Team not interested in former player as manager

AJ Pierzynski will not be the next manager of the Chicago White Sox. And the outspoken former catcher turned MLB analyst and podcaster had some thoughts on not even being considered.

The Chicago White Sox fired skipper Pedro Grifol on Thursday. Chicago recently snapped a 21-game losing streak. After a 61-101 season in Grifol’s first year, the White Sox are 28-89 and on pace to finish with a worse record than the 1962 Mets, who went 40-120, the worst record in modern MLB history. So, it would be tough to dispute that Grifol should have been fired. But who will be the next skipper on Chicago’s South Side?

General manager Chris Getz was asked on ESPN Chicago’s Carmen & Jurko if Pierzynski would be a candidate.

“He does not fit the criteria that we feel like is best fit for the organization,” Getz said .

Getz was then asked to clarify if the targets of the search would be coaches from other organizations.

“That is what I said earlier and that is what I am prioritizing. We are open-minded and we want to find the best candidate for the White Sox that we can. There’s a long list of candidates that we’re curious to learn more about. I expect our target pool to be people that are in other organizations, wearing a uniform.”

Pierzynski, who had previously shot down rumors tying him to the job, was interviewed later in the day on ESPN 1000’s Waddle & Silvy show.

“OK. So what. What’s the criteria,” Pierzynski said when he was told that he didn’t “fit the criteria.”

He was then asked if he’d like to be interviewed for the job. Pierzynski confirmed that he would.

“Of course, why not? Why would I not want an interview? I want to see what it’s all about. Let’s see. Let’s find out what the criteria is. I’ve had many conversations with [White Sox owner] Jerry Reinsdorf about, ‘Hey, how can I help the organization get better?’ And he always says, ‘Hey, you know, I’ll get back to you.’ And then I never hear back. So, it’s like, alright. At some point, I’d like to know. I’m still a White Sox fan. Sometimes I have to question why. So, yeah. To hear things like, ‘Shut it down’ right away, how do you know if you don’t talk to me?”

Pierzynski was also asked if his criticisms of his former team might be hurting his chances.

“I think that could be a fair statement. Yeah. What I was as a player was a cartoon character. What I am as a person is nothing like what I was as a player.”

It’s easy to see why Pierzynski remains connected to the White Sox. While he played for seven teams in his career, more than half of his games were played for Chicago. The team also enjoyed great success while Pierzynski was there. He was the catcher on the 2005 team, which was the White Sox first (and to date, only) World Series winner since 1917. So, we can see why the fans might be interested in him. Especially coming out of a pair of dismal seasons, seeing someone from the glory days can energize the fan base.

Certainly it’s understandable that Getz would want someone currently coaching. But it’s not like Pierzynski has been away from the game since he last played. Taking an interview with him feels like a low-risk idea.

[ESPN 1000 on X: Carmen & Jurko , Waddle & Silvy ]

Note: The full interviews can be heard on the respective YouTube pages of Carmen & Jurko and Waddle & Silvy .

The post AJ Pierzynski on not being White Sox managerial candidate: ‘How do you know if you don’t talk to me?’ appeared first on Awful Announcing .