Ken Williams Quotations

We are pleased to have been able to work this extension out with Jose. We have said over and over again that pitching is the priority when it comes to building our club. To have five All-Star caliber staring pitchers all under contract gives us an outstanding core to our club this year and into the future.

Whether there's something that materializes from the outside in the next week or so, I don't see it out there. I certainly don't see anything that is on the horizon, for various reasons.

We're going to find out what some people are made of here in the next week. Maybe this is a good thing for us. It certainly isn't a good thing for me and my sleep and my stress level. . . . But what the heck, if it turns out to make us that much better prepared in the event we do get into the final four, then it was all worth going through.

Uh, no. Because I was dealing with all of the information I had at the time, that information told me that if I were to put him out there with that particular injury, I would have put Frank's career and future at risk. He may not see it that way, but I'll go to sleep at night knowing I did what was best for him and his career -- and that was giving him the opportunity to play this season.

Wow. We took great pains at every step of the way over the years to make sure something like this didn't happen. Obviously, in Frank's eyes, it wasn't enough. Well, I'm sorry.

We have said over and over again that pitching is the priority when it comes to building our club.

This was not about our desire not to have him as part of our organization for a long, long time,

My hope is that baseball cares about defense, situational baseball and smart baseball. But in the AL, you'd better have a little power to back that up.

Right now, he's not going to go on the DL because we don't need to put anybody on the DL,'' Guillen said.

One of the reasons we picked each one of these guys on this team is we wanted a bunch of fighters, ... We wanted guys who could be resilient and had been resilient to criticism or doubts throughout the course of their whole career.

I would encourage people to do what their heart tells them,

I grew up a Raiders fan, ... I've seen it work.

I didn't want him thinking that because we weren't going to talk contract that it was indicative of our feelings toward him. So here we are, and it obviously makes it a little more difficult to get something done. But if there's a desire on both parts, then I'm more optimistic than not.

I don't know what I can say that wouldn't get me in trouble. He's a Cincinnati Red.

I don't think it is the appropriate or proper thing to do. That's not me. I talked to Ozzie about it because not only do I want to win, but I want to do it in a very respectful and classy way. There's a way to win and a way not to win. And being boastful about it is not the way.

For whatever reason, if it doesn't happen and he's playing in New York or Anaheim or whatever, he's still going to be a White Sox, part of the family, ... I told Paul that I could see him one day sitting in Ozzie's chair or my chair. I think that much of him.

For whatever reason, if it doesn't happen, and he's playing in New York or Anaheim, he's still going to be a White Sox and part of the family, ... He'll forever be a friend, and I think he's one of the classiest players and people that I know.

He was very well liked and definitely a consummate journalist.

He's confident, and a little cocky. He's quite a character, which is a perfect fit here.

He hasn't changed a bit, ... To think we lived so close to each other all this time and didn't know it.

He doesn't have enough time to start the season.

He fits in here very well. He should probably stay here. This is a good place for him.

Whatever his explanations are as to what he said, he has to clean up his own house. I'm concerned with what's happening on the field, not all this peripheral stuff.

What do I think about giving? ... The answer is give. We need to do something. We need to respond to our neighbors.

Hyundai is a brand buyers recognize as having the strongest warranty in the market of 10 years or 100,000 miles, as well as fuel economy and competitive pricing, with prices as low as $8,995 for their entry-level vehicle,

Kenny's done a great job. He's been unlucky. He's made moves and everybody says they're great moves and a lot of times they haven't worked out. But you can't judge moves in hindsight. You have to judge them at the time he makes them.

Jose is a pitcher we have pursued for some time. Adding a pitcher of Jose's caliber gives us a solid starting rotation for the remainder of this season and into the future.

Jose is a pitcher we have pursued for some time, ... Adding a pitcher of Jose's caliber gives us a solid starting rotation for the remainder of this season and into the future.

Jon stepped up. He made a statement about who he is. He could have gone the free agent route next year and potentially commanded more years and more money. That was less of a concern than his wanting to be here.

I thought he could be what he was in Cuba again, ... He's been even better than I imagined.

I think the sense of urgency was never really there to get it done and I believe something like this forces it to get done. I believe it can be done.

I think the World Baseball Classic is one of the most exciting events. It's going to be good for the game. ... What else am I supposed to say?

I saw his name and picture and thought he looked familiar, ... When I saw his age I thought it might be him.

Ozzie is still growing into his position and the responsibility of his position, as well as am I. We'll continue to evolve in a way that is first class. ... We want to win in a first-class manner and be known as a first-class organization. We got a little bit of work to do, but we'll keep at it.

Overall, I'd say there's a 20 percent increase in sales this week compared to the rest of December.

Our ultimate desire ... was to keep this team intact. It may turn out that someone overwhelms us with an offer for Jose.

Rob brings a lot of the things that Aaron did in his style and aggressiveness and grinder-type attitude. A lot of people overlooked him as an amateur and minor league talent. He made himself into one of the better players in the big leagues. I don't know if the people here know how good he is. The guy can play.

Our manager is doing his best to win the game and to prepare his team for the playoffs,

My role in this is now to hand this to Ozzie, and whatever he decides, I will follow his lead in it. That's the way it has to be right now because it's his staff. These are the people he has to work with.

Listen to these guys talk, and you'll know they're ready. We're not done. We want it. We want it again.

I was getting ready to get on a jet ski and I slipped.

I think our team, if we play the way we are capable of, we should be able to take care of business in our own division. That's not to slight any other team. I just think that we are in a better position this year.

I still have 17 pieces of shrapnel in my neck.

That support will come from the local economy ... there are people in this community who access those agencies all day, every day, and we need to sustain that support. That's as true for the Food Bank and Neighbor to Neighbor as it is for the Red Cross.

We have all seen the truth of the past year, from the tornadoes this past weekend to the hurricanes on the Gulf Coast, that even in the best-case scenario, we have to be prepared to take care of ourselves.

Understand that a lot of people, generations, have come and gone and not seen their team win the World Series,

We had a number in mind, we had a term and it was basically whether or not Jose and his agent were going to understand our position enough to want to come back at those numbers.

We're not getting information on the volunteers who are already deployed. Our focus is on getting more volunteers out there.

We stay together because we get along pretty well.

We think we're insulated against a lot of things.

There are several colleges and universities around the country that offer motorsports programs like ours, but to my knowledge, we are the first to offer a motorsports course online,

When we left the stadium (in Houston) the night we won, I was thinking how we could improve over the winter,

What is our record? I don't even know. Like I told Ozzie, the only thing he's proven is that he can win a World Series, not that he can have a .500 record in spring training.

With his knowledge of pitchers in this league, he could be an asset to his teammates just by being around,

We certainly like the feel of the champagne dripping off our clothes. We all are competitors. I said years ago that we not only wanted to win one, but we wanted to have sustained success. We wanted to build a brand. We took a major step forward with winning the World Series, but to cement ourselves in the Chicago market and the national market, we have to keep pushing.

We're diverse because we're looking for the best in talent and character. It just happened that way. I could care less what the makeup of the club is as long as it works as a whole.

You look around at our team, ... and it's tough to find a guy who hasn't been doubted or criticized in some way. They all have that as a common denominator, and it becomes part of your personality as a team.

At that time people didn't run a lot. Some woman in the neighborhood called the police and said there was a man running and that I must be up to something.

There should be no question about the respect this organization has for Frank and all that he has helped us accomplish, including a World Series championship. He is the greatest hitter in White Sox history. At the same time, it is my responsibility to make the best decisions I can on behalf of the organization. Our plan is to continue to speak with Frank and his representatives over the coming months as more information is known about his health.

There's going to be a lot of shuffling, so grab a scorecard.

I've been out in the field with her, scouted. I've been in the back rooms with her, around the table. She's as qualified as any guy sitting in there around the table,

I've been out in the field with her, scouted, ... I've been in the back rooms with her, around the table. She's as qualified as any guy sitting in there around the table.

I understand the South Side and our fan base,

The very first ball hit in spring training and Pod goes into the wall all feet and legs,

I've seen the rumors. He's unavailable. I have to be very careful. He'll use everything I say against me in the next contract negotiations.

I've never made a New Year's resolution before. I didn't think about it until now.

The thought was, 'Oh, no! And then it was, 'All right!

I've made no bones about it, ... Priority No. 1 when this is all said and done is to try and get him signed.

I've always thought it's kind of disrespectful to the guys that have gotten you in the position to consider a move, ... So if you come out and say I need X, Y or Z ... they deserve better than that.

Sometimes I cringe. Sometimes it (ticks) me off. Most of the time, I just laugh.

Right now, we're still in the grind of it. You've got to keep that edge to you. OK, yeah, (it's) a happy, joyful occasion,

People talk about our fan base not being supportive enough, but none of us think that is a lack of passion on their part. That's misunderstood.

speculators who are looking for the paper at cheap prices.

As I've told him twice before, he needs to find another hobby. This one puts his career and his team's chances in jeopardy.

This is the last time you hear about it from me.

It's just amazing, the turnaround. We went from not being permitted to even stand on the school's street corner to being permitted to stand on school property and also have a club. It's a total reversal.

It's just going be one of those things that debated as long as we play this game. It's a valid question, and I don't have an answer for you other than my manager feels he's doing what is best in his efforts to try to win today's game as well as prepare them for the playoffs.

It's a shame, here we are in a celebratory atmosphere, that we even have to address such issues.

I told Paul this, ... I can see one day him sitting in Ozzie's chair or sitting in my chair. I think that much of him. His thought process is very structured, very logical. And his work ethic - I think it'll be transferred from the field.

I told Paul that I could see him one day sitting in Ozzie's chair or my chair. I think that much of him,

It's an open competition. Because you are somewhat protected in this role, there's an opportunity for one of the young guys to step up.

It's not so much that I wanted to be one of the first in the race ... I just like to run and couldn't wait to sign up. I really think this race will take hold and do good.

It's not something we need to answer right now.

It's too early to tell. In this particular case and with the dollars that you're talking about, you have to walk very lightly and be mindful.

It's March 13. It's way too early to get that reactionary. You're always looking for possibilities in the event anyone goes down, so nothing will change as far as that's concerned. But hold the horses.

It's got to be great back there in Chicago. I'm happy for all of them.

Do I need a new manager or not?

That's something that gets lost in the translation.

Everybody saw the plus-stuff; we didn't pull off any kind of heist or anything. We took a chance on a guy who was coming off of surgery, who had a steel rod in his arm, and got lucky.

Everybody saw the plus-stuff; we didn't pull off any kind of heist or anything, ... We took a chance on a guy who was coming off of surgery, who had a steel rod in his arm, and got lucky.

I've got too many other things to think about and worry about. It's not that I can't allow myself to think about that, I guess it's more I don't want to. I don't want to allow myself to think about that stuff.

It's very noticeable. It is always a great week.

It's too long a wait. But I'd rather wait till Saturday than next Feb. 15. I've been there before, sitting on the couch watching this all happen (for other teams). It's not a good feeling.

It was just an effort to simply get better.

It's really all about trust. If donors give money to meet a specific need, we need to tell them when that projected need has been met.

At the same time, it is my responsibility to make the best decisions I can on behalf of the organization. Our plan is to continue to speak with Frank and his representatives over the coming months as more information is known about his health.

I'm going to have to call some people and see if I can set up some games this week,

I'm fine with that. We knew what Ozzie was about when we hired him.

I'm probably the only guy in Chicago who doesn't have the luxury of relishing in the sentimentality of what happened last season. The defeatist attitude that we'll always be Chicago's second team doesn't fly with me.

I'm optimistic that something will work out, ... You have a player that wants to be in Chicago and you have a club that wants him to be in Chicago.