Tony La Russa responds as best he can to critics; a White Sox in first place

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CHICAGO At 76, Tony La Russa still has the energy to patrol the outfield in batting practice before every game. Bat-fungus in hand, he stops to visit his players, much like he did with the A’s over a quarter of a century ago.

La Russa is still on fire, too, to come face to face with an opposing player. When White Sox hitter Jose Abreu was hit with a pitch on July 30 against Cleveland, La Russa faced Indians wide receiver Roberto Perez,

There are, however, signs of softening. Or maybe it’s an attempt to bridge the generation gap when he sometimes flips his cap, wears it inside out like kids, on those on-the-field batting practice tours. outside.

Winning has always brought out the best in La Russa, and he wins big. The White Sox, who host the A’s for a four-game streak starting Monday, are 68-50 and run away with the Central American League despite injuries that have limited star outfielders Luis Robert and Eloy Jimenez to 43 games between them.

What kills me is how many games he’s been in and won, how nervous he is before every game and before every pitch, said Sox third baseman Joe McEwing, who played. for La Russa in St. Louis.

He clings to every pitch because he knows how important each pitch is and how he can change a game. It doesn’t matter what’s ahead or how late we are. He’s so locked up on every lot.

La Russa with her Hall of Fame plaque in 2014.

La Russa is back in the canoe after a nine-year hiatus that was ridiculed and despised when it was announced on October 29. The outcry escalated days later when news broke that La Russa had been charged with impaired driving, his second offense. , after a car accident in February 2020.

Still, the White Sox hired him, making him the third-oldest manager in MLB history. Only Connie Mack (87) and Jack McKeon (80) were successful later in life.

La Russa retired in 2011 after winning the World Series, his third, with the Cardinals. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2014. He remained in the game as an executive with Major League Baseball, Diamondbacks, Red Sox and Angels, but said he felt tortured watching films. matches from a sequel without having the opportunity to make an impact. .

My heart has always been in the canoe, said La Russa, who expected offers to handle but did not plan to take any.

That was until the Sox called to gauge his interest following the sacking of Rick Renteria following a frustrating loss to Athletics in the first round of the 2020 American League playoffs. Multiple sources from his days at Oakland sensed La Russa was all-in after talking to them and measuring his passion to come back.

It was a combination of impatience to get back out there and control myself, to have the energy, and the White Sox to make the call with a chance to win ASAP, La Russa said on the day. of the announcement of his hiring.

Criticism of his hiring peaked again in May when La Russa had to admit that he didn’t know of any rule governing extra-inning play. He left pitcher Liam Hendricks on second when he could have been substituted, and the Sox lost 1-0.

Now I know, La Russa said after the game.

Two weeks later, he tore up one of his own players, Yermin Mercedes, for hitting a home run on 3-0 ground he was supposed to take with the Sox leading 15-4 in the ninth inning. This fueled a wave of criticism ranging from his own players to former stars such as CC Sabathia, who questioned whether La Russa should handle it.

But winning beats everything.

The eruption of injuries allowed La Russa to deploy the skills of journeymen like Billy Hamilton and Brian Goodwin, and rookies Andrew Vaughn, Seby Zavala and Sheets in a manner similar to how he employed Tony Phillips and Mike Gallego in Oakland and Aaron Myles, Skip Schumaker and Miguel Cairo in St. Louis.

The thing you learn is you can build versatility, said La Russa, who employed Vaughn, who was drafted in 2019 as Cal’s first baseman, in left field the third. goal and right field.

Vaughn, 23, got used to La Russas’ methods during a fireside chat with Cal’s baseball team ahead of his first season.

I remember it was very special, Vaughn recalls. He was always talking about being a player.

La Russa and her players kissed after some special moments and emotional victories. When 25-year-old rookie Gavin Sheets hit a three-point shoot-off on July 19, La Russa hugged the child previously reserved for World Series celebrations.

Well, just take a close look, La Russa told a reporter surprised by his gesture. This is what the family does.

The best thing you can do to win is to be right. Months before he was hired, La Russa had said in an informal conversation that he would be successful in handling today’s game because confidence in analysis has gone beyond common sense.

It wasn’t a new chorus. But it was another chance for La Russa to prove her point.

It’s so sophisticated and definitely helps your preparation, said La Russa, who was at the forefront of the analytic movement in the mid-1980s with both Chicago and the A’s. But I think there is a healthy respect on the part of this organization that once this game starts you have to watch everything.

You always have to have guys who are strong enough and tough enough to know how to be productive. And I think you can’t play the percentages once the game starts.

So those people who want to say that an RBI guy is not important or that it is not important to put the ball in play, watch the game. Put the ball into play and you have a chance to win.

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