CHICAGO –
Tony La Russa resigned as manager of the Chicago White Sox on Monday because of two health issues, ending a disappointing two-year run in the same place where the Hall of Famer landed his first job as a big league skipper.
La Russa, a three-time World Series champion who turns 78 on Tuesday, missed the last 34 games with the underperforming White Sox. He left the team on August 30 due to problems with a pacemaker implanted in February.
While La Russa was not on the team, he was being evaluated for another medical issue previously diagnosed at an annual checkup. This second health issue led to his departure from the team.
“Now that I’m in the treatment program, it’s become apparent that the length of the treatment and recovery process for the second edition makes it impossible to be a manager in 2023,” La Russa said.
Chicago started the season with World Series ambitions but was plagued by injuries and inconsistent play. The team went into Monday night’s game against Minnesota 79-80.
Speaking to much of the organization, including its players, La Russa shouldered the blame for what happened this year.
“I understand that the ultimate responsibility for any minus this season rests with the manager,” he said. “That’s right, because there’s always something else you could do.
“I was hired to provide positive, differentiating leadership and support. Our record this year is proof that I didn’t do my job.”
Replacement coach Miguel Cairo took over after La Russa resigned. The White Sox showed a spark right after the change, winning 10 of 14. But they dropped eight straight in late September and dashed their playoff hopes.
General manager Rick Hahn said Cairo will get an interview for the full-time position, but indicated he would prefer someone outside the organization.
“I think we will use this opportunity to get other perspectives,” said Hahn.
La Russa, who is close friends with White Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf, was surprisingly hired in October 2020 and led the team to the AL Central title last year.
But the White Sox stuttered for much of 2022, and there were chants of “Fire Tony!” Fire Tony!” in the Guaranteed Price field.
All-Star shortstop Tim Anderson and hitters Eloy Jiménez and Luis Robert missed significant time due to injuries. Catcher Yasmani Grandal and third baseman Yoán Moncada also had health issues and underperformed on the field.
There were also embarrassing mishaps, like when the White Sox got into the first 8-5 triple play in major league history on July 4 in a loss to Minnesota.
“The waste of this year is something that I personally know will carry with me for a while,” Hahn said.
La Russa continued to be a lightning rod for fans who were not at all thrilled with his attitude. His lineups have been questioned, as have his decisions in matches.
Some fans called for La Russa’s dismissal after a strange call for an intentional walk to the Dodgers’ trea turner, despite a 2-1 count on June 9. Bennett Sousa had just rebounded a 0-2 pusher, allowing the runner to advance from the front to assist.
With the base open, La Russa chose to walk Turner. It backfired when Max Muncy hit a three-run homer and propelled Los Angeles to an 11-9 win.
Another eyebrow-raising moment happened at the start of the 2021 season.
During a 1-0 loss to Cincinnati, La Russa was unaware of a rule that would have allowed him to use Jose Abreu as an automatic runner at second base instead of getting closer to Liam Hendriks in the 10th inning.
With a record of 2,900-2,514 over 35 years with Chicago, Oakland and St. Louis, La Russa ranks behind only Connie Mack on the list of baseball career wins. He passed John McGraw last season.
But there were big questions about whether La Russa was the right person for the job when the White Sox hired him to replace Rick Renteria. He hadn’t filled out a lineup card since 2011 when St. Louis defeated Texas in the World Series. There were doubts about how someone known more for his scowl than his smile would fit together with a fun-loving team that had just delivered the White Sox’s first playoff appearance since 2008.
Then, shortly after he was hired, news surfaced of an arrest for drunk driving.
La Russa blew out a tire on the Lexus he drove in a collision with a curb in Arizona in February after having dinner with friends. The case was filed on Oct. 28, a day before the White Sox announced La Russa’s hiring.
In the end, he pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of reckless driving and was sentenced to a day of house arrest, a nearly $1,400 fine and 20 hours of community service.
La Russa also pleaded guilty to driving under the influence in Florida in 2007 after police found him sleeping and smelling of alcohol in his running SUV at a stop light.
La Russa won the championship with Oakland in 1989 and with the Cardinals in 2006 and 2011. The former big league infielder and Sparky Anderson are the only managers to have won the World Series in both the American and National Leagues.
He landed his first major league managerial job at age 34 when the White Sox promoted him from Triple-A to replace the fired Don Kessinger during the 1979 season. He took over in August of that year and led them to a 522-510 record over parts of eight seasons.
The 1983 team won 99 games en route to the AL West Championship — Chicago’s first playoff appearance since the 1959 go-go White Sox won the pennant. But La Russa was fired by then-general manager Ken Harrelson in 1986 after the White Sox made a 26-38 start, a move Reinsdorf long regretted.
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AP Sports Writer Andrew Seligman contributed to this report.