White Sox Hiring of Robin Ventura Is Kenny Williams' Way of Exiting Spotlight

The Chicago White Sox have once again hired a manager that no one expected.  Robin Ventura was named the team's 39th manager in franchise history on Thursday, replacing the oft-controversial Ozzie Guillen. 

Ventura is the fifth consecutive first time manager for the franchise and the perfect excuse for Kenny Williams to step away from the spotlight and let the focus once again be directed towards the team.

It's no secret that for the last few years General Manager Kenny Williams and Guillen have not gotten along.  Most of the stress placed on their relationship came from problems away from the ballpark.  There were Oney Guillen's (Ozzie's son) Twitter postings, Williams' refusal to let Guillen create his own web page and him having to put out whatever fires Ozzie lit by spouting off during interviews.

There was also the Guillen family feeling hurt and betrayed when Ozzie's youngest son, Ozney, wasn't drafted by the White Sox in the last two amateur drafts even though they claim the Sox told him they would take him. 

It's these reasons, and a litany of others, that turned the focus from what the White Sox were doing on the field to how Ozzie Guillen and Kenny Williams were going to make the headlines next. 

These reasons, plus the regular and post season success since 2005, are why Ozzie Guillen is now the manager of the Florida Marlins and Robin Ventura has returned home to manage his former team.

Kenny Williams may have the largest ego in the city of Chicago, but that doesn't mean he wants the attention of the media and fans to be on him. 

When he took over as General Manager of the White Sox in 2000, his name was in the media for the moves he made to help the Sox win a World Series and not for the status of his relationship with the manager.  It took him five years to put together a championship team and earn the full trust of Sox fans. 

Now, six years removed from the magical 2005 season, the White Sox are hitting the reset button on organizational operations. 

Williams already offered to leave the General Manager job and take another position within the organization.  He wants out of the public eye as much as possible.  Hiring Robin Ventura, the almost complete opposite of Ozzie, will afford him the ability to only answer questions regarding the team and its direction. 

This is a move that Williams has thought about since last September. 

He has looked for a way to turn the focus onto the team instead of himself.  The tension in the locker room will dissipate, and the team should be more relaxed from day-to-day.  They’re not going to get asked questions about Kenny and Ozzie anymore, having to be political with their answers so they don’t appear to favor either side. 

They will be able to concentrate on playing baseball the right way, something they have not been able to do in a few years.