With job on line, manager Robin Ventura contends White Sox can compete

When White Sox broadcaster Ken “Hawk” Harrelson said everybody has issues Saturday morning during a seminar at SoxFest, manager Robin Ventura made it the catchphrase of the gathering, using it often to draw out laughs when talking about his club.

The self-deprecating approach worked with a mild-mannered crowd in a ballroom at the Hilton Chicago. No fan questioned why Ventura still has a job as one man suggested Friday night, instead opting for inquiries about why this Sox team will be better than the one that flopped with a 76-86 record last season.

Ventura and general manager Rick Hahn said they believe the additions of infielders Todd Frazier and Brett Lawrie and catchers Alex Avila and Dioner Navarro will help boost the club on offense and defense, but they also said they have reason to expect better production from returning players.

“I like our starting staff, and if we can score some runs and catch the ball, we’re going to be dangerous,” Ventura said earlier in the week. “When you play in the division that has the world champions (Royals), you become the underdogs. But that’s something we’re used to, and with the guys we’ve brought in, (we) should score some runs.”

Among concerns is the slow starts that have plagued the Sox the last three years.

They have finished below .500 in March and April in each of those seasons, combining for a 32-41 record.

Less than three weeks away from the start of spring training, Hahn said there have been internal discussions about setting the right tone at the beginning of camp to help solve the problem. Ventura has been in touch with new bench coach Rick Renteria, who was not at SoxFest, to lay out plans for the spring.

Ventura also said he might ask his starting position players to play together more often and deeper into games during the Cactus League.

“Hopefully they can go through whatever the April struggles are in spring training,” Ventura said.

Outfielder Avisail Garcia and designated hitter Adam LaRoche — and their “issues” — were popular subjects among concerned fans this weekend.

Hahn and Ventura each said during seminars that LaRoche must earn his place on the team after he hit .207 with 12 home runs and 133 strikeouts while making $12 million last season. But Ventura also acknowledged the Sox currently don’t have a replacement at DH, something that could be solved if the Sox add an outfielder and Melky Cabrera or Garcia slide into a DH role.

“He has to go into spring training and earn a job, and earn the right to play on the field,” Ventura told the crowd about LaRoche. “As of right now, he would be in (the lineup) because of the way we’re structured. … Depending on who we have (available to take his place), then it becomes different.”

Ventura has a lot riding on a turnaround in the final year of his contract with the Sox, but he has said often that being a lame-duck manager won’t affect him. Starter Chris Sale, outfielder Adam Eaton and Hahn all expressed similar sentiments this weekend.

“I don’t think the contract is going to bother Robin at all, or his status,” Hahn said. “In professional sports, anyone can be fired at any time regardless of what is left on their contract. Robin didn’t come back as manager for economic reasons, and it never has been a focus of his. I know Robin is committed to winning because of the competitor he is and the drive he has.”

ckane@tribpub.com

Twitter @ChiTribKane