"I'm not going to get caught up in that. That's all publicity. They have to do something, they have to do something. If not, then move along. ... After they do something, I see how we handle it ourselves."
The topic of protecting hitters is a sore subject on the South Side these days, especially considering the Sox have been hit 331 times since 2004 while only hitting opposing hitters 270 times, the fewest in baseball over that span.
It's their mouths, however, that seem to get them in more trouble than actually welting the opposition with fastballs.
Both general manager Ken Williams and Guillen have been candid about what their pitchers need to do, and that stance hasn't changed.
"I see a lot of my hitters almost with broken hands on back-to-back days," Guillen said. "I never retaliated because I think it no was on purpose. But in the meanwhile, if I'm the hitter, and I keep getting hit and my pitchers don't protect me, I don't want to play for them.
"That's the way baseball is and how it's going to be. Am I outspoken about it? Maybe it's my fault because every time I hit somebody, I say, 'Yes, I did.' I got in trouble. I paid my dues. I paid my money. They sent me to correctional houses. But in the meanwhile, fans have to know what's going on in the game.
"I see other managers hitting people left and right and they say we don't try to do it. I did it one time and I take the blame and I pay a lot of money. I'm not like another manager when they hit people every other day and they hide behind the bush like, 'We try to pitch inside and we don't mean it.' Oh, really?"
The Sox were hoping to hear from the league by Tuesday, one way or the other.
"Yeah, (it was a message)," Jenks said. "Protecting my guys as well. You don't want to see anyone getting hurt. My intentions were not to hurt the guy, like I said, before.
"That's where I pitch, guys. I throw fastballs in. Whether, I did miss my spot, yeah, it went behind him. Other than that, that's all I can do."
INDIANS 9, WHITE SOX 4: Sox starting pitcher Gavin Floyd continued his spiral downward, once again throwing a clunker. While he is in no immediate danger of losing his starting job, the fact that the Sox only have two starting pitchers they can count on is not a good sign in early May. Floyd allowed eight runs in five innings and is 0-2 with a 9.74 ERA over his last four starts.
The Sox actually could have jumped back into the game in the second inning, when Jermaine Dye and Jim Thome led the inning off with back-to-back singles. But the common theme of this season continued, with Paul Konerko hitting into the double play and A.J. Pierzynski flying out to end the threat.