The postgame celebration songs pounded through the Bluetooth speakers in the Chicago White Sox clubhouse on Monday night, minutes after the team’s playoff victory over the Cleveland Guardians at Progressive Field.
asserted
songs → pound → Field
The White Sox, who lost 121 games two seasons ago, have made a remarkable turnaround.
asserted
who → lose → turnaround
A team who were once so abject that they stopped tweeting out their results are now just five wins from the World Series.
asserted
they → stop → Series
They can seal their progress to the American League Championship Series on Wednesday if they beat the Guardians in Chicago.
asserted
they → seal → Chicago
But amid the clubhouse excitement in Cleveland, one individual remained the same.
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individual → remain → Cleveland
“He’s the same guy every single day,” White Sox designated hitter Andrew Benintendi said about the club’s manager, Will Venable.
asserted
Benintendi → ’ → manager
“He’s even keel.
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He → ’ → ?
His consistent approach and calm demeanor have helped set the tone for a team whose manager once envisioned his future on a basketball court.
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manager → help → court
Long before Venable managed a major-league team, he learned about spacing, timing, preparation, trust and precision away from the baseball diamond.
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he → manage → diamond
He was first team All-Ivy League, led his team to the NCAA Tournament and once scored 21 points against Duke.
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He → lead → Duke
As a baseball player, Venable was also All-Ivy, which made him only the second Princeton athlete to accomplish that distinction in baseball and basketball.
asserted
him → make → baseball
And he eventually took the Princeton concepts of basketball and used them in his baseball career.
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he → take → career
“For me, my time playing basketball, especially at Princeton, helped me understand the importance of attention to detail,” said Venable, who played eight years in the majors, mostly for the San Diego Padres.
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who → play → Padres
“The spacing and timing required [in the Princeton offense] helped me as a baseball player understand the importance of every little detail.”
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me → require → detail
Princeton’s style of basketball taught Venable how to see baseball spatially and collectively.
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style → teach → baseball
The basic concepts of the Princeton offense rely on constant player movement, precise passing, back-door cuts and read-and-react decisions rather than fixed set plays.
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concepts → rely → plays
The Princeton offense is about players functioning as connected pieces rather than individuals.
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players → function → pieces
This postseason, Chicago’s pitching philosophy has been a team effort – sharing the ball as in basketball.
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philosophy → share → basketball
, the White Sox focus on managing matchups, not innings.
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Sox → focus → matchups
It’s not about who starts but who gets the next out.
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who → ’ → out
Venable essentially manages his pitching staff the way a basketball coach manages a roster: through combinations, matchups, short bursts and putting players into situations where their particular skills have the greatest advantage.
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skills → manage → advantage
“That’s carried over into managing,” Venable said.
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Venable → carry → managing
“The details matter: where we position guys, the timing of their pre-pitch movements, timing at the plate, all the very fine details and the precision of the game.
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we → matter → game
I learned that through my time in basketball.”
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I → learn → basketball
And many of White Sox players have learned from their manager.
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many → learn → manager
They learned from the unconventional style but mostly from the confidence that leaks into his players.
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that → learn → players
That confidence was on display Monday when rookie Braden Montgomery’s opposite-field double in the sixth inning gave the White Sox the lead.
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double → give → lead
In that same inning, Montgomery scored on a single as the White Sox held on for a 4-3 Game 2 victory.
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Sox → score → victory
The switch-hitting outfielder had a .430 OPS in 103 plate appearances against left-handed pitchers in the regular season, the worst among qualifying hitters from the right side of the plate.
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outfielder → hit → plate
“That’s a guy that’s not going to shy away from the moment,” Venable said.
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Venable → ’ → moment
“It all culminates into trusting the player and really again putting the nine best guys out there to get the job done.”
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job → culminate → guys
Montgomery said Venable’s quote is special.
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quote → say → ?
“I respect him so much for having that confidence in me, and that means the world to me,” Montgomery said.
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Montgomery → respect → me
“I’d run through a wall for Will.”
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I → run → Will
Earlier this season catcher Kyle Teel needed a dose of confidence as he struggled at the plate after he returned to the active roster.
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he → need → roster
“[Will] came up to me and told me not to do too much and stay within myself,” Teel said.
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Teel → come → myself
“I hit a home run right after he said that.
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he → hit → that
He’s a phenomenal leader.
asserted
He → ’ → ?
I’m grateful he’s our manager.”
asserted
he → ’m → ?
Shortstop Colson Montgomery said Venable’s confidence has a strong influence on the team.
asserted
confidence → say → team
…and 10 more, not listed.
The Aporia
