White Sox fans fear White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf’s history could come into play again. Could it?
Now, you’re probably asking, “what is ‘Reinsdorfing’?” According to the dictionary that I just made up just like the word, “Reinsdorfing” is defined as:
Adjective: When an organization commits a blunder based on an authority figure’s personal feelings, and/or whether the figure wants to spend the money. “Reinsdorfing” can also be used as a verb, ie, “The team organization Reinsdorfed this year”.
You can’t blame Chicago White Sox fans for being nervous. We all know the White Sox and Tony La Russa parted ways after a disappointing 2022 season that saw the Sox finish second in the American League Central with an 81-81 record. General Manager Rick Hahn immediately got to work searching for managerial candidates and assured Sox Nation that he was in charge of the search after owner Jerry Reinsdorf went over Hahn’s head to hire La Russa.
Jerry Reinsdorf is famously (or infamously) loyal to those who have done well for him. And he has a reputation for being cheap. You can see where Sox fans are coming from.
Laurence Holmes of 670 The Score said it best in a column he published in the Chicago Sun-Times:
Jerry Reinsdorf’s unilateral decision strained the credibility for his front office, whose power he had effectively usurped. It was a breach of the public trust with the fan base. Sox fans have every right to exact their revenge by keeping their money in their pocket for a while. The Sox are now on a “prove it” deal with the South Side.
More recently, Scott Merkin posted this unprompted Tweet, which got the aptly-named “White Sox Twitter” in a buzz:
Jim Thome possesses a veritable wealth of baseball knowledge, along with being a first-class individual. He would make for a good manager, if that's a job of interest to the Hall of Famer at some point.
— Scott Merkin (@scottmerkin) October 18, 2022
Occam’s razor of course, suggests this is just Merkin’s personal opinion, and not an indication that Reinsdorf had gotten involved in the search process again. But after the infamous La Russa hire, White Sox fans are, well, a little paranoid. Again, can’t blame them. But we can also apply Hanlon’s razor to the La Russa hire, as well. Jerry wanted La Russa to have another chance managing the White Sox, thinking he, with his experience and tactical knowledge, would give the Sox the edge.
Just look at how that turned out.
The point is, Merkin’s tweet spooked some Sox fans who thought that Reinsdorf could get involved in the hiring process after Hahn indicated he won’t be.
Jerry Reinsdorf has a history of Reinsdorfing, hence the term named after him. From keeping John Paxson and Gar Forman on too long as the President and General Manager of the Chicago Bulls, to the aforementioned hiring of La Russa, to the White Sox failure to sign Manny Machado and Bryce Harper after the Sox were linked to the two.
White Sox fans do have plenty of reasons to be suspicious, whether it’s a warranted or not. Point is, they’ve been there before. While it doesn’t seem to be the case at this time, (Early reports suggest the White Sox are closing in on Houston Astros bench coach Joe Espada) reports that Ozzie Guillen will also be interviewed likely won’t quell any fears.
But will Jerry Reinsdorf screw up the hiring process. I certainly hope not! I don’t know if he will, but I understand that he could. It is safe to say that Jerry does want to win, but again, applying Occam’s and Hanlon’s razor, he might think that he can still win a championship his way, even though it’s been proven over and over again, that it doesn’t. Sox fans can only watch and see what happens. If reports about Espada are true, then Sox fans can breathe a sigh of relief.
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