Rozner: Chicago White Sox, Renteria facing worst of it now

It's not as if Rick Renteria had illusions this time around.

He went through it with the Cubs and he knew what the White Sox had in mind when he was hired, even before the teardown began.

It could have gone either way, sure, based on what was out there for Chris Sale, but once that decision was made there was no doubting the direction and how far the Sox would have to fall before the rebuild would show some progress.

Still, he has to feel a bit like the guy friend, instead of the boyfriend, wondering if she will ever think of him that way - if baseball will ever think of him that way.

Always hoping, but never certain.

Even this season, Renteria went about his workday as if this were a real baseball season. For nearly four months he came to the park on a mission to win games, perhaps part of him still hoping he wouldn't lose Jose Quintana.

And David Robertson, Tommy Kahnle, Anthony Swarzak, Dan Jennings and Todd Frazier.

So now what?

"We have to keep fighting. We have to keep playing. I don't think there's anything else you can do," Renteria said. "Obviously, we've had some changes, but nobody in the world is going to care about that.

"We go out there and try to compete every single day. We have a lot of baseball left. We have two months left. You don't have any time to feel sorry for yourself. You have to keep playing the game."

The Sox had to play through the deadline as Rick Hahn continued to make moves, and the Cubs series brought some serious life to the ballpark.

But now is when it gets really ugly and Renteria has his work cut out for him. Losing can become a habit for young guys who haven't experienced anything like this before.

"Do I worry about that? I do a little bit," Renteria said. "I think that's why we have to be vigilant.

"You're trying to create an environment where these guys understand they're professional.

"We owe not only the fans, but we owe baseball some respect, and part of that is grinding through anything that's going on.

"They have an opportunity to gain a lot of knowledge, a lot of experience, see a lot of the best that exist in the game and learn from it."

So Renteria is back where he was a few years ago with the Cubs, a team selling off pieces and looking for a high draft pick, knowing it's crucial that they score big with those trades and picks.

While the franchise needs losses, it goes against everything the manager believes.

"We're not trying to lose," Renteria insisted. "We're doing everything we can to try to win a ballgame.

"Sometimes it doesn't work out, but these men aren't coming out here trying to lose. They're doing everything they can to win."

But there's only one reliever - Jake Petricka - left from the opening-day roster. A bullpen that had been top 10 most of the season has lost nearly everyone to deals that will help the Sox down the road.

In the short term, it means many more tough days ahead.

"As a player, you can either lose yourself in the frustration of not performing well or you can take a step back," Renteria said. "I know you're upset that you're not doing well, but take a step back and understand what just happened."

Renteria will insist the players learn from this experience and get better from surviving the tough times.

It's no easy task. But unfortunately for him, no one knows the drill better than Renteria.

brozner@dailyherald.com

• Listen to Barry Rozner from 9 a.m. to noon Sundays on the Score's "Hit and Run" show at WSCR 670-AM and follow him @BarryRozner on Twitter.