It was a tough day for the 2022 Chicago White Sox. Although it was a good thing from a baseball point of view, the reason that Tony La Russa is retiring is a bit sad. No matter what, the man’s health is and should be the most important thing.
As a result of some complications with his heart, he is retiring again from a managerial position in Major League Baseball. He will not return in 2023 as the bench boss for the White Sox. It didn’t go as he planned on or off the field so this is a good thing for the team but it is also sad.
During the presser that the team had for him on Monday afternoon, he said something that may surprise a lot of people. He took full responsibility for the team not playing well in 2022 and he understood why fans were upset. It was a nice thing to hear as nothing was sugarcoated.
He believes that their record this year is proof that he didn’t do his job. He is partially correct. A lot of what went wrong this season is his doing as he didn’t have a great season as the manager. It was also a very flawed roster with players that didn’t live up to the hype this year.
In the statement, La Russa called the 2022 season "an unacceptable disappointment."
— Vinnie Duber (@VinnieDuber) October 3, 2022
"I was hired to provide positive, difference-making leadership and support. Our record is proof. I did not do my job."
Tony La Russa took responsibility for what happened to the Chicago White Sox.
Again, it was nice to hear Tony take full responsibility. He has accepted that the team’s performance this year is a complete and utter disaster and can’t be accepted. That isn’t the reason he is retiring but it honestly should be.
Now, moving forward, it will be nice for both sides to move on. In ten years, nobody will think about this stain on Tony La Russa’s legacy. He is in the Hall of Fame as a manager for a reason. He is one of the greatest to ever walk the earth. He just didn’t fit in with this team.
At the end of this press conference, hearing him take blame makes him easier to respect as a manager. The team didn’t succeed and it falls on the people in charge a lot of the time. Maybe the others at fault in the organization can learn a thing or two from Tony about that.