Ventura's Coaching Staff Vital To Success
(CBS) When selecting a major league coaching staff, it's always important to find the right guys. In the case of Robin Ventura and the White Sox, multiply that by 100.
The White Sox announced the hiring of rookie manager Ventura on Thursday to the shock of most of the baseball world.
Ventura has never managed -- at any level. He's never even held a coaching position on a minor or major league ball club. Who he and general manager Kenny Williams select for the 2012 coaching staff is of utmost importance.
Williams admitted they have someone on their radar for the position of bench coach, but wouldn't say who. With pitching coach Don Cooper already locked down for four years, the White Sox have a good start.
"The greatest difficulty that a new manager is going to have at any level is managing the pitching staff," Williams said. "Well, we have that guy in place who will aid him."
As far as who will round out the remaining positions on the staff is still up in the air.
"Going over the staff and what's there at this point, I don't know," Ventura said. "I know I've talked to Kenny about certain people who I know have been doing things. Again, I'm also trusting in people who are already there and around me. Guys that are in the organization, guys that are in different organizations. Obviously, we're trying to put the best possible pieces together.
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"I realize I haven't managed, but I'm in a place where I'm going to have as much support as I could possibly have. Of any organization out there, this was going to be the one that was going to give me that support to grow and do the job."
Regardless of Ventura's lack of experience, Williams knew he was the right man for the job. The fact that Williams played in the White Sox organization for 10 years was just a bonus.
"We've seen firsthand when we brought Ozzie in what the passion of the organization and putting on the uniform again means," Williams said. "I think there is real value in that."
Williams added: "He's getting this position because we think that he's the guy to help lead us to getting another banner."
