Ozzie Guillen, Chicago White Sox. (Photo by Nuccio DiNuzzo/Getty Images)
Apparently, Ozzie Guillen absolutely loathes Nick Swisher; he hates him.
If you put Ozzie Guillen and Nick Swisher in one dugout, you’re trying to mix oil and water.
During the Chicago White Sox‘s postgame show on Wednesday night, the former three-time All-Star, 1985 American League Rookie of the Year and 2005 World Series Championship manager held absolutely nothing back. When asked who he hates more, Carlos Gomez of the Milwaukee Brewers or Swisher, Guillen went out and body bagged Swisher on NBC Sports Chicago.
Guillen has never been afraid to say what’s on his mind. He’ll let it rip from time to time. Boy, did he let it rip on Wednesday. Guillen essentially called Swisher’s ball of energy personality one big charade and regrets managing him for that one season on the 2008 White Sox. Swisher struggled during his one year on the South Side before having great success with the New York Yankees.
You could feel the hate for Nick Swisher from within Ozzie Guillen’s soul.
On most regional sports networks, you’re not supposed to preach hate on a postgame show, but here we are. Guillen hasn’t managed in the league for nearly a decade since the debacle that was the 2012 Miami Marlins. Swisher hasn’t played for a big league club since being traded to the absolutely atrocious 2015 Atlanta Braves. Yet, there is no love lost between these two men.
The White Sox haven’t been the same since Guillen was their manager, although they could be ending their lengthy postseason drought in 2020. Swisher has too found success away from the baseball diamond, as he’s a one-of-a-kind baseball analyst personality for FOX on a national level. Though we may never fully understand what happened back in 2008, we can tell it wasn’t great.
It might have something to do with Swisher joining the Yankees the following year in 2009, you know, when they won the World Series over the Philadelphia Phillies. The following season, Swisher was named an MLB All-Star for the only time in his career. In New York, he tapped into what made him such a coveted prospect of the Oakland Athletics coming out of Ohio State.
If you think Guillen and Swisher will ever get along again, watch that video and decide for yourself.