Ozzie Guillen Visits Oak Lawn, Praises Involved Parents

OAK LAWN, IL — Chicago White Sox 2005 World Series manager Ozzie Guillen had messages for both parents and kids while in Oak Lawn Thursday as the special guest instructor for the Westside Baseball of Oak Lawn's summer baseball drills camp and competition at the fields across the street from the Oak Lawn Pavilion.

"The ones who I really give a lot of credit to are the parents," Guillen told Patch during the 4-hour camp held under beautiful skies and temperatures in the 70's. "Parents have to drive, stay two hours to watch the kids play. I give them all credit for being patient and bringing their kids here to play baseball."

Guillen said the first thing he does when he leads a youth camp is to have the kids stand up and give a round of applause to their parents.

"Parents could be doing something else - shopping, cleaning the house, cleaning the car. They spend time here to watch the kids play. That's the best," he said.

Guillen was impressed with the kids, too.

"I hope to see at least one of these kids today make it to Major League Baseball," he said. "Maybe (become) an owner."

He shared with them this wisdom about the importance of playing defense.

His most important message to the kids, though, was for them to "enjoy the game."

"Enjoy baseball," he said. "It is hard enough to understand the game, but important to get out of it the most fun."

"In one day, you can't teach them how to play, but you can try the best you can to make them love baseball. And at this age, that's important. Kids can go out there and learn to love the game we love."