Terry Francona becomes Cleveland Indians’ manager – MLB Update
The Cleveland Indians have hired Terry Francona as new team manager. After Manny Acta was fired in September, it was very difficult for the Indians’ to select an appropriate person for the job.
“I’m really excited, People who don’t know me may have thought I was looking for something different,” Francona said.
Though speculations were on the rise that interim manager Sandy Alomar Jr. will be heading the team in next summer, but after a very brief meeting of Indians’ top management, they decided to bring Francona as new manager.
“It’s a good story, almost a family feeling, I don’t think you can take a job because of that, but it still means a lot to me. Because of Chris and Mark and my relationship, I am excited to try to tackle, or attempt to tackle, every challenge that comes
our way and do it together,” Francona said.
Francona with a large managerial experience is a right man for this job. He had been in-charge of Boston Red Sox during their two World Series titles as well.
“I played for Tito (Francona) and everybody knows his track record is a good one,” said Indians pitcher Justin Masterson for Francona.
Francona will be managing the Indians from next season onwards, has also played in Cleveland in 1988.
His presence in Tribe will make sure that the entire Indians’ roster plays together. He has observed Indians’ this year’s performance in which they collapsed in the last stages of the regular season.
Francona being in-charge of the franchise will try his best to give more confidence to his players as they must retain their momentum towards the last stages of the season.
Many believe that Francona with a large experience as a player and as manager is an ideal choice for the Indians at the moment.
Started his career as a professional baseball player in 1981 with the Montreal Expos, Francona went on to play with Chicago Cubs, Cincinnati Reds, Cleveland Indians and Milwaukee Brewers.
On the other hand, he started his managerial career in 1997 as Philadelphia Phillies’ manager. Later he took over as Boston Red Sox’s manager and proved his worth when he led them to two World Series titles.
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