Tony La Russa charged with DUI, and the White Sox knew this was coming when they hired him

Tony La Russa

New (old) White Sox manager Tony La Russa was charged with DUI on Oct. 28 by the Maricopa County Attorney's Office in Arizona.

According to an ESPN report, La Russa allegedly ran his car into a curb in February, leaving it smoking on the side of the road in the Phoenix area.

The arresting officer reportedly said La Russa was incoherent during the incident, and the veteran manager repeatedly referenced his credentials as a baseball Hall of Famer in an attempt to escape the trouble. 

This is the second drunken driving arrest for LaRussa. He pleaded guilty in 2007 to misdemeanor DUI in Jupiter, Fla.

I think the timeline of this arrest is a little strange. This incident occurred in February, and the charges weren't filed until eight months later. 

Definitely odd, but here's what is known: The charges were filed Oct. 28, but the Sox hired La Russa to be manager one day later anyway. 

Yuck. The Sox are taking a beating in the national media right now, and rightfully so. First off, at least one prominent free agent says he won't play for La Russa for any amount of money.

Secondly, one drunken driving arrest is one thing -- people make mistakes -- but two such incidents is a trend, and that's not somebody you want running your baseball team. That's somebody who has a problem.

And third, this again highlights what a flawed process the Sox used to hire La Russa. It wasn't a legitimate search, with interviews of multiple qualified candidates, with the best man earning an offer.

No, it was a crony hire by one man, owner Jerry Reinsdorf. He regrets firing La Russa 34 years ago, and he's trying to make amends for it, even if he has to undercut his baseball operations department to do it, and even if he brings shame and national disgrace to a proud fan base and every other person who works for the Sox.

Of course, there's still time to do the right thing. La Russa hasn't even hired a coaching staff yet. (What is he waiting for?) So cut ties with La Russa, start over and conduct a search the right way. Allow Ken Williams and Rick Hahn to hire a manager, not Reinsdorf. 

Will that actually happen? Don't bet on it. Oh, and Rick Renteria finished second in the AL Manager of the Year voting today. He has to be among the chorus of people laughing at the Sox right now.