through an interpreter. “We usually follow that plan. But at the same time, we always hire our personal trainer to help us to follow that plan. I think that’s something everybody does.”

Moncada, who had two IL stints of a month or longer, said his offseason plan is to “rest the back” and hope he’s ready to go in spring training.

The promotion of Getz didn’t change the pregame atmosphere in the Sox clubhouse. It was business as usual, and few were available to comment on the news.

“He talked to us and told us his expectations and what he wants from us, and he was upbeat,” Gavin Sheets said. “He was excited about his opportunity, he was excited to work with us. And obviously we’re all familiar with him and respect him and we want to see him succeed and we want to succeed as well. So I think that’s a really good partnership.”

For players such as Sheets trying to earn a spot on the 2024 roster, September is a chance to prove themselves.

“We’ve got to play as hard as we can these next 30 (days), and when you bring in a new GM, you’re playing for your spot,” he said. “You want to show to him what you can do and why you need to be a part of this rebuild. So we all have a job to do, and I think we’ve got a good guy in charge.”

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