CHICAGO (AP) — White Sox general manager Chris Getz is taking a closer look at the organization’s international operations. He is working on hiring a manager. He is shining a light on some of the team’s top prospects.
As the White Sox near the end of one of baseball’s worst seasons ever, the future is a more promising topic than the dismal present.
“This is the cards that we’ve been dealt at this point,” Getz said. “You try to make the best of it, and I think it’s an opportunity to embrace the situation that we’re in. … I view it as kind of the frustrating part of the story, but I also know that the future’s looking bright and it’s going to make it just that much sweeter once we get there.”
First, they have to get through this year.
The White Sox dropped to 33-112 when they lost 5-3 to AL Central-leading Cleveland on Monday night. They broke the franchise record with their 107th loss on Sept. 1.
The AL record for most losses belongs to the 2003 Tigers, who went 43-119. Then there is the majors’ modern record for most losses — 120 by the 1962 New York Mets in their inaugural season.
“I think that there’s a lot to learn from for our players and our staff and personally,” Getz said, “and all you can really do right now is apply those learnings to the future.”
That future includes a new manager after Pedro Grifol was fired on Aug. 8. It also includes a new leader for the club’s international operations after Marco Paddy was let go as part of a flurry of changes with the team’s scouting personnel.
Grady Sizemore has been serving as interim manager since Grifol was dismissed. Getz said the team has built out a process for hiring a new manager and has a list of possibilities, but it hasn’t asked for permission to speak to any candidates.
“Our target pool is candidates that are in uniform with other organizations right now,” said Getz, a former big league infielder who was promoted to GM a year ago.
The White Sox are 5-23 since Sizemore took over. They got their first baserunner in the series opener against Cleveland when Andrew Benintendi singled with two out in the seventh inning.
“Today we could have done some things better,” Sizemore said. “Missed a couple opportunities defensively where we didn’t make the play, double-play ball, those cost us runs and would have made it easier to stay in the game. But I’m having fun pushing these guys and trying to get to the point of playing good ball every night.”
Paddy, 60, was in his 12th season with the organization. The White Sox signed more than 150 international free agents during his tenure, including center fielder Luis Robert Jr.
“Marco was here for years, and he accomplished a lot,” Getz said. “We’ve got players on our major league club that are a reflection of his work. However, where we are right now, we’re in the works of building a new academy, more so focused on the scouting process. It’s different from what you’ll see on the amateur side. We need to make a little bit more of a comprehensive approach.”
As part of their focus on the future, the White Sox had Hagen Smith throw out a ceremonial first pitch before the matchup with the Guardians. Smith, his girlfriend and his family also had dinner with Getz on Sunday night.
Smith, 21, was selected by Chicago with the No. 5 pick in this year’s amateur draft. The left-hander starred at the University of Arkansas and had a 3.52 ERA in three starts for High-A Winston-Salem before he was shut down for the year for rest.
“It’s really cool. It’s my first time here,” Smith said. “Just trying to take it all in. Seeing the stadium, going around the locker room. My family is here so we’ve had a blast.”
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