The Red Sox had four managers from the span of 2000-2009. First up was Jimy Williams, captaining the ship from 1997 to August 16, 2001 when he was abruptly fired by GM Dan Duquette on my birthday. (I was so chagrined, I cut out pictures of Jimy from the newspaper and tacked them onto my bedroom door at my parents’ house. The pictures remain there to this day.) I’ve always felt Williams was and is an underrated manager — he got the most he could out of what amounted to a motley crew of players between the Sox and later the Astros (2002-2004).
Pitching coach Joe Kerrigan took over for the remainder of the year and the wheels fell off. The poisonous clubhouse atmosphere worsened, the Carl Everett era reached it’s nadir and Kerrigan himself proved to be awful at the helm.
2002 and 2003 saw the infamous Grady Little enter the premises. An old-school manager like Williams, Little was different in that… well, frankly, he was no good. Someone who advocated Tony Cloninger as his bench coach is someone that maybe shouldn’t be managing. He was good in his own right, helping reverse the cloud that permeated the clubhouse. Strategically, he was unable to manage a bullpen and largely let the inmates run the show. (With the personnel the Sox had on the club, that wasn’t a bad idea, but in general, it’s a bad trait.)
Of course, he botched ALCS Game 7 so dramatically in 2003 with Pedro Martinez that he was not asked back. That led to Terry Francona, who had a nasty experience managing the Phillies in their down years, but also had experience managing superstars, such as Michael Jordan in the White Sox’s farm system. (Here is an interview from 1994 while he was managing Jordan.) He had been training in Oakland, learning from Billy Beane and others. His reputation was one of a balanced background: using statistics to shape his decisions, but leaving plenty of room for the human element. (Similar to my own view.)
The going was a bit tough early on for Francona, although largely exacerbated by the awful choice of having Dale Sveum as the third-base coach. (Fire Brand archive: Sveuming into a Francoma, 8/05/04.) Where was Wavin’ Wendell when you needed him? Of course, he made far more right decisions than wrong, steering the club to a World Series title and should receive massive credit for his handling of the situation the Sox found themselves in during the playoffs, down three games to none in the best-of-seven ALCS.
Francona was at times — and still is, to this day — called Francoma for some questionable decisions he makes that is rooted in both the human element of the game and his ability to remain steady and even-keeled day in and day out, understanding the bigger picture. (Fire Brand archive: A Follow Up to Francona’s Managing Style, 8/27/05. )
Much like his patience with Kevin Millar in 2005 or Coco Crisp in 2007, those decisions pay off as the player either gets better or when push comes to shove, he’ll abandon all hope. (Fire Brand archive: Has Terry Francona Helped or Hurt The Red Sox? 8/21/05.) It’s why he stuck with Crisp in the regular season but switched over to Jacoby Ellsbury in the ’07 playoffs. (Fire Brand archive: Tito pulls the trigger, 6/13/07.)
However, sometimes, his decisions are inexplicable or don’t make sense “when a victory is there for the taking with just a little deviation from the original blueprint” (quoted from a blog) and he ends up not making the move to win the game. (Fire Brand archive: Managerial mishap, 4/16/06.) This leads to some thinking Francona is not a good strategic manager and there is truth to that, but not as severely as some believe. (Fire Brand archive: Terry Francona’s not a good statistical manager — or is he? 3/31/08.)
It’s a niggling point about Francona, and I’m not sold that it’s necessarily a negative point because he alters his approach for the postseason, recognizing that the long haul is over and it’s time to manage each game to win. (Fire Brand archive: Tito hurting Sox’s chances at winning World Series, 10/17/07.)
That approach led to another World Series in 2007, navigating an infusion of young, new talent from the farm system. He especially nurtured a bond with Dustin Pedroia, and their good-natured bantering back and forth is reminiscent of father and son. I have heard multiple reports that the two play a daily game of cribbage during the year.
Francona’s leadership is of some notoriety, as he has been covered in several business magazines. He has a large sense of integrity, about keeping things behind closed doors and standing behind the players he is responsible for. Playing for Francona inspires confidence in a player. His impact on the team has been striking, especially when hearing stories about other managers and teams. (Fire Brand archive: For Better or Worse: Terry Francona, 9/29/09.)
One drawback to Francona is his failing health, as he has had numerous health scares with his leg, staph infections, coughing up blood… it’s been said that sometimes he has been close to death, a scary notion. Things seem to be improving on the health front, so hopefully he’s turned a corner. He also struggles with nicotine addition, trying to quit dip every year and to date, failing to do so. To his credit, each time he tries, he lasts longer before caving in.
Francona is now entering his seventh season as Sox skipper, making him the second-most tenured manager in Boston history behind Joe Cronin’s 13 seasons (1935-1947). (Fire Brand archive: Terry Francona: One of the greatest managers in the game, 1/21/08.) He does so with a three-year contract that began in 2009 along with 2012 and 2013 club options. Francona had technically become a free agent after 2008, but it was understood the two sides would come to an agreement, and they did just that, paying Francona a nice penny for his efforts — $12 million over the three years. (Fire Brand archive: Francona deserves a Torre-like contract, 2/20/08.)
Francona’s record as manager of the Red Sox is 565-407, finishing first once (2007), third once (2006) and second the remainder of the years, nabbing a wild card berth in each of those years.
Francona is already the second-longest tenured manager with two World Series rings to his credit, making him arguably the best manager Boston has had patrolling its benches. There is no better candidate to man the All-Aughts Team of the Decade.