Prospectus Q&A

Ozzie Guillen

by David Laurila

Ozzie Guillen is his own man. Outspoken and sometimes misunderstood, the mercurial White Sox skipper is not only colorful, he is also smart as a fox. Considered one of the most cerebral players in the game during his playing days, the 44-year-old native of Venezuela has shown himself to be no less wise as a manager, having led the South Siders to a World Series title in 2005. Now he has his charges—considered second-division fodder by most prognosticators when the season began—atop the AL Central as the pennant race enters its home stretch. A big-league shortstop for 16 seasons and a third-base coach for three more, Guillen took over as the White Sox manager in November, 2003.

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David Laurila: When you signed your first professional contract in 1980, and someone had told you that you would someday manage in the big leagues, what would your reaction have been?

Ozzie Guillen: Well, I was only 16 years old, and it's hard for a kid at that age to go that far and think about it. But I've always liked to teach—I've always liked to coach—even at that time. From an early age, I always liked to be around baseball, and I liked to be around people, but there was no way that I was thinking about being a manager at that particular time.

DL: When did you first start thinking about managing?

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