For the first time in his five years as White Sox skipper, Ozzie Guillen admitted to the Sun-Times over the weekend that criticism was wearing on him.

Even his wife, Ibis, needed an explanation.

"I had to explain to my wife what was going on," Guillen said. "She saw me 'bleeping' all over the place, and all of a sudden she wanted to know what was going on. When people in my family have to start asking me what's going on, that's what bothered me the most."

But before his critics start celebrating and writing his managerial obit, Guillen is a roller coaster of emotions, and for the most part, those emotions pass.

"I want to manage until I'm dead, but in the meanwhile, I get worn down when people keep saying stuff they don't know," Guillen confessed. "When people say stuff and put me and my ballclub in a bad spot that we shouldn't it is a challenge. But you know what? I like a challenge. When I signed the contract to become a manager in Chicago, I knew what I had to face. I know the people of Chicago. But every day is a different day, but some days are tougher than others.

"What I think about is how much I love the game compared to how much I want to leave, and there are times lately where I say, 'Wow, why do we have to go through this situation?' I can live without these problems. I can live without the smell of the ballpark; do I want to leave right now? Not right now. Maybe when I have my grandchildren I want to spend time with them, but right now my family is happy. As long as they are happy and support me, and as long as my players go out there and respect me, play the game the right way ... If I lose my players then it's time for me to leave."

Last week was quite the odyssey for Guillen.

There was "Dollgate" in Toronto, followed up by the infamous "bleep rant" about the Cubs and the perception that the Sox are second-class citizens in the Windy City. Then Guillen had to sit back the rest of the week and take the bullets from the media -- both near and from afar.

"A lot of people don't like the way I talk," Guillen said. "You might not like it, I may sound arrogant, but if you look at what I say, I just tell people, 'Look yourself in the mirror and ask yourself is Ozzie Guillen lying?'"

As it stands right now, the ink on Guillen's contract extension that he signed late last season is still not dry. It takes him through 2012. And the fact is, it won't be winning or losing that determines his fate.

"I never quit a battle," Guillen said, when asked if another 90-loss season could sway his decision. "I'm the captain of the boat, and if we're going to sink, I'm going down with it."

MARINERS 6, WHITE SOX 3: The 25-year-old Gavin Floyd picked a bad time to have his worst start of the season, as the loss dropped the Sox (18-18) back to the .500 mark. Not only was it the worst they have seen Floyd this season, but it was his shortest outing since he joined the club last season. Floyd went just 3 2/3 innings, allowing five runs and nine hits.

It wasn't like the offense didn't give Floyd (3-2) some room for error, as they jumped all over M's starter Miguel Batista for three consecutive singles and a 1-0 lead to start the game. After Paul Konerko struck out, A.J. Pierzynski made it a two-run lead with his RBI double. Batista would get out of the jam, and letting him get up off the canvas proved to be a big mistake by the time it was all said and done.

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