DP alluded to this earlier, and I was kind of shocked since DP is the biggest Francona hater of all time, but even he had to admit that the owners kind of handled this Francona departure poorly. I mean why did it take this long to come out and talk about what happened, and at least give the guy some credit for all the work he had put in? I mean the guy put in 8 years, and although he may have lost the clubhouse over the last 2 years the Red Sox did enjoy their best success they have had since the early 1900's during his time here. I am a huge Francona supporter, but I had to admit to myself that after hearing everything that had happened that it was best for the Red Sox and Francona to probably move on. That being said, there is classy ways to do it, and I think they let Francona take the bullet by himself.
Anyways, there did finally come out and talk today on WEEI (a little bit anyways). Here are some main points I found interesting from the interview...
"He did a fantastic job for us over the years," Lucchino added. "He was contemplating his ninth year in this pressure cooker that is Boston. Different teams require different skill sets and different talents. I think he made a self-assessment, with which we concurred. To that extent, it was mutual and the phrase mutual does fit. It was still a sad occasion. There was no joy that day."
"We went through challenge after challenge, various reasons for the breakdown. We talked to Tito about whether he was ready for this, given all the challenges he enumerated," said Lucchino. "He made clear to us that he wasn’t. What were his words. Something like, ‘You need a new voice down there. I’m not your man for next year. I think my time here is up.’ In some ways, he took that position. That is a very determinative factor when your manager feels spent and feels like there needs to be a change.
Here are of the rest that I found interesting.
- They would not discuss the Cubs request to talk to Theo, but it was damn obvious that they had since they wouldn't deny it. They also said that anytime that anyone asks to talk to someone that they almost always grant it as long as it's a promotion.
- They are not interviewing any managers yet, but Theo is actively involved, but it was interesting from them to keep pointing out that Ben Cherington is also very involved. May be of them getting people ready for him taking over. Kept repeating that "no one person makes these big decisions" (Adrian Gonzalez, Crawford).
- "Theo will not be the GM forever".
- "Younger players have a much bigger impact now then they ever did". Could mean the Red Sox will look to their minor leagues, more then going out and trying to make a splash in free agency, but also admitted they will not back off free agent signings just because they sucked at it recently."
So, overall as much as they tried to put out the fire of Theo leaving, it certainly sounds like it is a very real possibility, and I would even go as far as to say it kind of sounded like they were trying to soften the blow a little bit. Maybe I am wrong, but that's what I took from it.
This is certainly going to be a very interesting offseason, but this Theo crap needs to end before the end of the World Series. Either way it goes, you can't hire a manager if you don't know who you're GM is going to be (in my opinion). I have come to the conclusion that I want Theo here, unless the Cubs are willing to give some worthwhile back (taking Lackey's contract, or a player that can come in and start right away), or if Theo won't sign an extension with the Red Sox then I would just rather have him leave now. I would at that point rather just start fresh across the board, then patch together one more year. Otherwise, I think the Red Sox should extend him.
