Sox’ Venable a ‘bright, young mind’
New bench coach details ‘roller coaster’ ride to landing gig
Will Venable was a little bit caught off guard when he got the phone call from Chaim Bloom.
Venable had interviewed for the Red Sox’ managerial opening after the season ended, among several candidates who Bloom talked to for the job. But when the Red Sox ultimately decided to reunite with Alex Cora, Venable turned his focus back to his job with the Chicago Cubs, where he was the team’s third base coach in 2020 and first base coach the two seasons before.
Then, Bloom called him. The Red Sox’ chief baseball officer wanted to gauge his interest in being the team’s new bench coach.
“It was a surprise, for sure,” Venable said by phone on Tuesday. “Kind of going through this (managerial) interview process, it was kind of a little bit of a roller coaster, just because you really do have to imagine yourself there and commit to the idea of being part of that organization. … So then when you get to that place (mentally) and then it doesn’t work out, you go back to getting focused on the things you need to do in your current role, and so that’s where I was at.”
Venable felt like he connected with Bloom and his baseball operations staff during the interview process, and aligned with their philosophies. Though he came up short, Bloom still thought highly of the 38-year-old Venable, who Cora described as a “bright, young mind.”
“I was disappointed that it didn’t work out with Boston (as the manager), but obviously I understand my own growth and development and where I need to get to be ready for a role like that,” Venable said. “But I was getting back to thinking about the Chicago Cubs and the things we were going to try to do to get better in the offseason and into next year. So, when I got that call from Chaim, I was surprised but obviously very excited.”
Venable said he thought his initial managerial interview laid a good foundation for both sides to get a good feel for each other, and Bloom seemingly agreed. Bloom wanted to get Venable on the phone with Cora, who he had only met before in passing, to see if they would be a good fit. A few days later, they did.
“We had a great conversation,” Venable said. “I already knew that I was aligned well with Chaim and the organization and everything they were trying to accomplish, and so it was great to get on the phone with Alex, at least on my end, being really confident that I aligned with him and everything he was trying to do. Then at some point, they offered me the job and obviously, here we are. …
“The opportunity to be part of the Red Sox organization is something that every person in baseball would jump at the opportunity to have. It’s something I’m extremely excited about. I think new role, new opportunity, new challenges, I’m just really excited to learn the organization and see how I can best help the staff, Alex and of course, the players.”
In his initial conversations with Cora, who is returning after serving a one-year suspension for his role in the Astros’ cheating scandal, Venable said it was important to address that situation with not only Cora, but people close to the situation and around the league. He emerged from those discussions having “felt great about it,” moving forward with confidence that they’ll do the right things as a club.
Venable also felt great about how he connected with Cora from a baseball standpoint.
“Some of the things that he wants to achieve defensively and baserunning-wise, I think a lot of the same values that he has and philosophies really align with mine and some of the attention to detail and some of the things he mentioned that he wants the club to improve,” Venable said. “Those are things I’m passionate about. I think from a standpoint of developing and getting ready for a Major League Baseball game and all the preparation, what he thinks are important are the same things I think are important.
“And then I think he’s someone that really has found a great balance in making decisions where he trusts his eyes and also is able to utilize analytics and information and whatever other inputs he might be putting into decisions. He’s also someone that I think I can really grow and learn from.”
Venable certainly hopes to be a big-league manager one day, and teaming up with Cora can only help that. He didn’t sugarcoat what his new role means to those future aspirations, and he’s ready to hit the ground running.
“I think the possibility of managing, obviously being invited to interview with clubs has put that in my mind as something that might be a possibility down the road,” Venable said. “But right now, it’s really about focusing on what is already a significant role that I’m about to undertake. For me, it’s really about focusing on what I need to do in my current role to help the club as best I can. I think that stuff down the road takes care of itself, but for me, as someone who wants to help a team and wants to help players, this is a huge step for me. …
“I love the idea of having more responsibility and having an ability to have a bigger footprint on an organization, so this alone in itself is a huge opportunity for me that I’m excited about. Managing down the road or not, this is a big deal for me in my growth process.”