Rick Renteria has had quite the weekend.
His old-school appeals to hustle and execution earned church revival-like yelps of excitement from the SoxFest crowd Friday night. The next morning, when a fan with autism told him the White Sox were his inspiration, Renteria boomed “You inspire us!” before racing off the dais to embrace him amid a standing ovation. And on Sunday, he simply battled 2011 American Culinary Federation Chef of the Year Carlos Gaytan to a draw in a ceviche cook-off.
Such is the cache of goodwill that Renteria has built up this weekend -- and probably by donning an incredibly dad-core, baby blue short-sleeved button-down speckled with old Sox logos -- that an.