CHICAGO — Former White Sox shortstop and manager Ozzie Guillén was brought to tears when the team announced Friday that his No. 13 would be retired in a ceremony later this summer.
Guillén, 62, is still a popular figure within the White Sox community after managing the team to a World Series title in 2005. He spent eight years in the dugout after 13 as a player for them from 1985 to 1997.
“I was very surprised,” Guillén said. “Very, very surprised. They made me cry for them.”
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Guillén will be the 13th member of the organization to have his number retired, a tally that includes two players — Mark Buehrle and Paul Konerko — from his 2005 World Series team. He’ll also be the first manager in franchise history to have his number retired.
“Ozzie is truly one of a kind, and his passion for baseball and the White Sox is unmatched,” owner Jerry Reinsdorf said in a statement. “Ozzie’s knowledge of the game, combined with his energy and ability to motivate his teams, helped deliver a World Series Championship to White Sox fans and the city of Chicago after an 88-year drought.”
Guillén admits he wore an unpopular number — 13 — because that’s what his hero, Davey Concepción, wore. He’s mostly happy that his kids and grandkids will be with him for the Aug. 8 ceremony, along with Reinsdorf, who turned 90 in February.
“The White Sox organization care [about] what I did for them,” Guillén said. “Obviously the fans, the media. But to me, the most important is what the White Sox think about what I did for the organization, all my work.”
Guillén won the 1985 AL Rookie of the Year Award and was a three-time All-Star as well as being a Gold Glove winner in 1990. Currently, he’s a pregame and postgame host for White Sox games on television.
