(670 The Score) After the White Sox were eliminated with a 10-1 loss to the Astros in Game 4 of their American League Division Series on Tuesday afternoon at Guaranteed Rate Field, 77-year-old manager Tony La Russa explained his mindset regarding his future and the 2022 season.
It boiled down to this: La Russa will be back so long as that's what team brass as well as the players want. He's under contract through the 2023 season, sources have confirmed.
"I'm not going to talk about myself," La Russa said in his postgame press conference. "You know, the process I've used – well, once I had a little security, probably about the fifth or sixth year, is do they want you back? You don't want to come back because you got a contract. I would just leave if they don't want you back.
"They say yes, then you ask the players. You know? They should choose who they want to manage. If you get both of those, then you check yourself. I mean, we have more to do."
La Russa later elaborated.
"Every year since I had some security, and I understood the importance," he said. "You have a contract, and I always waited so the ownership and the front office said we want you back. If they didn't, I just walked away. But once you got theirs, but if you fool them and the players don't want you, then you walk away. So I always do – once it gets those two, if those two are true, and I'll check and see, then you check and see whether you got the desire to continue to manage, so I do. That's – I've been doing it for years.
"A lot of people that know me know that that's what I go through. I think it's a fair thing. It's fair to the ownership, fair to the players. You don't get stuck with a guy that doesn't belong there."
The White Sox hired La Russa last October for a second stint as their manager. The second-winningest manager in MLB history, La Russa led the White Sox to a 93-69 record and AL Central crown in the regular season.
"They had a taste of it, and we've improved," La Russa said when asked if the disappointing ending will make the team hungrier in 2022. "The beauty of the season is that we talked about defending stolen bases. There's not a lot, but there are plays we can get better. The talent is there. Now, every year they get more experience, they got a better chance to do it, so – but the staff and I were talking before the game. I mean, we were very thankful. I'm talking about the entire staff. Very thankful that we had the opportunity to work with these guys. I mean, it was as good as it could be. They're a very special group. We ended up disappointed. I'm hurting for them, but it's an amazing group."
Left-hander Carlos Rodon praised La Russa's leadership.
"Tony is a very special manager, second all-time in wins, if I'm correct, Hall of Famer," Rodon said. "He brings a lot of experience into the clubhouse. He has seen a lot of baseball games. Very, very wise man. It was just a pleasure to play for him. Not many guys can say they played for a Hall of Fame manager, you know?"
Bruce Levine covers the Cubs and White Sox for 670 The Score. Follow him on Twitter @MLBBruceLevine.
