“I really appreciate it,” Francona said. “I know they’re looking out for me, which is nice.”
He’s also having some fun with it. Because the seat is on a boat, when he sat on it for the first time earlier this week, he posed for a photo where he was saluting like the head man of a ship. The next day, there was a boat hat on the chair. General manager Brad Meador joked that he was going to put a seatbelt on it.
Francona has only known Meador, president of baseball operations Nick Krall and the Cincinnati Reds’ organization for a handful of months. Francona likes being where he is.
“When you feel ok, you like going through it with people you care about,” Francona said.
He didn’t feel ok in 2023, which was his final year managing the Cleveland Guardians.
“It had gotten to the point where it had gotten the best of me before,” Francona said. “Losing patience and stuff like that. I don’t like that.”
The year off gave him a chance to reset. He spent time with his grandkids. He traveled. He golfed and didn’t have to worry about bringing his phone with him. Now, he’s more attached to his phone again.
“I have a responsibility,” Francona said. “I’m not complaining.”
He added, “I could tell the minute I took this job, it’s like my button went on.”
He’s having fun, especially with the Reds playing their best baseball in June. Recently, he was asked about his health “physically and mentally.” He said, “You’d have to ask other people mentally.”
When he was asked about rookie Chase Burns’ big league debut, the manager said he’d kiss on the mouth the scout who identified him.
Francona still loves the thrill of a great game, like Tuesday’s walk-off win over the New York Yankees.
“It’s fun,” Francona said. “It’s also excruciating. It’s a lot of stuff. What will tire you out is the emotions you try to keep in check.”
Francona is approaching his 2,000th win. Entering Saturday’s game against the San Diego Padres, he was seven wins away.
Francona will become the 13th manager to reach that milestone, and he’ll join Dusty Baker and Sparky Anderson as the only 2,000 win managers to manage the Reds. He’ll also become the second active manager with 2,000 wins, joining Bruce Bochy of the Texas Rangers.
All season, though, Francona has focused on the game at hand instead of the bigger picture of the season or the big picture of his career.
“I just want us to win tomorrow,” Francona said. “That’s how I always feel. If we do that, then (good things) happen. The best way to do that is play your game. Learn from whatever you need to learn from and then go play the next one.”
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