It seems before every single game another report comes out about Ozzie wanting his contract extended beyond 2012 in order for him to continue on as manager of the White Sox. It also seems that every single time he says this, the Sox go out and get absolutely annihilated like they did last evening at the hands of the Kansas City Royals. He is even putting in demands, saying that he wants to know his status by the time he leaves for Spain shortly after the end of the season. He was then asked if he was Jerry Reinsdorf, would he give himself the extension? Ozzie's response was what everyone else's is... "No".
To me this can only mean two things.
One- He knows he has worn out his welcome here in Chicago and is trying to get pushed out of town so he can pursue other opportunities and still be able to say that he always wanted to stay in Chicago. Why would he do this? Jerry Reinsdorf has blind loyalty. Sure Ozzie might go manage four years for the Miami Marlins and then do some studio work for a couple more years. But Ozzie Guillen is still a young manager. Ten years from now if the Sox are looking for a new hire, it very well might be Ozzie part 2. No matter what Ozzie does, the place where he will always be remembered is here in Chicago. This is where he can get his number retired, have an Ozzie Guillen Day, appear at SoxFest and talk. He might not want to burn those bridges.
or
Two- He thinks that Jerry Reinsdorf is an incompetent ass clown and is trying to get over on him and Kenny even in the darkest days of his White Sox career. If Reinsdorf rewards Guillen after a season like this one, he will never get fired. If this happens, Kenny Williams might as well take his ball and go home. There will be no stopping the Ozzie Express.
Williams, who reportedly was told he would be back next year, met with the media before yesterday's debacle. When asked about whether Ozzie will receive his extension, Williams said:
"I'm just listening, right now," Williams said. "We have one week left to go in the season, and I'm sure we'll get to all of that soon enough. No need to rush it."
No organizational meetings are currently planned for the White Sox, with Williams saying some could be set but the team just has "to get on the other side of some things." If that "thing" is deciding Guillen's future, Williams still was rather cryptic when asked if a resolution on the matter had to be decided upon quickly.
"It's been a disappointing season," Williams said. "We had a club coming out of Spring Training that we thought could do some special things, and we haven't gotten the consistent play that we had hoped for. We'll just regroup at the end of the season and get after it again."
What do these statements mean to me? I think it means Williams has no idea and no say in whether or not Guillen will be back next year. "I'm just listening, right now"= "I'm listening to him sound foolish everyday and wish that I could give him the Donald Trump treatment, but Jerry won't let me". "No need to rush it"= "screw you and your vacation to Spain". "To get on the other side of some things"= "Jerry needs to get off his ass and make a decision".
The fact that no organizational meetings might be telling though. The Sox usually have these planned out well in advance and the fact that they don't have any scheduled might be because they need to find out when the new manager is available.
I'm just pretty sick of hearing about it. The decision is clear. Ozzie is trying to power play a deal and he doesn't deserve one. The fans know it, the media know it, I'm pretty sure the players know it based on the way they are performing when the staff is fighting for their jobs... but does Jerry know it?