White Sox name Paul Janish next Director of Player Development

Chris Getz said the following about the hire:

“We are very excited to add Paul to our baseball operations team as director of player development. With 13 years in professional baseball, including nine in the major leagues, and another six years at Rice University where he served as associate head coach, Paul brings a wealth of experience to our organization. He has lived every step of the development ladder, from being a National Champion player at Rice, to being drafted, reaching the majors and then coaching successfully at a high-level program like Rice. We are pleased to have him take the next step in his career with the Whtie Sox and welcome him into the organization to lead our development system.”

Janish, 41, has served with the Rice University Owls since 2017 when he retired from baseball. After first serving as an assistant coach, he was promoted to associate head coach over the past two seasons under Jose Cruz Jr. – who had previously worked with the Tigers as a hitting and outfield instructor under A.J. Hinch. Rice University has long been a great university for baseball talent, and since Janish has been at Rice, 14 players have been drafted.

A former fifth-round draft pick by the Reds, Janish’s baseball career lasted nine seasons. He hit .212/.280/.284 as a primary middle infielder who was known for his defense, posting as high as +11 DRS at shortstop in 2009.

This is the first of what, according to sources, is expected to be a drastic overhaul of the White Sox’s player development system. There is expected to be a coaching and instructor overhaul that will hopefully set a new direction for the White Sox and how they develop in-house talent.