White Sox: Julio Vinas returning as Birmingham Barons skipper

Aug 16, 2014; Detroit, MI, USA; Baseball bats in the dugout before the game between the Detroit Tigers and the Seattle Mariners at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports

Julio Vinas was kept as the Birmingham Barons skipper on Wednesday as announced by the Chicago White Sox.

The Double-A affiliate of the White Sox, the Barons finished last in the Southern League North Division with a 60-80 overall record, 17 games out of first place in the North.

The Barons were 32-38 at home in ’14 and 28-42 on the road, and as for Vinas, it will be his third season as the Barons’ skipper.

In an article by Tyler Brown of MiLB.com, it says the following on Vinas:

"“In two years with the Barons, Vinas has compiled a 137-143 record while his all-time record stands at 267-292. During his tenure as the 67th manager in Barons history, he led Birmingham to its first Southern League Championship since 2002, won the 2013 North Division First Half Championship.”"

The rest of the Barons’ staff will include: Britt Burns (pitching coach), Jaime Dismuke (hitting coach), Joe Geck (trainer) and Tim Rodmaker (conditioning).

Looking at Vinas when he was a player, he was originally drafted by the White Sox in 1991 in the 33rd round (879th overall), where he played catcher and first base for most of his career. He also played games as an outfielder, third baseman and even pitched once in a game, according to The Baseball Cube.

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Though Vinas never played for the White Sox, he did play parts of six seasons in Triple-A, last playing in 2001. In his MiLB Triple-A career, he batted .273 in 450 games. He hit 55 Triple-A home runs and had 253 RBIs.

As for his managing career, Vinas was spoken about by Baron GM Jonathan Nelson in an AL.com article on Wednesday:

"“Julio’s the best manager I’ve worked with. Opening the season with him back in 2013 and the magical season that we had was incredible. To have both he and his family back is great.”"

Also with Vinas, it seems from reading various articles that one day he’ll get a chance to manage at a higher level within the organization, or at least that is the hope of those who have been around him.