The way Chris Getz became the Chicago White Sox general manager already was an indication he might not be cut out to do the job well.
Reports of how he handled trading Erick Fedde is another data point in Getz not being qualified to perform his job functions well.
Getz reportedly refused to trade Fedde to a divisional rival.
It did not matter that the Minnesota Twins might have had the best offer; Getz was not about to let a division rival get better. It is crazy that he could not ignore that the White Sox are so far back in the division race that there is no chance in heck they will even catch the Detroit Tigers for fourth place.
It is even sillier still that he failed to realize he could poach a prospect or two that could haunt the Twins for years.
This is a pitcher Getz signed out of the KBO after Fedde was exiled there for being so bad with the Nationals and Fedde turned out to be the best free-agent signing outside of Shohei Ohtani. Great signing and then Getz did not max his trade value out of pride.
Another report shows that Getz got swindled by two experienced general managers.
His peers also were perplexed by Getz not trading ace pitcher Garrett Crochet.
ICYMI I talked to 4 execs about the deadline
— Jayson Stark (@jaysonst) August 2, 2024
"I thought for sure they would move Crochet. Now maybe they're going to say: `OK, we’ll just hold him until the winter' ...
"I just know there were some pretty big prospect names being tossed around." https://t.co/pP77NTPkzl
Getz could have sped up the team's turnaround timeline by moving Crochet. He tried to blame Crochet's demand for a contract extension from any team that deals for him as an excuse for not pulling off a deal. Jayson Stark found out it did not matter for other contenders what Crochet was demanding.
It means Getz missed a chance to extend Crochet and then failed to deal Garrett to replenish the team's bats in the farm system.
It also shows Getz lacks vision in trying to upgrade the lineup.
The team has outstanding pitching prospects, but they have serious question marks about who can be an anchor player in the hitting lineup. It feels like Getz has no clue how to get that player.
Really, you have to question if Getz has a vision that he can execute on. The man was handed the job by the owner after the most lazy candidate search ever because Jerry Reinsdorf was confident Getz could turns thing around quickly.
Instead, Getz has built a roster that is on the way toward losing the most games in MLB history for a 162-game history. It looks like he does not have the power to fire manager Pedro Grifol before the season out.
He may not be actually in charge as there is this belief that Tony La Russa is running things as the shadow GM in his advisory role. La Russa can deny he is the final authority figure in the organization, but with his deep ties to Reinsdorf and Getz embracing La Russa being around.
Getz has done a few good things in his brief GM tenure. He signed Fedde, and trading Dylan Cease is trending toward a win-win. Letting Crochet become a starter was a great move.
Otherwise, Getz has made some bad moves that have led to the team losing 84 games and setting franchise records in futility. The latest stories of how he handled the deadline prove once more that he is not the right man for this job.