The White Sox are on the hunt for a new manager and might be getting closer to a decision. Per Bob Nightengale of USA Today on X, the three finalists for the job are Rangers associate manager Will Venable, Guardians bench coach Craig Albernaz and former Angels manager Phil Nevin.
As noted by Nightengale, this could make for an interesting standoff. The Sox are one of two clubs on the hunt for a new manager, with the other being the Marlins. It was reported yesterday by Barry Jackson and Craig Mish of the Miami Herald that Venable and Albernaz are the two finalists for the Marlins gig, so there’s plenty of overlap in the two searches.
Nevin, 53, appears to be the one name on the radar of the Sox but not the Marlins. Jon Heyman of The New York Post listed him as a candidate a few weeks ago and it seems Nevin is still in the running. He’s also the only one in the group with previous managerial experience. He was working as the Angels third base coach in 2022 when manager Joe Maddon was fired. The club gave Nevin the gig on an interim basis and eventually re-signed him for the 2023 campaign but didn’t extend his contract after that.
The club went 119-149 during his time there, but that might not say much about his abilities as a skipper. The club also posted poor results before he had the job and after he left, meaning the poor record is likely more a reflection of roster construction as opposed to a lack of dugout leadership.
After parting ways with the Angels, Nevin interviewed for the managerial vacancy in San Diego but that job went to Mike Shildt and Nevin didn’t land a gig elsewhere for the 2024 season. Prior to joining the Angels, he spent about a decade in the majors as a player before pivoting into coaching. He worked in indy ball and then in the minors with the Tigers and Diamondbacks. He then had major league coaching jobs with the Giants and Yankees before landing with the Angels.
Venable is also a former player with plenty of coaching experience. He was a base coach with the Cubs for the 2018-2020 seasons before becoming the bench coach with the Red Sox. He’s spent the past two years as associate manager for the Rangers under skipper Bruce Bochy.
He was listed as a candidate for managerial gigs last winter with the Guardians and Mets but reportedly declined to be interviewed as he was happy with the Rangers. Now it appears that he’s giving more consideration to a change. Heyman reported yesterday that Venable was in Miami to interview for that gig and a move to the South Side of Chicago seems to be feasible as well.
Albernaz never cracked the majors as a player, spending almost a decade in the minors from 2006 through 2014. After that, he started his coaching career in the minor league system of the Rays. Prior to the 2020 season, he was added to the major league staff of the Giants as bullpen and catching coach. A year ago, the Guardians hired him to be their bench coach, working under new manager Stephen Vogt.
It’s been speculated by some that Albernaz is the favorite for the Miami job, given his history with Marlins president of baseball operations Peter Bendix. When Albernaz was coaching for the Rays in the minors, Bendix was working for that club, eventually becoming general manager in December of 2021.
Pedro Grifol was fired as White Sox manager during the most recent season and replaced by Grady Sizemore on an interim basis. Sizemore had been identified as a candidate to take the job more permanently but Nightengale’s report suggests he’s behind this trio of Venable, Albernaz and Nevin.
Plenty of other names have been connected to the job but many have reportedly been eliminated from the running, including former Marlins manager Skip Schumaker, Cardinals bench coach Daniel Descalso, Tigers bench coach George Lombard, Rangers bench coach and offensive coordinator Donnie Ecker, Dodgers first base coach Clayton McCullough and Padres special assistant A.J. Ellis.
Teams are generally discouraged from announcing big news on days when a playoff game is taking place. Even if the White Sox make a final decision soon, it may not be publicly reported until the World Series is done or gets to Thursday’s off-day.
Phil Nevin would totally save the White Sox
Came to post how well Nevin fits this organization.
phil nevin lol
Look into the data, he did a solid job and the media kept reporting how the players respected him. And he had the Angels in contention into early August last year before injuries decimated and ended their season.
Mr. Reinsdorf please sell the team. Terrible brand of baseball from ownership to low minors. Ask the Southside.
At this point in the history of the organization, the question is, does it matter?
Whichever sacrificial victim works best for their branding.
It’s obviously gonna be nevin. The other two are probably wishing they never interviewed for the Sox.
Tony can out manage all these guys, even when he’s blasted. Tony! Tony! Tony! Ahahahaha!
Nevin isn’t a bad choice. The ChiSox are going no where for the next few years so let a manager used to losing guide them.
When the white Sox have a new ownership group down to three that’ll be news.
I say this as a Pirates fan who knows crappy ownership but the choice will be whoever is the cheapest and kisses Jerry’s ass the most. I mean that’s how Getz got the job.
Hannibal: I think the choice came down to the first person who walked through reinsdorf’s door. Just think. With that criteria, the cleaning lady might have been the Sox GM.
This job is not a desirable one. I would rather clean the floor of a adult bookstore
Who’s on first.
Imagine your two options are the white Sox and Marlins. Oof.
Think the Marlins will be a lot better in a few yeas.
The problem is that they’re in a division with the Braves, Phillies, Mets….and even the Nationals will be tough with their position players, but Rizzo and his staff still don’t get pitching.
Venable will go to ChiSox, Albernaz will be Marlins pick.
Probably.
Bring back Tony LaRussa
We found the Jack Daniels burner account.
I’d rather have Jerry manage the team.
LMAO I’ll drink to that!
this pedro grifol guy seems like a worthy hire
Nevin is the only one that would sign the offer sheet, and they are LUCKY he would. Both Venable & Albernaz are going to Miami or staying put.
If the new manager doesn’t make the players hustle every 90 ft who cares!!
If it’s Nevin, can he please bring his son with him? -A ticked off A’s fan. Oh, and FJF
Gumby: And, may I add, FJR.
Don’t think the White Sox are a good fit if roster construction is what’s holding Phil Nevin back
(And yes, no one can win in Anaheim)
Nevin was Minasian’s lapdog.
Three Blind Mice. The person hired will be fired inside of 3 years. There is no hope on the south side.
Don’t forget Boone will be available after tonight hopefully.
In reference to the last paragraph-always find it amusing that MLB doesn’t want teams announcing big moves during the playoffs. Do they really think that the White Sox hiring Phil Nevin is going to distract from the World Series featuring the top 2 marquee teams in the sport. At the very worst it gets the fans of the White Sox talking about baseball as opposed to the Bears secondary breakdown on the final play against Washington. As long as they don’t hold the press conference during the game who cares?
geotheo: Believe me, not all of us are talking Bears. Although that was a helluva hail Mary. Too bad one of the Bears’ DBs was too busy taunting the fans to be involved in the play. OK, we ARE talking about the Bears.
@geotheo
Are you kidding? The whole world is waiting to see exactly where Jerry and his lacky, Getz, will rearrange those deck chairs on the Titanic.
Can’t wait. Who cares about WS Game 4?
Nevin? Yikes.
It was down to four but the guy who sleeps in the dumpster outside of the stadium removed his name from consideration
All those years with Botchy & his time around his father’s teams make Wil Venable the best choice imo. Hope the White Sox can bring him in, it will be fun to see the White Sox emerge from this hole.
The right developmental staff to help their young fielders/hitters could get the team turned around rather quickly given their absolutely stacked minor league pitching system. If Getz plays it right, he could build quite a staff from several dozen rookie arms on the verge of hitting the majors over the next 20 months. Best since…
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Loser gets the prize in this one.
Neither Nevin, Venable, or Albernaz are good fits for the Sox players. Do the Sox really believe their players will relate to Nevin, who was a MLB player and who managed Ohtani and Trout? Do the Sox really believe their players will relate to Venable, who was a MLB player and who was a coach for a World Championship team? Do the Sox really believe their players will relate to Albernaz, who was bench coach of a MLB team that won over 90 MLB games and their division? It appears the Sox management is delusional with these 3 candidates. What the Sox need to do is interview some candidates their players can relate to. I’m sure teams such as the Peoria Chiefs, Toledo Mud Hens, or Arkansas Travelers have some competent coaches who could fit in with the Sox and Sox players as the new manager.
IIRC, didn’t Francona talk highly of Nevin?
Nevin is not as bad as he’s portrayed. I think he’s really good in the clubhouse and the players feel he has their back. That’s the vibes I recall from watching his post-game interviews and reading comments from his players.
The hiring makes sense for both parties. He’s known to work well with young players and the Sox figure to be playing lots of kids. And there are no discernable expectations. If the Sox end up on the right side of 100 losses, he’ll be a candidate for Manager of the Year.
#FreePhilNevin