The Reds are expected to make it official Friday morning.
Apparently, the 65-year-old former manager of the Philadelphia Phillies, Boston Red Sox and Cleveland Indians (now the Guardians) is healthy again.
Francona resigned as manager of the Guardians after the 2023 season, citing health issues, ending what most believed was his 23-year managerial career.
His biggest success was in 2004 and 2007 when he took the Red Sox to the World Series. He became a Boston icon in 2004 when the Bosox won the World Series, ending an 86-year run of never winning one.
In Cleveland he won nearly 55% of his games and he nearly ended that team’s long draught of not winning a World Series since 1948. He took the 2016 team, known then as the Indians, to the World Seres, but lost in seven games to the Chicago Cubs.
It was the Cubs’ first World Series title since 1908.
His career record is 1,950-1,672.
Francona, a near-certain future Hall of Famer, is known as a player’s manager and is famously known for being dismissed by the Red Sox for being too lenient.
The team often ate chicken and drank beer in the clubhouse during games, unbeknownst to him. And he took the fall for it.
But he is more famously known for being an outstanding leader and baseball tactician. His experience and knowledge of the game should serve the Reds in an extremely positive way.
It took the Reds only 11 days after they fired David Bell to coax Francona out of retirement.
Francona is familiar with Cincinnati. He played as a utility player in 1987 under manager Pete Rose.
And when he managed the Guardians, the Reds and Guardians shared the spring training complex in Goodyear, Ariz.
He is a baseball lifer, a man who spends more time at the ballpark than anywhere else. As manager of the Red Sox, he was known to sleep overnight in his ballpark office.
Francona’s early morning sessions with the beat writers in his clubhouse office were so entertaining and informative, I would often stop in to listen on my way to the Reds portion of the complex, even though I wasn’t covering the Guardians.
His hiring is an extremely popular move for the fan base, eager for the Reds to become relevant. The team hasn’t played in the postseason after a full season since 2012.
They made it during the shortened 60-game season, the season shortened due to the COVID-19 pandemic. But they lost two straight to the Atlanta Braves and didn’t score a run.
About the Author