The Cincinnati Reds have hired Terry Francona to be their next manager, the team announced on Friday. Francona's contract is a three-year deal with an option for a fourth, suggesting he won't be a short-term addition to the Reds dugout. The Reds fired manager David Bell with a week remaining in the regular season.
Francona, 65, did not manage this season after spending the previous 11 years with the Cleveland Guardians. He cited health issues when he stepped down last year and had missed time for multiple ailments during his time in Cleveland, including toe and hip surgeries. Francona had shoulder replacement surgery and double hernia surgery soon after the season last year.
"I need to go home and get healthy and see what I miss about the game," Francona said when he announced he was stepping down. "I don't foresee managing again."
Francona has ties to the Reds, having played 102 games for the team in 1987. He played parts of 10 big-league seasons from 1980-91 before beginning his coaching career in the minors. Francona previously managed the Philadelphia Phillies (1997-2000), Boston Red Sox (2004-11), and Guardians (2013-23). He was at the helm for Boston's 2004 and 2007 World Series titles.
The Reds went 77-85 this season, down from 82-80 last year. They have not been to the postseason since 2020 and have not been to the playoffs in a full 162-game season since 2013. Cincinnati does not lack talent, however. Elly De La Cruz and Hunter Greene are two of the best young players in the game, and others like Spencer Steer and Andrew Abbott are part of their young core.
This is the second time in two years a franchise looking to transition out of rebuilding and into contention has hired a Hall of Fame-bound manager out of unofficial retirement. Last year, the Texas Rangers hired Bruce Bochy, and he led them to the 2023 World Series championship. Now the Reds have hired Francona in hopes he can do the same.
Francona's career managerial record is 1,950-1,672 (.538). He is 13th on the all-time wins list and figures to become the 13th member of the 2,000 wins club next summer. Francona's teams have won two World Series titles (2004, 2007) plus another pennant (2016).
