Ventura confident in preparation of White Sox

CHICAGO -- An interesting pregame interaction took place Tuesday between a television reporter and White Sox manager Robin Ventura, centering on the job being done by Ventura.

The media member pointed out that a person looks for "crisp defense, good baserunning and good situational hitting" when watching a team that would be considered well-managed.

"When I watch the White Sox, I don't see that," the reporter concluded.

"So, they are poorly managed. OK," Ventura responded.

At that point, Ventura was asked to assess his managerial effort so far this season. Ventura said that if you go by wins and losses, then obviously he's not doing too well in the reporter's eyes. He clearly would like to see better execution and admitted there are elements of managing where he second-guesses himself.

"If you lose a game, you'd like to have a lot of things back. But when you're in the moment doing things, you're doing what you think is right at that time," Ventura said. "I see what the coaches do. I see how we handle it, and that's what I go by. We've done steps necessary to be ready and be prepared."

The preparation has not been an issue for the White Sox, despite ranking 13th in the American League with a .980 fielding percentage. Eventually, it comes down to execution.

"But whether it's me or whether it's them, it's a team thing," Ventura said. "It's all of us. So when we lose a game, we all lose. When we win it, it's the players. That's the way I look at it.

"I don't think I change as far as my personality goes. The focus doesn't change. Again, it's about playing clean baseball."