With the Chicago White Sox making history for all the wrong reasons, the team will soon be in the hunt for a new manager. Maybe.
The organization fired Pedro Grifol on August 8, naming Grady Sizemore interim manager. Sizemore is 2-4 through six games, but depending on how the White Sox perform through the end of the year, he has a chance to earn the job, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today.
“While the White Sox have publicly said they plan to look outside the organization for a manager after the season – with the Marlins' Skip Schumaker the leading candidate – they privately say that interim manager Grady Sizemore will be given consideration depending on how the White Sox fare the final six weeks,” Nightengale wrote.
It's tough to say what Sizemore could do to earn the permanent job over the White Sox' final 37 games. His colleagues in the clubhouse, however, are already leaving him positive reviews. Former White Sox minor league coach Doug Sisson became interim bench coach when the club named Sizemore interim manager. At 60, he has nearly two decades of coaching experience. He told NBC Sports Chicago exactly what has impressed him about his new dugout boss.
The two first grew close during Spring Training, Sisson said, sitting at the end of the dugout and talking baseball for nine innings a day.
“I was immediately impressed with him,” Sisson said. “He immediately commands respect just because he's a genuine guy. And he knows what he's looking at. He knows what good baseball looks like and he knows how to get guys to play good baseball…I think his ceiling is as high as anyone in this game.”
The White Sox plan to trade Garrett Crochet and Luis Robert Jr. in the offseason
If Sizemore does earn the full-time job, he will probably be managing a vastly different roster in 2025. Chicago elected not to trade major chips Garrett Crochet and Luis Robert Jr. at the deadline this year, but according to Nightengale, neither is likely to still be around in the spring.
“Chicago White Sox ace Garrett Crochet, who had struggled since the All-Star break (0-3, 8.78 ERA) until his last start Friday, is attracting plenty of interest from teams who are scouting him for a potential trade this winter,” Nightengale wrote. “Crochet put on a show Friday, striking out nine batters in four innings, throwing 43 of his 55 pitches for strikes.”
Crochet has already soared past his career high in innings, so a drop-off in performance is not alarming. Sizemore said himself on Sunday that his ace is in a tough situation, knowing he's on a short leash.
The White Sox are being careful with Crochet in the event he's still a South Sider in 2025. That, however, is not their plan.
“The White Sox still intend to trade Crochet in the offseason,” Nightengale continued, “and hope to also move center fielder Luis Robert Jr., who hit two homers on Friday after being in a 5-for-46 skid.”
Though Robert's numbers have plummeted since the All-Star break (.167 BA, .485 OPS), he's still only a season removed from an All-Star nod and Silver Slugger award. He hit 38 home runs with an .856 OPS in 2023. At 26, Robert is under team control until 2027 with a pair of $20 million club options starting in 2026. That flexibility could make him easier to move. The only question is what kind of return Chicago can get for him.
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