Ozzie: The appetite's back
Sox skipper 'hungry' to make up for '06, starting with bunts
That means White Sox pitchers and catchers report to ''Camp Ozzie 2007'' prepared to hear four-letter expletives and one-liners from their fiery manager. But jokes won't be the only thing Guillen is cracking this spring.
Throw in a whip this time around.
Fact is, Guillen's offseason, which began as disappointment when the regular season ended and the Sox failed to defend their 2005 World Series title, turned to embarrassment by the holidays.
Now, Guillen says, it's hunger.
''They got a little taste of the success and winning the World Series, and you want to get it back,'' he said recently of his players. ''They are mad because we didn't win it last year. They are hungry to do it again.''
As is Guillen.
''I was real embarrassed,'' he said. ''When the Cardinals won [the World Series], I was like, 'We swept that team ... not only did we sweep them, we beat their ass.' That's when it really settled in.''
That's also when the phone calls to bench coach and good friend Joey Cora became more frequent. Cora has been Guillen's right-hand man the last three seasons and is in charge of putting together the Sox' spring-training program.
The continued message to Cora was, ''Let's get back to small ball.'' Far too often in 2006, Sox hitters failed to move the runner or get the bunt down in key situations.
Message heard.
At the Tucson, Ariz., training facility, Cora has designated a special field that will be used for ''Bunting 101,'' and only a few Sox players have a pass.
''That field is going to be used more than any field in Tucson,'' Guillen said. ''We're going to bring the kids. Everyone has to go through it besides [Jermaine] Dye, [Paul] Konerko and [Jim] Thome.
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''We have a different way. We're going to play games -- give bunt situations, give pointers, the way they used to teach. We're going to make it fun, but they're not going to [expletive] around. I'll be in charge on that field because we have to do stuff better.''
Guillen also will play mad scientist this spring, moving the top and bottom of the lineup around regularly in hopes of finding a solid formula. When reviewing the 2006 season, he concluded that the top and bottom of the order didn't get the job done. He wants hitters at the top getting on base more often for the middle of the lineup, and those at the bottom to stop giving away so many at-bats.
Hitters, meanwhile, won't be the only ones addressed in camp.
While Guillen has a hands-off mentality regarding the pitching staff, he and pitching coach Don Cooper do have a message for the entire staff, as well as the minor-leaguers.
''It isn't like we are adding extra work to their plate,'' Cooper said. ''The setup we have for spriining, the extra work we have these guys put in, I don't believe any team does more. We're out there at 7:30 in the morning doing a bunch of stuff like that. And I don't care if you have 15 years in -- no one gets out of that.
''But with seven new faces, I'm going to try getting across our philosophy. How we approach things, how much trust we have in these guys. Basically our attack -- attacking the glove, getting ahead, pitching inside, dictating the count. I want them waking up in the morning and realizing this is the way the Sox do things.
''We want them to know what their job description is.''
The way Cooper sees it, there's a starting job there for the taking, plus two or three bullpen spots, depending on how many relievers the Sox break camp with.
The pitchers who grasp the team's philosophy the quickest will fill those spots.
''Once you win like we did, nothing less is acceptable,'' Cooper said. ''That's why last year was disappointing, because we thought we had the team.
''I'm hungry. I would love for us to prove to the baseball world that 2005 wasn't luck. If the only thing we have to look back on is one World Series, great. But I would rather look back on the entire body of work, and I want to be remembered for having a great team, a great organization. One year doesn't prove that. I want to solidify the White Sox organization as one of the best in baseball.''