MLB WINTER MEETINGS

December 4, 2023

Pedro Grifol

Chicago White Sox

Press Conference

Q. Since Chris took over and you guys have worked together, how do you like how the original vision is starting to play out for the team?

PEDRO GRIFOL: I love it. As expected. You know, he was the farm director here for a long time, so he's had a vision for this organization as a farm director that he's able to carry out now. He's doing a really good job. He has assembled a really good staff around him, and there's a lot of communication. There's a plan, and they're executing that plan, which is good.

Q. The vision is different from farm director to running the whole thing.

PEDRO GRIFOL: It is, but as a farm director, you're still developing players for the Big Leagues, and you're keeping tabs at the Big League level and what we need in the Big Leagues to be able to have success.

So what I mean by that, he worked every single day with that vision for the last six years, and now he's able to carry that vision out, and he's doing it.

Q. You guys seem to be in a favorable position here knowing that there are many teams that want some of your players, but then strategically you might not have to move them just because this is the Winter Meetings. In other words, you're in a position where you could wait for other teams to make moves and then maybe strike. What are your thoughts about the position the White Sox are in to get better by trading players maybe at the right time?

PEDRO GRIFOL: I think we're in a great spot. We have some players that are really talented, and we're not going to just move them to move them. It has to make sense.

These guys have proven it at the Major League level, and if it makes sense for us, I think Chris and his staff will pull the trigger. If it doesn't, then we'll wait for the right time.

But being able to have those players as a part of our organization and have those options is something that we're always exploring to make us better. Not just make us better now for '24, but make us better for '24 and beyond.

Q. Will the players be surprised that they might be out will there on the market place right now?

PEDRO GRIFOL: I don't think so. I think Chris set the tone early. He said everybody is available, right, as it should with everybody. That's just the way the game is.

If there's an opportunity to make an organization better, you always have to look into it, but like I said, these guys are White Sox right now, and they're talented. Our job, my job and our staff's job, is to get that talent to perform on the field and execute.

Q. Chris said at the GM meetings he wants you to be more well-rounded. Do you see that as the main priority, and that is that what you are trying to accomplish with everything that gets done this winter?

PEDRO GRIFOL: One of the things I learned last year is that we played a game that doesn't win in the Big Leagues. We need to play faster. We need to be more athletic. We've got to catch a baseball. We have to do things a little better fundamentally.

When we talk about getting more rounded, that's what it's about. Being able to bring in Nicky Lopez and Paul DeJong and what those guys can do defensively, and obviously we're not done. It's the type of game that wins games at the Major League level. You have to play fundamental baseball to be able to compete at that level, and that's what we're trying to do.

Q. You mentioned Paul. Just what do you like about his game, DeJong?

PEDRO GRIFOL: Consistency. I like what he brings to the table every single day. You get a shortstop out there that he's going to be fundamentally sound, and he's going to lead.

The same thing with Nicky, being able to acquire Nicky. Nicky can play second base, play above-average second base and move over to shortstop and give Paul a day. Obviously don't forget about Colson Montgomery, who is knocking on the door. There's some good things happening.

The offseason is early. It's early still. So Chris and his staff are exploring everything to make us better. Like I said, not just in '24, but beyond.

Q. I don't know if this is more of a question for Chris, but catching situation, how do you see who your catcher is right now, or is that just to be determined?

PEDRO GRIFOL: I think it's to be determined. I think there's a lot to be determined. Things are coming together, but they're coming together slowly. I think that's the way to do it. I don't think you rush into anything.

Like I said, we have the talented players, and I think every deal that's made has to fit for us now and in the future. There's a lot of unknowns still in this club. There's a lot of unknowns in the rotation, behind the plate.

So that's something that's going to take a little bit of time. It might take all the way to Spring Training. Who knows? I'm confident in my conversations with Chris and the front office that we're going to get this right.

Q. Bannister and Barfield come in with really good reputations. Do you think those roles have a bigger impact on an organization than maybe when they first started in the game, roles that are not in uniform?

PEDRO GRIFOL: Absolutely. I've had a chance to listen to Bannister now a couple of times. He's a difference-maker. There's no doubt about it. So is Barfield. These guys are difference-makers.

Just listening to their questions, and the way they see things, it's a breath of fresh air because these guys are really creative, and they're always finding little ways to make us better.

Sometimes that's what you need as an organization. You need the big fish obviously, but you also need to support the big fish with creativity, and these guys bring it. I've been really impressed with our front office.

Q. You keep saying these moves need to be good fits for the White Sox. How important is fit not just from what you are trying to do on the field, but kind of with that identity that Chris is trying to establish?

PEDRO GRIFOL: You know, Chris brought in -- we had a meeting. I think it was in November, and we talked about culture and what we want to look like, and he's got three pillars, and they're professionalism, trust, and execution, and everything falls into one of those three.

It might seem simple, but it's really hard to do. We're looking for professionals to trust the process and execute on the field. It sounds simple, but it's not because professionalism, it's a big word, and there's a lot to it.

Obviously trusting the process sometimes is really hard because it might make you uncomfortable as a player, but you have to trust the process. Obviously execution at the Major League level is one of the hardest things to do.

So I believe in simplicity. I love that message. You're going to hear that message a ton. That's what we're about. That's what we're going to be about moving forward. Like I said, it sounds simple, but it's not.

Q. With the changes that already have and are going to be made, do you expect that aspect to be a lot different and a lot better for next year's team than it was in '23?

PEDRO GRIFOL: Absolutely. 100%, yeah.

Q. What did you learn about yourself over the last year about your position, and what advice would you give a guy like Joe Espada or Carlos Mendoza as they go into their rookie managerial seasons?

PEDRO GRIFOL: It's a really good question. Off the field and what I mean about off the field, in the dugout and in the clubhouse, I learned how to manage through adversity. There's a lot of things that come up during the Major League season that even with me in my experience and the jobs that I've held, there's things that come up that you haven't experienced before. So no matter who you are and what you've done in the game, you're still going to run into situations you probably haven't faced before.

I think the most important part is understanding that you're going to run into some adversity, to stay calm, use your resources, use your coaches, use your front office, and just find ways to improve every single day.

On the field I think I started off here by saying that we just have to play a different style of baseball. We have to play fast. If you're not playing fast baseball in the Big Leagues, you're not going to have success.

If you look at the teams that we're in the playoffs and if you look at Arizona -- and I said this when we played Arizona in September. These guys are a handful, and it reminded me of our teams in Kansas City where they just played fast. They make plays. They do whatever it takes to win a baseball game, and they were a handful in the playoffs, and that's the style of baseball that we want to play and that we need to play to turn this thing around.

Q. Obviously still some unknowns on that front with roster and everything, but are you guys going to have a team -- do you have players currently that can play that style?

PEDRO GRIFOL: We're on the hunt for those type of players, and that's what we're looking for. We spent a lot of time on makeup and how players fit into the system that we are implementing right now.

There are some players in the Minor Leagues that definitely fit into this, and there's other ones that we think we can develop to fit into this, and there's players out there that we feel that if we acquire them, they fit into this style of play into these three pillars that we believe in.

We are on the hunt for that style player. I'm confident we're going to get this done.

Q. What did you learn about your own leadership ability going through that topsy-turvy season that you had last year? What were some of the challenges?

PEDRO GRIFOL: Like I said, I learned a lot. Some of it I can't and won't talk about here. There are other things that I learned that I can share.

A lot of this job doesn't pertain to baseball. It just pertains to management, managing the clubhouse, and managing the chemistry. Chemistry is real. It's real. Some people don't believe in it. I believe in it.

You have to get 26 guys that are fighting for each other and love each other and play for each other every single day to be able to get this thing done. We're on our way to doing that. There's a lot that I learned, believe me, and I'll start implementing some of those things in the spring, and you'll see a difference.

Q. Do you see yourself operating differently? You'll have a different group of younger guys, fewer veterans. The way that you go about managing that group, do you see a lot of changes?

PEDRO GRIFOL: We're going to be playing different because we're going to be playing a faster game, so obviously I'll be managing a different style of game, an aggressive game.

But I've said this to you guys plenty of times, I'm ever-evolving. I'm not going to just sit around and not really look at myself in the mirror and say, okay, I need to get better at this and that. I'm not doing that.

I've reflected a ton. There's things that I feel I could have done better, and I will be better. There's things that I feel our staff could have done better, and we will be better. Definitely there's things that our team could have done better, and we will be better.

So I'm excited for Spring Training. I'm looking forward to the team that joins us in Camelback. You'll see a difference.

Q. Do you and Chris talk often about what players you want to be on the team next year as far as trades, free agents, all that?

PEDRO GRIFOL: Yeah, we communicate all the time. Like I said, we have a really good front office. There's times where we'll, say, take two or three days without talking, but I know that those guys in there are constantly working to improve us.

We're in constant communication. We know the type of player that we want. We know the system that we are creating and who fits in that system. We're going to stay consistent with that.

Q. Pedro, have you watched Japanese video this season, for example, Yamamoto and Imanaga?

PEDRO GRIFOL: Very little. Not enough to comment on that. I know he's extremely talented, but very little.

Q. What have you learned about Jerry Reinsdorf now almost the year that you have worked for him and his passion for the game and being the owner?

PEDRO GRIFOL: That's a great question. Coming in here I have been lucky to develop a relationship with Jerry. I think he's one of the best, if not the best, owners in the game.

He's got a passion to win. He loves the game of baseball. He's a fan and an owner as well. His knowledge for the game is really, really good.

My communication with Jerry is impeccable. He believes in us and what we're trying to accomplish. I love working for him, and I love working with him.