Tony La Russa surprised many by accepting the Chicago White Sox manager job during the offseason, but there was one major issue that had to be addressed before he did.
La Russa admitted that he likely would not have accepted the position if it had cost him his position as a Hall of Famer. He even reached out to the National Baseball Hall of Fame to confirm that his status as an inductee would not be revoked if he returned to managing.
“If this opportunity, as great as it is, cost me the Hall of Fame, I wouldn’t have taken it,” La Russa told Bob Nightengale of USA Today. “The Hall of Fame is beyond everything else.”
Hall of Fame president Tim Mead confirmed to La Russa that no inductees were excluded from returning to the game, which helped prompt him to accept the job.
While the rules are what they are, La Russa’s return did not go over well with some of those who had elected him. Ultimately, there’s nothing they can do about it now — La Russa’s enshrinement is permanent, no matter how his Chicago tenure goes.
