White Sox to Retire Ozzie Guillén's No. 13, Honoring Venezuelan Legend

The Chicago White Sox are set to retire the No. 13 jersey of Venezuelan legend Oswaldo "Ozzie" Guillén this Saturday at Rate Field. Guillén, who played shortstop for the team for 13 seasons, becomes the 13th player in the organization's history to receive this honor. Notably, he is also the first manager in franchise history to have his number retired.

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I'm very proud of Ozzie and always have been.

Guillén joins fellow Venezuelans Luis Aparicio and David Concepción as the only players from his country with retired numbers in Major League Baseball. Ken "Hawk" Harrelson, the team's historic announcer, expressed his deep pride and affection for Guillén, calling him "like a son" and the best manager the franchise has ever had for his ability to instill a "will to win" in his players.

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Ozzie is a great guy, he really is. I love him like a son.

Numerous former teammates and colleagues, including Bo Jackson, José Contreras, and Scott Podsednik, will be in attendance to celebrate the occasion. Geoff Blum, who played under Guillén during the 2005 championship season, remarked that the tribute was "about time."

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Simply no doubt about it.

Guillén's career with the White Sox was remarkable both as a player and a manager. As a player, he earned three All-Star selections, a Gold Glove in 1990, and Rookie of the Year honors in 1985. As a manager, he accumulated 678 wins between 2004 and 2011, famously leading the White Sox to their first World Series championship in 88 years in 2005, becoming the first Latin American manager to achieve this feat.

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It was about time.