Francona, Red Sox part ways after two titles

[BLUE 1,026]

ESPNBoston.com

 

BOSTON -- Terry Francona and the Red Sox agreed that he will not return as manager, the team announced on Friday.

 

Francona met with owner John Henry, chairman Tom Werner, team president Larry Lucchino, general manager Theo Epstein and assistant GM Ben Cherington on Friday at Fenway Park. He left and then returned.

 

Epstein initially put out a statement saying all sides wanted to think about the meeting and no announcement was forthcoming, but then a statement came out in the evening.

 

"During the meeting, Tito, Theo and Ben agreed that the Red Sox would benefit from an improved clubhouse culture and higher standards in several areas," the statement said. "Tito said that after eight years here he was frustrated by his difficulty making an impact with the players, that a different voice was needed, and that it was time for him to move on. After taking time to reflect on Tito's sentiments, we agreed that it was best for the Red Sox not to exercise the option years on his contract."

 

Francona had told staff members on Thursday that he would not be returning as manager, a club source told ESPNBoston.com's Gordon Edes on Friday.

 

Several other media outlets reported Friday that Francona would not return for a ninth season. He led the Red Sox to World Series titles in 2004 -- their first since 1918 -- and 2007.

 

In the statement released by the team, Francona said it was mostly his decision to move on.

 

"I've always maintained that it is not only the right, but the obligation, of ownership to have the right person doing this job," he said. "I told them that out of my enormous respect for this organization and the people in it, they may need to find a different voice to lead the team.

 

"In my eight seasons as manager of the Boston Red Sox, I have developed a tremendous appreciation for Red Sox Nation. This is a special place with some of the most knowledgeable and passionate fans in all of baseball. They packed Fenway Park for every game and because of them, I had a special sense of pride coming to work every day."

 

Red Sox slugger David Ortiz said earlier Friday he was "fine with Tito" but he did hint that the clubhouse had issues, something Francona acknowledged on Thursday.

 

"I worry about playing baseball more than anything else," Ortiz said. "I know we have some players that (the organization thought were) worried about some other s--- and sometimes there were certain things that no one in the clubhouse can control. I was trying and I have no issues. My only problem was when I started being benched (in 2010) and that was my only issue with Tito. Other than that we're cool."

 

Ortiz wasn't expecting Francona to leave. "I am surprised," he said. "I'm surprised because I'm hearing things right now (in the news) that I didn't know were going on."

 

On Thursday, Francona said that this Red Sox team had issues that he thought affected its play. He spoke Thursday about a team meeting he called in Toronto in the aftermath of a 14-0 win on Sept. 6.

 

"I'm not sure if anybody knew, because there were some things I was worried about," he said. "I think we were spending too much energy on things that weren't putting our best foot forward toward winning. We spent a few minutes in the clubhouse that day, talking about that. There were some things that did concern me.

 

"Teams normally, as the season progresses, there are events that make you care about each other, and this club, it didn't always happen as much as I wanted it to. And I was frustrated by that."

 

The Boston Herald reported one divisive issue, citing sources as saying that pitchers were allowed to drink beer in the clubhouse on their off-days. A Red Sox source not only confirmed to ESPNBoston.com that was the case, but also said that it "has been going on for two years."

 

Ortiz is a free agent and was asked if the manager leaving would affect him re-signing with Boston.

 

"Not at all," he said. "That's one thing I can't really control, who the manager's going to be. That's not on me."

 

Source: ESPN

[WindyCitySports 407]

Terry Francona resume: two WS championships, no playoffs in 2011.

 

FIRED?! ridiculous.

[BigBen07 285]

Terry Francona resume: two WS championships, no playoffs in 2011.

 

FIRED?! ridiculous.

 

That's how it goes in this day and age.

[jackhammerslam 17]

Terry Francona resume: two WS championships, no playoffs in 2011.

 

FIRED?! ridiculous.

 

Three straight years with one of the top three payrolls in baseball. Choked in the '09 playoffs versus the Angels and didn't make the playoffs in consecutive years following. Pretty good grounds to be fired if you ask me especially when the guys in Tampa are doing it at like 1/4th the cost.

[Phins4life 271]

Still not sure how I feel about the whole thing. I'm new to the baseball scene, but I just don't feel like one September collapse should be reason to get fired/released/"highly encouraged" to find new work, considering his resume. If he stepped down on his own, then that's all him and I respect that.

[Glanvilles Grits 142]

I can't say that I'm surprised Francona and the Sox have parted ways. What I am surprised about though is the fact that Epstein and the Redsox really used Francona as the scapegoat in the whole collapse. That really wasn't the situation. Had the pitching staff stayed healthy, I don't think the collapse would have happened. We were still scoring quite a few runs per game, but unfortunately for every run we scored, it seemed like the opposing teams were scoring that plus one.

 

That's why I'm not completely heart broken about the collapse.

 

Francona will have a managerial job by the end of this coming week. I'm imagining that the White Sox are going to make a heavy bid to get him to come in after dumping Ozzy a couple weeks ago.

 

It should also be known that Francona wasn't fired, the Redsox just simply didn't pick up his option for the next two years.

 

2009: Choke

2010: Injury madness

2011: depleted/injured pitching staff. (Beckett had a bad ankle since mid-august.)