Ozzie: Obama's Human, Jeter's a God

Barack Obama was on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno last Thursday, getting in hot water after making a remark comparing his bowling ability to the Special Olympics. Obama caught hell for it but apologized.

Of course, as a White Sox fan, Obama isn't alone when it comes to saying politically incorrect things in a public forum. White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen has made an artform out of it, and Guillen wants people to lighten up and get off Obama's back.

"I thought it was funny," said Guillen. "People take it out of context. The [expletive] people in this country think you have to worry about what you're saying, what you're thinking. ... I love when I see Obama's picture in the paper with a beer in his hands. It's awesome. He's a human being. He's a guy who enjoys life."

While Ozzie was busy giving Obama mortal status amongst the rest of us, he spent some of his time on Friday giving a much higher social status to the shortstop of the New York Yankees. It seems White Sox first-round draft pick Gordon Beckham came into camp this spring saying he wanted to be just like Derek Jeter, which were expectations Ozzie quickly tempered for him.

"That's a great statement of confidence, but Derek Jeter is a god of baseball,'' opined Guillen. ''You look in the dictionary for God, and Derek Jeter's picture is right there. I wish he could play like God. When you have [four] rings, make a lot of money, captain of the New York Yankees, good-looking women, no way he will be Derek Jeter. Derek Jeter is God. Derek Jeter is baseball. Everybody else is just trying to play the game.''

Ozzie then drove the point home to Beckham by naming Chris Getz his starting second baseman.

Whether Guillen is correct in his assessments of Obama and Jeter, I don't care. I'm just happy to hear him saying things like this again because it means Opening Day is right around the corner.