| Ozzie Guillén | |
|---|---|
 Guillén in August 2008 | |
| Tiburones de La Guaira | |
| Shortstop /Manager | |
| Born: (1964-01-20)January 20, 1964 (age 61) Ocumare del Tuy,Miranda,Venezuela | |
Batted: Left Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| April 9, 1985, for the Chicago White Sox | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| October 1, 2000, for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .264 |
| Home runs | 28 |
| Runs batted in | 619 |
| Managerial record | 747–710 |
| Winning % | .513 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Managerial record at Baseball Reference | |
| Teams | |
As player
As manager As coach | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
| Member of the Venezuelan | |
 Baseball Hall of Fame | |
| Induction | 2011 |
Oswaldo José Guillén Barrios (Spanish pronunciation:[ɡiˈʎen]; born January 20, 1964) is aVenezuelan-American former professionalbaseball player and currentmanager of theTiburones de La Guaira of theVenezuelan League. He played inMajor League Baseball as ashortstop from 1985 to 2000, most prominently as a member of theChicago White Sox where he won the American League Rookie of the Year Award as well as a Gold Glove Award. A three-time All-Star player, Guillén was considered one of the best defensive shortstops of his era. He later managed the Chicago White Sox from 2004 to 2011, winning the World Series in 2005 and then moving to theMiami Marlins in 2012.
As a player, Guillén was known for his passion, speed, hustle, intensity, defensive abilities and his ebullient love for the game.[1][2][3] In 2005, Guillen became the first Latino manager in major league history to win aWorld Series when he captained theChicago White Sox to their first championship in 88 years.
Guillén was a light-hitting, quick-handed shortstop, emerging from a line of Venezuelan shortstops that includedChico Carrasquel,Luis Aparicio (both White Sox players),Dave Concepción, andOmar Vizquel (who Guillen later managed with the White Sox).[4][5] He was originally signed as afree agent by theSan Diego Padres in 1980.[6] In December 1984, he was traded to the Chicago White Sox as part of an eight-player trade, withTim Lollar,Bill Long andLuis Salazar in exchange forLaMarr Hoyt.[6]
In1985, Guillén was both theAmerican LeagueRookie of the Year andThe Sporting News Rookie of the Year, while also becoming just the third rookie shortstop in major league history to win a fielding title.[7][8] He became known for his daring, aggressive style of play, as was demonstrated on August 2, 1985, in a game against theNew York Yankees.[9] With the game tied 5–5 in the 11thinning, Guillén hit a two-outsingle and, then proceeded to stealsecond base.[9] When the next batter hit aninfield single, Guillén never hesitated as he roundedthird base, catching the Yankees defense off guard and scored the game-winningrun.[10]
In 1989, Guillén was the victim of ahidden ball trick twice. First on June 23 whenGreg Brock tagged him out when Guillén, the runner at first base, took his lead, and then had to dive back to the base on a pick off throw from the pitcher. Brock held the ball instead of throwing it back to the pitcher, and when Guillén took his hand off the base to stand up, Brock tagged him out. On August 5,Dave Bergman made the same play, holding onto the ball following a pick off throw. Guillén again dove to the base to beat the throw, and when he took his hand off the base to stand up, Bergman tagged him on top of the batting helmet without looking at him.[11]
On April 21,1992, Guillén suffered a severe knee injury in a collision withoutfielderTim Raines.[12] The injury caused him to miss almost the entire season, and subsequently diminished his defensive range as well as hisstolen base output for the remainder of his career.[13][14] Guillén recovered in1993 with his most productive season offensively, posting a .280batting average, and he hit a career-high fourhome runs and had 50runs batted in (RBI) in 134 games.[13] The White Sox went on to win theAmerican League Western Division title.[15] He hit .273 and scored four runs in the1993 American League Championship Series as the White Sox were defeated by theToronto Blue Jays in six games.[13][16]
In October1997, after 13 seasons with the White Sox, Guillén electedfree agency and signed a contract to play for theBaltimore Orioles.[6] In May1998, the Orioles released him, and he signed with theAtlanta Braves.[6] He helpedAtlanta win the1999 National League Championship Series against theNew York Mets with a 10thinning,pinch hit single in Game 6 that tied the score at nine runs apiece, as the Braves went on to win the game and the series.[17][18] The Braves would eventually lose to theNew York Yankees in Guillén's onlyWorld Series appearance as a player.[19] After playing one year with theTampa Bay Devil Rays in2000, he retired as a player at the end of the season at the age of 36.
In a 16-year major league career, Guillén played in 1,993 games, accumulating 1,764 hits in 6,686at bats for a .264 batting average along with 28 home runs, 619 RBI, and a .287on-base percentage.[13] Guillén was anAll-Star in 1988, 1990, and 1991 and won aGold Glove Award in1990.[13][20] He led American League shortstops twice inrange factor, once inassists, and once infielding percentage.[13] Guillén's .974 career fielding percentage ranks 63rd all time among major league shortstops as of 2024[update], ahead of, among others, of both Luis Aparicio and Dave Concepción.[21] While he was considered one of the best fielding shortstops in the American League, Guillén was often overlooked in post-season fielding awards because his playing career coincided with those ofTony Fernandez,Cal Ripken Jr., andOmar Vizquel. This trio would win every American League Gold Glove for a shortstop from 1986 until 2001, aside from Guillén's win in 1990.[2] Guillén ranks among the White Sox all-time leaders in games played (sixth), hits (seventh), at-bats (sixth), plate appearances (seventh),total bases (10th) andtriples (10th).[22] As a hitter, he was known as a free swinger, posting one of the highest at bats per walk ratios in major league history and also one of the lowest on base percentages for many of the years he played.[23][24]
Guillén played his entireVenezuelan Winter League career withTiburones de La Guaira.[citation needed]
Following his playing career, Guilléncoached for theMontreal Expos in2001 and2002 and the World champion Florida Marlins (now known as theMiami Marlins) in2003. That offseason, he replacedJerry Manuel as the White Soxmanager.[25] He received a standing ovation from the crowd of 37,706 fans when introduced before his first game as a manager atU.S. Cellular Field on April 13,2004. On May 30,2005, the White Sox extended Guillén's contract, making the move while the team had the best record in the majors (33–17).[citation needed]
In 2005, he led the White Sox to their first American Leaguepennant since1959, and their firstWorld Series win since1917 with a four-game sweep of theHouston Astros. Guillén claimed that he might retire after the2005 season should the White Sox win the World Series, but at the parade celebrating the World Champions he received cheers from the fans when he announced he would indeed return to manage the next season. The White Sox picked up the2006 option on his contract, added two more years and included an option for the2009 season. In November, Guillén was voted the 2005 American LeagueManager of the Year Award by theBaseball Writers' Association of America.[26] On September 11, 2007, Guillén signed another contract extension with the White Sox through the 2012 season.[27]
On September 4, 2009, Guillén won his 500th game as manager of the Chicago White Sox as the White Sox defeated theBoston Red Sox by a score of 12–2.[28][29] Guillen has publicly stated that he feels the 2003steroids list should be released to the public.[30]
Personal difficulties with White SoxGeneral ManagerKenny Williams led to speculation dating back to October2010 that the White Sox would allow Guillén out of his contract to manage the Marlins.[31] On September 26,2011, an inability to get a contract extension worked out with the White Sox eventually led to his being released from his position, with the White Sox retaining the right to receive compensation should Guillén manage in the 2012 season.[32][33] He finished with a record of 678 wins and 617 losses.[29]
On September 28, 2011, theMiami Marlins introduced Guillén as their new manager.[34]Robin Ventura replaced Guillén as manager of the White Sox.[35] The Marlins sentJhan Mariñez andOsvaldo Martínez to theChicago White Sox as compensation for the hiring of Guillén by the Marlins, as Guillen had one year remaining on his contract with the White Sox.[34]
The Marlins were expected to contend in their first year intheir new park. However, an 8–18 June effectively ended their season, and they finished 69–93, their worst season since the start of the century. On October 23, 2012, Guillen was terminated from the Marlins, despite three years remaining on his contract, after making some inflammatory comments aboutFidel Castro earlier in the year.[36][37]
In February 2016, Guillen was hired to manage theTiburones de La Guaira of theVenezuelan Professional Baseball League for the 2016–17 season.[38]
Guillen returned to manage Tiburones for the 2023–24 season, their first championship season in 38 years. He won the LVBP championship and managed the team at the2024 Caribbean Series, held atLoanDepot Park in Miami, where he had once managed the Marlins.
In 2022, he was named bench coach for France in the World Baseball Classic, joining the staff of managerBruce Bochy. The French team competed in a qualifier inRegensburg, Germany in September 2022.
| Team | Year | Regular season | Postseason | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Games | Won | Lost | Win % | Finish | Won | Lost | Win % | Result | ||
| CWS | 2004 | 162 | 83 | 79 | .512 | 2nd in AL Central | – | – | – | – |
| CWS | 2005 | 162 | 99 | 63 | .611 | 1st in AL Central | 11 | 1 | .917 | WonWorld Series (HOU) |
| CWS | 2006 | 162 | 90 | 72 | .556 | 3rd in AL Central | – | – | – | – |
| CWS | 2007 | 162 | 72 | 90 | .444 | 4th in AL Central | – | – | – | – |
| CWS | 2008 | 163 | 89 | 74 | .546 | 1st in AL Central | 1 | 3 | .250 | LostALDS (TB) |
| CWS | 2009 | 162 | 79 | 83 | .488 | 3rd in AL Central | – | – | – | – |
| CWS | 2010 | 162 | 88 | 74 | .543 | 2nd in AL Central | – | – | – | – |
| CWS | 2011 | 160 | 78 | 82 | .488 | released | – | – | – | – |
| CWS total | 1295 | 678 | 617 | .524 | 12 | 4 | .750 | |||
| MIA | 2012 | 162 | 69 | 93 | .426 | 5th in NL East | – | – | – | – |
| MIA total | 162 | 69 | 93 | .426 | 0 | 0 | – | |||
| Total[29] | 1457 | 747 | 710 | .513 | 12 | 4 | .750 | |||
Guillén joinedESPN Deportes in 2013, where he has worked as baseball color analyst and talk show panelist.[39] He is currently a studio analyst forChicago Sports Network before and after White Sox games.
Guillén married Ibis Cárdenas in 1983. They have three sons: Ozwaldo "Ozzie" Jr. (born 1985), Oney (born 1986), and Ozney (born 1992).[40][41][42][43] Ozzie Jr. was born inLas Vegas, Nevada; his two younger brothers were born in Venezuela. When Ozzie Guillen turned 42 in January 2006, he, his wife, and son Oney becamenaturalizedU.S. citizens.[44] Ozzie Jr. is the lead Spanish-language broadcaster on the White Sox radio network.[40][41]
He is also the brother-in-law of former White Sox teammateScott Radinsky.[45]
Guillen is known for being somewhat eccentric and outspoken, which sometimes lands him in the middle of controversy.[46] He stirred controversy by declining to join the team for the traditional visit to theWhite House in favor of going on vacation after the 2005 White Sox World Series win.[47]
In June 2006 he was quoted as callingChicago Sun-Times columnistJay Mariotti afag.[48] He later apologized for offending any LGBTQ people, but did not back down in his criticism of Mariotti.[49]
In 2010, he spoke against Arizona'snew law to deal with illegal immigration. Guillen described illegal immigrants as "workaholics." "And this country can't survive without them," he said. "There are a lot of people from this country who are lazy. We're not. Prove me wrong. A lot of people in this country want to be on the computer and send e-mails to people. We do the hard work. We're the ones who go out and work in the sun to make this country better."[50] In August, Guillen said that Asian players were treated better than Latino players, stating that while it is common practice for major league clubs to provide a Japanese or Korean translator for their Asian born players, no such translator is provided for their Spanish-speaking Latin American ballplayers.[51]
On April 10, 2012, Guillén was suspended for five games by the Marlins due to comments made about formerCuban presidentFidel Castro. In aTime interview Guillen said, "I love Fidel Castro ... I respect Fidel Castro. You know why? A lot of people have wanted to kill Fidel Castro for the last [53] years, but that mofo is still here."[36][52] The fallout from those comments was a major factor in his ouster after the season; according to Marlins baseball operations chiefLarry Beinfest, the Marlins' attendance flatlined after those remarks and never recovered; although the Marlins actually reached over two million fans in attendance that season (the third and so far last time that has happened for the Marlins), it was more due to the allure of a brand new stadium,Marlins Park.[53][37]
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