White Sox name Rick Renteria manager

Rick Renteria has been named the new manager of the Chicago White Sox, the club announced today, replacing Robin Ventura, whose contract ended following the 2016 season after five years as manager.
 
Renteria, 54, becomes the 40th manager in White Sox history and the only current Latino manager in Major League Baseball. He spent the 2016 season as the White Sox bench coach after being named to the position on November 10, 2015.
 
"I appreciate this tremendous opportunity to manage the Chicago White Sox," said Renteria. "It is a great honor as well as a great responsibility. Over the past season as Robin Ventura's bench coach, I have gotten to know the players and staff very well, and I look forward to helping us achieve our goals together. We want to field a team that plays smart baseball, takes advantage of any opportunity within the game, and competes hard each and every day in a way that makes White Sox fans proud of our team's effort.
 
"I also want to thank Robin for his friendship and leadership over this past year," Renteria said. "His class, professionalism and commitment to the White Sox organization is unmatched, and I enjoyed and learned a great deal during our year together."
 
"Rick is incredibly well respected within the game as one of the top baseball men," said Rick Hahn, White Sox senior vice president/general manager. "We obviously have been very impressed by Rick over his past year as bench coach. He is a knowledgeable teacher of the game who loves to develop players and spends hours watching video looking for any nuance that gives us an edge. He is well respected within the clubhouse, and his ability to communicate in English and Spanish is a real plus as he interacts with our players."
 
Renteria, who resides in Temecula, Calif., brings nine seasons of managerial experience to the position, including eight in the minor leagues, as well as the 2014 campaign with the Chicago Cubs. He joins Hall-of-Famer Johnny Evers as the only managers in history to manage games for both the White Sox and the Cubs. Evers managed the Sox in 1924 and the Cubs in 1913 and 1921.
 
Renteria spent six seasons (2008-13) on San Diego's major-league coaching staff, including 2011-13 as bench coach and 2008-10 as first base coach. He also managed Team Mexico in the 2013 World Baseball Classic.
 
Renteria was a career .237 (100-422) hitter over parts of five major-league seasons with Pittsburgh (1986), Seattle (1987-88) and Florida (1993-94). A native of Harbor City, Calif., he originally was selected by the Pirates in the first round (20th overall) of the 1980 draft.
 
Ventura compiled a 375-435 (.463) record in five seasons after being named to the position on October 6, 2011. His 810 games managed rank seventh in White Sox history. Ventura was a finalist for AL Manager of the Year in 2012 after guiding the Sox to a 85-77 record.
 
An announcement regarding Chicago' 2017 coaching staff will be made at a future date.