Props to Francona

[BradyManny]

Francona has always been the perfect off-the-field manager for the Sox for his ability to keep peace in the club house. He has no ego, and he will take a hit for his players. On top of that, he handles the media pretty well, which is important in Boston, b/c the media could easily affect the clubhouse.

Sometimes, he's TOO loyal to players (Kevin Millar) and his in-game decisions occasionally leave you scratching your head, but he has been getting better with each season.

It started when he made Paps closer in the first week of the season last year, and he has increasingly become more confident and ballsy in his decisions.

I gotta give him props for using Papelbon when he needs him most, not necessarily just to arbitrarily tack another save on the stat sheet and I definitely gotta hand it to him for using Okajima last nite to close out the game with Paps not available.

 

[TomBrady'sGoat]

Francona has been growing on me. Using Okajima last night, when none of those guys had faced him before (which tends to be an advantage for japanese pitchers), was a nice touch.

As for paplebon usage, the other night the jays had their 3-4-5 coming up in the 8th and he used Timlin. maybe he figured the lead was enough where he didn't need to use Paplebon unless things went wrong, but I still wonder about him. I need to see a team have the meat of the order come up in the 8th of a 1 run game to see if Francona has gotten it yet. I expect the only time he brings paplebon into the 8th are games where he expects him to finish them.

francona also gets a knock for the hit-and-run with drew on first and lowell up. it was a desperation move, one of those instances where the coaches feel powerless to help so they overmanage.

 

[sdaniels7114]

4 dingers in a row on Tito's birthday, a better gift than the Soap on a Rope his kids got him

 

[DarrylS]

Francona is growing on me, he is a below the radar kinda guy, manages the team well, protects his players and if there is an issue it happens behind closed doors. He has become a very good fit for the BoSox. God could manage this team and he would be subject to some kind of criticism.