White Sox Managers

White Sox general manager Rick Hahn announced today that the club and manager Rick Renteria had "agreed to part ways." Renteria's hiring in 2017 to guide a very young Sox team through its growing pains to eventual contender status was eerily similar to the task assigned to him by the Cubs in 2014. (That project went awry, at least for Renteria, when Joe Maddon unexpectedly became available in 2015.) 

     The White Sox did indeed become contenders in 2020, and it would seem that they are poised for bigger and better things in the next few years. Will the South Siders' next skipper be one of the usual suspects such as A.J. Hinch, Alex Cora, or Sandy Alomar Jr.--or does Hahn have his eye on a dark-horse candidate? To the disappointment of some, Hahn has already indicated that the choice will not be a blast from the past in the form of the one and only Ozzie Guillen.

     Stay tuned.

     

 

JIMMY DYKES

Below is the complete list of White Sox managers over the years.

 

 

Manager Seasons W. L. Pct. Clark Griffith 1901–1902 157 113 .581 Nixey Callahan 1903–1904 83 95 .474 Fielder Jones 1904–1908 426 293 .592 Billy Sullivan 1909 78 74 .513 Hugh Duffy 1910–1911 145 159 .477 Nixey Callahan 1912–1914 226 234 .491 Pants Rowland 1915–1918 339 247 .578 Kid Gleason 1919–1923 392 364 .519 Johnny Evers 1924 51 71 .418 Ed Walsh 1924 1 2 .333 Eddie Collins 1924–1926 174 160 .521 Ray Schalk 1927–1928 102 125 .449 Lena Blackburne 1928–1929 99 133 .427 Donie Bush 1930–1931 118 189 .384 Lew Fonseca 1932–1934 120 196 .380 Jimmy Dykes 1934–1946 899 940 .489 Ted Lyons 1946–1948 185 245 .430 Jack Onslow 1949–1950 71 113 .386 Red Corriden 1950 52 72 .419 Paul Richards 1951–1954 342 265 .563 Marty Marion 1954–1956 179 138 .565 Al Lopez 1957–1965 811 615 .569 Eddie Stanky 1966–1968 206 197 .511 Les Moss 1968 12 24 .333 Al Lopez 1968–1969 29 35 .434 Don Gutteridge 1969–1970 109 172 .388 Bill Adair 1970 4 6 .400 Chuck Tanner 1970–1975 401 414 .492 Paul Richards 1976 64 97 .398 Bob Lemon 1977–1978 124 112 .525 Larry Doby 1978 37 50 .425 Don Kessinger 1979 46 60 .434 Tony La Russa 1979–1986 522 510 .506 Doug Rader 1986 1 1 .500 Jim Fregosi 1986–1988 193 226 .461 Jeff Torborg 1989–1991 250 235 .515 Gene Lamont 1992–1995 258 210 .551 Terry Bevington 1995–1997 222 214 .509 Jerry Manuel 1998–2003 500 471 .515 Ozzie Guillén 2004–2011 678 617 .524 Don Cooper 2011 1 1 .500 Robin Ventura 2012–2016 375 435 .463 Rick Renteria 2017–2020 236 309 .433
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Bears First-Round Draft Picks

The first two players selected in the 1965 NFL draft, running backs Tucker Frederickson (New York Giants) and Ken Willard (San Francisco 49ers) ended up being good but not great. The next two picks belonged to the Bears, who selected two of the greatest players of all time--Dick Butkus and Gale Sayers.  

     From 1975 (Walter Payton) through 1990 (Mark Carrier), every player selected by the Bears in the first round of the NFL draft became a productive player, and most became stars. For the past 30 years, it has been a lot more bad than good. Brian Urlacher is the only certified all-timer in the group, at least so far, while Tommie Harris and Kyle Long were stars that shone briefly. Rex Grossman was neither quite as good as his admirers wished him to be nor quite as bad as his detractors believed him to be. 

     Kyle Fuller and Roquan Smith are key players on the Bears' defense at present, while quarterback Mitchell Trubisky has recently been relieved of his starting role and seems to be at a career crossroads. His selection with the second overall pick in 2017 is likely to go down in history, and not in a good way.  

 

MITCHELL TRUBISKY

Below is the complete list of Bears first-round draft choices. The player's overall draft position is in parentheses, and an asterisk indicates a Hall of Famer. 

 

1936 - Joe Stydahar, tackle, West Virginia (6)*
1937 - Les McDonald, end, Nebraska (8)
1938 - Joe Gray, back, Oregon State (10)
1939 - Sid Luckman, quarterback, Columbia (2)*
1939 - Bill Osmanski, fullback, Holy Cross (6)

1940 - Bulldog Turner, center, Hardin-Simmons (7)*
1941 - Tom Harmon, halfback, Michigan (1)
1941 - Norm Standlee, fullback, Stanford (3)
1941 - Don Scott, back, Ohio State (9)
1942 - Frankie Albert, quarterback, Stanford (10)
1943 - Bob Steuber, halfback, DePauw (9)
1944 - Ray Evans, tailback, Kansas (9)
1945 - Don Lund, back, Michigan (7)
1946 - Johnny Lujack, quarterback, Notre Dame (4)
1947 - Bob Fenimore, halfback, Oklahoma State (1)
1947 - Don Kindt, defensive back, Wisconsin (11)
1948 - Bobby Layne, quarterback, Texas (3)*
1948 - Max Bumgardner, defensive end, Texas (10)
1949 - Dick Harris, center, Texas (11)

1950 - Chuck Hunsinger, halfback, Florida (3)
1950 - Fred Morrison, fullback, Ohio State (10)
1951 - Bob Williams, quarterback, Notre Dame (2)
1951 - Gene Schroeder, end, Virginia (12)
1952 - Jim Dooley, back, Miami - Florida (8)
1953 - Billy Anderson, defensive back, Compton - Calif. (6)
1954 - Stan Wallace, defensive back, Illinois (6)
1955 - Ron Drzewiecki, halfback, Marquette (11)
1956 - Tex Schriewer, end, Texas (10)
1957 - Earl Leggett, defensive tackle, LSU (13)
1958 - Chuck Howley, linebacker, West Virginia (7)
1959 - Don Clark, back, Ohio State (7)

1960 - Roger Davis, guard, Syracuse (7)
1961 - Mike Ditka, tight end, Pittsburgh (5)*
1962 - Ronnie Bull, running back, Baylor (7)
1963 - Dave Behrman, center, Michigan State (11)
1964 - Dick Evey, defensive tackle, Tennessee (14)
1965 - Dick Butkus, linebacker, Illinois (3)*
1965 - Gale Sayers, running back, Kansas (4)*
1965 - Steve DeLong, defensive end, Tennessee (6)
1966 - George Rice, defensive tackle, LSU (12)
1967 - Loyd Phillips, defensive end, Arkansas (10)
1968 - Mike Hull, running back, USC (16)
1969 - Rufus Mayes, tackle, Ohio State (14)

1970 - none
1971 - Joe Moore, running back, Missouri (11)
1972 - Lionel Antoine, tackle, Southern Illinois (3)
1972 - Craig Clemons, defensive back, Iowa (12)
1973 - Wally Chambers, defensive tackle, Eastern Kentucky (8)
1974 - Waymond Bryant, linebacker, Tennessee State (4)
1974 - Dave Gallagher, defensive end, Michigan (8)
1975 - Walter Payton, running back, Jackson State (4)*
1976 - Dennis Lick, tackle, Wisconsin (8)
1977 - Ted Albrecht, tackle, California (16)
1978 - none
1979 - Dan Hampton, defensive end, Arkansas (4)*
1979 - Al Harris, defensive end, Arizona State (8)

1980 - Otis Wilson, linebacker, Louisville (19)
1981 - Keith Van Horne, tackle, USC (11)
1982 - Jim McMahon, quarterback, Brigham Young (5)
1983 - Jimbo Covert, tackle, Pittsburgh (6)*
1983 - Willie Gault, wide receiver, Tennessee (18)
1984 - Wilber Marshall, linebacker, Florida (11)
1985 - William Perry, defensive tackle, Clemson (22)
1986 - Neal Anderson, running back, Florida (27)
1987 - Jim Harbaugh, quarterback, Michigan (26)
1988 - Brad Muster, fullback, Stanford (23)
1988 - Wendell Davis, wide receiver, LSU (27)
1989 - Donnell Woolford, defensive back, Clemson (11)
1989 - Trace Armstrong, defensive end, Florida (12)

1990 - Mark Carrier, defensive back, USC (6)
1991 - Stan Thomas, tackle, Texas (22)
1992 - Alonzo Spellman, defensive end, Ohio State (22)
1993 - Curtis Conway, wide receiver, USC (7)
1994 - John Thierry, defensive end, Alcorn State (11)
1995 - Rashaan Salaam, running back, Colorado (21)
1996 - Walt Harris, defensive back, Mississippi State (13)
1997 - none
1998 - Curtis Enis, running back, Penn State (5)
1999 - Cade McNown, quarterback, UCLA (12)

2000 - Brian Urlacher, linebacker, New Mexico (9)*
2001 - David Terrell, wide receiver, Michigan (8)
2002 - Marc Colombo, tackle, Boston College (29)
2003 - Michael Haynes, defensive end, Penn State (14)
2003 - Rex Grossman, quarterback, Florida (22)
2004 - Tommie Harris, defensive tackle, Oklahoma (14)
2005 - Cedric Benson, running back, Texas (4)                                                            

2006 - none
2007 - Greg Olsen, tight end, Miami - Florida (31)
2008 - Chris Williams, tackle, Vanderbilt (14)
2009 - none
2010 - none

 

2011 - Gabe Carimi, tackle, Wisconsin (29)

2012 - Shea McClellin, defensive end, Boise State (19)

2013 - Kyle Long, tackle, Oregon (20)

2014 - Kyle Fuller, cornerback, Virginia Tech (14)

2015 - Kevin White, wide receiver, West Virginia (7)

2016 - Leonard Floyd, linebacker, Georgia (9)

2017 - Mitchell Trubisky, quarterback, North Carolina (2)

2018 - Roquan Smith, linebacker, Georgia (8)

2019 - none

2020 - none 

Check out our book Heydays: Great Stories in Chicago Sports on Amazon. 

Gabby Hartnett's Homer in the Gloamin'

Gabby Hartnett had the best seat in the house for two of the most celebrated events in baseball history. He was the catcher when Babe Ruth hit his notorious “called shot” in the 1932 World Series and when Carl Hubbell struck out five future Hall of Famers in succession in the 1934 All-Star Game. Hartnett had plenty of unforgettable moments behind the plate during his splendid 20-year career. But it was what he did at the plate one afternoon with darkness falling that ranked as the greatest thrill of his life. 

On September 28, 1938, the Cubs were a half game behind the Pittsburgh Pirates for the National League lead with five games left to go. It was a gloomy afternoon at Wrigley Field. The Cubs trailed the Pirates 3-1 when Hartnett opened the bottom of the sixth with a double to center. Rip Collins followed with a double off the right-field wall to score Hartnett. Collins advanced to third on a single by Billy Jurges and scored the tying run on a forceout. The Cubs missed a chance to go ahead when Jurges, trying to score from second on a single to left-center, was thrown out at the plate by shortstop Arky Vaughn.                                                                                             

     The skies continued to darken as the game remained tied through the seventh. In the eighth, the Pirates scored twice, and only an inning-ending double play prevented further damage.

Leading 5-3, the Pirates needed only six more outs to seriously damage the Cubs’ pennant hopes. But the Cubs came right back in their half of the eighth. Collins led off with a single. Bill Swift relieved Pirates starter Bob Klinger and walked Jurges. Tony Lazzeri was sent up to bunt the runners to second and third. His first attempt was foul. He missed the second pitch altogether, but the ball got away from catcher Al Todd, and Collins went sliding into third. Lazzeri, having failed to sacrifice, then swung away and delivered a double to right, scoring Collins and sending Jurges to third.

The tying and lead runs were now in scoring position for the Cubs. After Stan Hack drew an intentional walk to load the bases, Billy Herman singled to right. The fans were delirious—for an instant. Herman’s hit scored Jurges with the tying run, but Joe Marty (pinch running for Lazzeri) was out at the plate on a perfect throw by right fielder Paul Waner. Now Hack was on second with the go-ahead run, and Herman on first. But Mace Brown came on to pitch for the Pirates and induced Frank Demaree to tap into a double play to end the inning.

By now it was very dark (it would be 50 more years before lights were installed at Wrigley Field). The umpires conferred and decided to let the teams play one more inning, after which it would certainly be impossible to continue.

Charlie Root, the Cubs’ sixth pitcher of the day, got through the ninth unscathed, thanks in part to Hartnett, who nailed Paul Waner trying to steal second for the third out. In the bottom half of the inning, Phil Cavarretta hit a long drive to center that was caught by Lloyd Waner. Then Carl Reynolds grounded out to the second baseman. One more out and the game would go into the books as a tie, and the teams would have to play a doubleheader the next day, with the Cubs needing a sweep to move into first place. 

 

HARTNETT ESCORTED OFF THE FIELD BY USHERS.

Up to the plate strode Hartnett. “I swung once and missed,” he later recalled. “I swung again, and got a piece of it, but that was all. I had one more chance. Mace Brown wound up and let fly; I swung with everything I had and then I got that feeling you get when the blood rushes out of your head and you get dizzy.”

“Hartnett swung,” Paul Waner remembered, “and the damn ball landed in the left-field seats! I could hardly believe my eyes. The game was over, and I should have run into the clubhouse. But I didn’t. I just stood out there in right field and watched Hartnett circle the bases, and take the lousy pennant with him. I just watched and wondered, sort of objectively, you know, how the devil he could ever get all the way around to touch home plate.”

Hartnett’s home run gave the Cubs a 6-5 victory. There was pandemonium in the stands and on the field. “When I got to second base I couldn’t see third for the players and fans there,” Hartnett said. “I don’t think I walked a step to the plate—I was carried in. But when I got there I saw [umpire] George Barr taking a good look. He was going to make sure I touched that platter.”

“The crowd was in an uproar,” said Waner, “absolutely gone wild. They ran onto the field like a bunch of maniacs, and his teammates and the crowd and all were mobbing Hartnett, and piling on top of him, and throwing him up in the air, and everything you could think of. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

It took dozens of Andy Frain ushers, as well as the entire complement of Cub players, to protect Hartnett from the hundreds of fans who had swarmed onto the field. The ushers and the other players tugged and shoved and elbowed their way through the mob to the Cubs’ clubhouse.

For the first time since July 12, Pittsburgh was out of first place. The next day, the Cubs routed the demoralized Pirates 10-1 for their tenth straight win and their 20th in the last 23 games. Appearing on the mound for the fifth time in a week (including three complete-game victories and two relief stints), Bill Lee had an easy time of it as he went the distance. “The heart was gone out of Pittsburgh,” Hartnett said. 

Two days later, the Cubs clinched the pennant with a victory at St. Louis. It was their fourth flag in the past ten seasons, each coming at three-year intervals. 

 

Check out our book Heydays: Great Stories in Chicago Sports on Amazon. 

 

Old Comiskey Park

The original Comiskey Park hosted its last game 30 years ago, on September 30, 1990. A full house of 42,849 saw the legendary Minnie Minoso deliver the White Sox' lineup card to the umpires before the game and then saw the Sox defeat the Seattle Mariners 2-1. Center fielder Lance Johnson and rookie first baseman Frank Thomas provided most of the offense, while Jack McDowell won his 14th game of the season and Bobby Thigpen saved his 57th (exceeding the previous single-season record by 11).

    

COMISKEY PARK IN 1990

Comiskey Park was truly a wonder when it opened in 1910. It was one of the first concrete-and-steel stadiums, which were replacing the wooden bandboxes (a.k.a. firetraps) that had prevailed since the 1880s. It was designed by Zachary Taylor Davis, who also designed Weeghman Park (later known as Wrigley Field) a few years later. White Sox ace Ed Walsh had a hand in mapping the park's pitcher-friendly dimensions of 420 feet to center field, 382 feet in the alleys, and 363 feet down the lines. Its original capacity of 32,000 made Comiskey by far the largest ballpark ever built to that time. Accordingly, it was called "the Baseball Palace of the World."

 

Comiskey Park hosted World Series games in 1917, 1918, 1919, and 1959. In 1917, the White Sox defeated the New York Giants in all three home games en route to the world championship. In 1919, the so-called "Black Sox" lost three of four home games to the Cincinnati Reds, who won the Series under a cloud of suspicion that it had been fixed. In 1959, the Sox drubbed the Los Angeles Dodgers 11-0 in Game 1 but lost the other two home games and the Series.

     In the 1918 Series, the Cubs played their home games at Comiskey Park to take advantage of its larger seating capacity. The Cubs won just one of three home games and lost the series to Babe Ruth and the Boston Red Sox four games to two.

 

Comiskey Park hosted three major-league All-Star Games, including the first one in 1933. That game drew an overflow crowd of 47,595, and Ruth (by then a long-time Yankee) hit the first home run in All-Star competition as the American Leaguers won 4-2. In 1950, the National Leaguers won in extra innings, and the great Red Sox outfielder Ted Williams suffered a broken elbow that sidelined him for the rest of the season. In 1983, California Angels outfielder Fred Lynn hit the first grand slam in an All-Star Game as the American Leaguers won 13-3. 

     Comiskey Park was also the most frequent site of the Negro Leagues' annual East-West All-Star Game between 1933 and 1960. 

 

In addition to being the stomping grounds of the White Sox for 81 seasons, Comiskey Park was home to a variety of other Chicago teams over the years:

-- Cardinals (National Football League), 1922-1925, 1929-1930, 1940-1958

-- American Giants (Negro American League), 1941-1952

-- Mustangs (North American Soccer League), 1967-1968

-- Sting (North American Soccer League), 1980-1985

 

In 1937, Joe Louis became the world heavyweight champion by defeating Jim Braddock at Comiskey Park (he reigned as champion until 1949). The Beatles played two sold-out concerts there in 1965, and the Jacksons played three in 1984. In 1979, the White Sox had to forfeit the second game of a doubleheader when disk jockey Steve Dahl's Disco Demolition Night got out of hand.

 

And let's not forget that White Sox owner Bill Veeck installed the first exploding scoreboard in baseball (or any sport) at Comiskey Park in 1960. That alone would have qualified the old ballyard as a unique and unforgettable place.

Check out our book Heydays: Great Stories in Chicago Sports on Amazon.