CHICAGO -- The birds-on-the-bat uniforms, the players in the other dugout, the opposing manager, it all looked familiar to Tony La Russa.
Too familiar.
The 76-year-old Hall of Fame manager of the Chicago White Sox found himself in a strange spot Monday night: Leading his club against the team he guided to a pair of World Series titles during a long, prosperous portion of his career, the St. Louis Cardinals.
"It's definitely a different series," La Russa said Monday night before the teams started a three-game set. "It's uncomfortable, it's distracting and you just try to tune it out, but I know it's a different series.