The White Sox are technically a big league team, despite how they looked during the 2024 season, and big league teams do need managers. Former Angels manager Phil Nevin is on the short-list of candidates to replace interim manager Grady Sizemore. Sizemore took over for Pedro Grifol in early August.
Nevin knows some of the coaches well on the South Side of Chicago, as he worked with three of them during his time as the Angels manager. This is subject to change, of course, as the White Sox certainly have not finalized one thing concerning their roster, coaching staff, or front office heading into 2025. So, as their staff is currently constructed, Nevin was once worked with Chicago’s hitting coach, assistant pitching coach, and catching coach while with the Angels.
Like Shohei Ohtani, Nevin, Marcus Thames, Matt Wise, and Drew Butera all left the Angels after the miserable 2023 season. Some were fired, others left on their own accord (Ohtani is in the latter camp). Thames, Wise, and Butera picked up with the White Sox this offseason and are among the few coaches who were not fired. The White Sox let Grifol, bench coach Charlie Montoyo, third base coach Eddie Rodriguez, and assistant hitting coach Mike Tosar go all at the same time.
Nevin helped bring on Marcus Thames as the Angels’ Hitting Coach before the 2023 season, as they coached together for four years with the Yankees. Nevin and Thames are close friends, and Thames could help talk-up Nevin for the White Sox managerial role as Nevin did for Thames for the Angels Hitting Coach gig.
Matt Wise predated Phil Nevin on the Angels’ coaching staff, as he had been working with the big league team since 2020. Replacing the disgraced Mickey Callaway as the interim pitching coach in 2021, Wise was the major league bullpen coach for one season. Wise eventually had the interim tag removed, becoming the full-time pitching coach. Wise had spent close to 20 seasons in the Angels organization.
Drew Butera spent two seasons as the Angels bullpen coach, helping oversee catching development and a variety of other tasks for the organization. He is a former player (he played with, then coached Matt Thaiss) since he retired in 2022.
Will the White Sox want to assemble four coaches from the 2023 Angels who finished the season 73-89, even though Shohei Ohtani lead the league in bWAR? That remains to be seen. Nevin took Joe Maddon’s managerial role, despite Maddon giving himself a slump-busting mohawk, and went 119-149 in total.
