2. Chicago White Sox manager Tony La Russa
I realize what this sounds like. The guy at the helm of an AL Central winning Chicago White Sox team last season? It may not be as crazy as you’d think.
Tony La Russa, 77, returned to managing after ten-year hiatus when he took the reigns in Chicago at the beginning of last season. A widely criticized move at the time of his hiring, TLR managed to guide the Sox to their first AL Central winning season since 2008.
His year-long tenure in Chicago, however, has been wrought with controversy. About two months into his first season leading the club, La Russa made headlines for all the wrong reasons when he publicly called out one of his players for “breaking an unwritten rule” by swinging on a 3-0 pitch and connecting for a grand slam in a 15-4 blowout of the Minnesota Twins. Yermin Mercedes, the red-hot rookie at the receiving end of La Russa’s comments, began to rapidly decline and was never the same for the remainder of the year after his slap on the wrist.
Not only did La Russa make a mistake by calling out one of his own players, but he also went on record to say that he “didn’t have a problem” with the Twins throwing behind Mercedes’ back the next night.
La Russa, to a much lesser extent, has been causing problems amongst White Sox fans to begin 2022 as well, as he recently submitted a lineup (two days in a row) with one of the league’s worst hitters in Leury Garcia, batting third one night and second the next. He has also placed light-hitting outfielder Adam Haseley in the two-hole, a spot in the lineup most commonly reserved for the team’s best hitter.
At 77 years of age, Tony La Russa’s managerial days could slowly be winding down. While the White Sox won the AL Central last year, they are off to just a 6-7 start with a -9 run differential through the team’s first 13 games.