Looking for a fight? Join 'The Club'

Television has a way of making much of little, so it'll be interesting to see what MLB Network makes of the feud between Kenny Williams and Ozzie Guillen.

Premiering tonight is "The Club," a series that has followed the inner workings of the White Sox' front office since spring training.

General manager Williams, field manager Guillen and club chairman Jerry Reinsdorf are the stars. Others in the organization are extras.

If only the friction between mutual irritants Williams and Guillen were more dramatic. I mean, how much fun is a TV series that simply demonstrates that the Sox will survive the tension these two generate?

Yes, folks, no matter how "The Club" depicts them, and how local media already have depicted them, the Sox will survive for two reasons: First, Williams doesn't want to wear a uniform; second, Guillen doesn't want to wear a suit.

In a perfect television world they would trade punches in an early episode, make up, break up again and ultimately coexist. Instead they coexist without the violence.

(Come to think of it "The Club" figures to be more infomercial than documentary regardless. Even if the tension became physical, the tape probably would be nipped and tucked to make Williams and Guillen resemble "Will and Grace.")

Anyway, here's my non-TV view of the Sox: Williams huffs, Guillen puffs, Reinsdorf snuffs, rough times make the situation rougher and good times make it smoother.

Like when Williams said last week on ESPN's "Pardon the Interruption" that Guillen knows better than to want to fight him, giggles followed because the Sox were winning.

When Guillen was upset with Williams last month over where the Sox drafted his son, frowns followed because the Sox were losing.

Again, though, the key to peace prevailing is that Williams doesn't want to be the field manager and Guillen doesn't want to be the general manager.

That limits disputes to petty rather than potent.

Williams and Guillen currently are good at their respective positions, wouldn't be as good at the other's position and seem to understand that.

This is critical because in any office the atmosphere becomes tensest when somebody wants somebody else's job and will undermine him or her to get it.

It happens more in football than baseball. The head coach gets to the point where, as Bill Parcells famously put it, he wants to buy the groceries if he's going to cook the dinner.

Here no one has spotted Guillen in the meat section of the MLB market or Williams wearing a chef's apron in the Comiskey Park kitchen.

Neither wants to trade costumes, though each would like the other to hear, respect and occasionally heed his input.

When their relationship is characterized as a power struggle, no, I don't think so. Guillen wants to boss his players rather than his boss, while Williams wants to run a front office rather than a game.

Dysfunctional? Not that either, considering Williams and Guillen have functioned successfully for seven seasons and are in first place today.

So the most interesting aspect to "The Club" won't be how dramatic the Williams-Guillen dynamic is. It'll be how much the MLB Network wants to dramatize it.

A good guess is not much.

mimrem@dailyherald.com