Speaker 1: Welcome this Friday afternoon of the Tri State. Big news
Speaker 1: came out last night about Terry Francona, former manager of
Speaker 1: the Indians and also the Red Sox was World Series titles.
Speaker 1: Also the former manager of Michael Jordan and they played
Speaker 1: with the Reds in nineteen eighty seven. Now joining you
Speaker 1: and I as the Hall of Famer Marty Brenneman and Marty,
Speaker 1: welcome again to the Bill Cunningham Show. And Marty, first
Speaker 1: of all, your reaction to the hiring of Terry Francona,
Speaker 1: and you may have had a part in it because
Speaker 1: you mentioned his name first, But what is your feeling
Speaker 1: about Francona.
Speaker 2: Well, I don't know about I don't know about having
Speaker 2: a hand in it. Bill. I felt like when I
Speaker 2: was asked, you know, when there was all kinds of
Speaker 2: names being bandied about, that if you looked at the list,
Speaker 2: there was only one name that stood out, and that
Speaker 2: was his. With all due respect to the other guys
Speaker 2: that possibly had been considered a were to be considered
Speaker 2: before the announcement this morning, he was far away the best.
Speaker 2: I mean two World championships and postseasons virtually every year
Speaker 2: of clubs that he managed. And so I was thrilled
Speaker 2: to death at the club felt the same way I did,
Speaker 2: And so you know, it happened. And I give him
Speaker 2: a lot of credit for being aggressive in targeting him
Speaker 2: and then being able to come up with a deal
Speaker 2: that was good enough to get him signed to a contract.
Speaker 1: Do you vaguely remember Terry Francona here is a player
Speaker 1: in nineteen eighty seven? Does your memory go back that
Speaker 1: far with positive things about Terry Francona and the Reds?
Speaker 2: Oh? Absolutely, I mean that's where he and I first met,
Speaker 2: and then even though he was here for a year,
Speaker 2: we had a great relationship. At that time, it was
Speaker 2: a business relationship. He's a player, I was a broadcaster.
Speaker 2: And as years went by we stayed in touch and
Speaker 2: we became good friends. And in fact, amand and I
Speaker 2: went out saved his home in Tucson last late end
Speaker 2: of February before we drove down a good year for
Speaker 2: the for spring training. We played golf three days in
Speaker 2: a row. And so he's a dear friend of mine.
Speaker 2: And I'm proud to say that because he's a quality guy.
Speaker 2: The people in this town are going to love him.
Speaker 2: I just think it's the greatest single hire that the
Speaker 2: Bob Castellini owned Reds have ever pulled off.
Speaker 1: I did an interview last night and I referenced the
Speaker 1: fact that in nineteen eighty nine, nineteen ninety pot Rose
Speaker 1: Lou Panella came in with a fresh look on things.
Speaker 1: He came from the outside. In a sense, Terry Francone
Speaker 1: was coming from the outside because he's not been around
Speaker 1: here for about thirty seven years. So yes, But would
Speaker 1: you compare this in a sense to the arrival of
Speaker 1: Lou Panello in the greatness he brought to the club.
Speaker 2: Well, they're different personalities. You know, Lou was bombastic and
Speaker 2: Terry's not like that. But Terry has a way about
Speaker 2: him that that has an instant connect with the players
Speaker 2: that he's managed over the years. And you know, Terry,
Speaker 2: Terry is reintroduced to the National League after having not
Speaker 2: been around since his first managerial endeavor and that was
Speaker 2: with the Philadelphia Phillies way back. But at the same time,
Speaker 2: with interleague play, he knows how the game is played
Speaker 2: in this league and he's not going to have any
Speaker 2: problem with that.
Speaker 1: I'm sure how's his health because, as I understand it,
Speaker 1: with the Indians, I can recall the last game he
Speaker 1: coached and managed for the Indians. I'm sorry and the Guardians.
Speaker 1: They had signs all over Cleveland Stadium talking about God,
Speaker 1: bless you Terry and thank you Terry Francona. How's his
Speaker 1: health these days?
Speaker 2: His health is fine. In fact, when we were out
Speaker 2: there in February, and having kept in touch with him
Speaker 2: since then, all the problems that he had that led
Speaker 2: up to, you know, walking away from the job in Cleveland,
Speaker 2: He's healthy as a horse now. I mean, he might
Speaker 2: tell you that the only problem he has is problem
Speaker 2: keeping his weight down to where it should be. But
Speaker 2: even having said that he's lost a lot of weight,
Speaker 2: he's in great health. They don't have any concern whatsoever
Speaker 2: about his health. And quite honestly, Bill, I think that
Speaker 2: he had some things that I think sobered him up
Speaker 2: to the point where he knew that he had to
Speaker 2: get his act together otherwise he's going to die. And
Speaker 2: that got his attention, and I think that in and
Speaker 2: of itself, is going a long way toward putting him
Speaker 2: in the position that he's in now.
Speaker 1: Well, when you were out with your lovely wife in
Speaker 1: the Goodyear area of Arizona, did you have a sense
Speaker 1: in February that he was wanting to get back into baseball.
Speaker 1: Did he relate to you, you know, I kind of
Speaker 1: miss it. I got my health, got things back to
Speaker 1: I want to get back into the game. Did he
Speaker 1: tell you that in February?
Speaker 2: No, we didn't. In fact, when we left his home
Speaker 2: in Tucson, I told him, Man, I said, he's never
Speaker 2: going to manage again. He's done, He's done with this.
Speaker 2: He was so assertive in his feeling that he would
Speaker 2: never go back and put a uniform on again. And now,
Speaker 2: I think being away for a year, getting healthy, watching
Speaker 2: a lot of baseball, which he did, I think he
Speaker 2: watched our club a lot, it made him realize that
Speaker 2: he was not ready to hang it up yet. And
Speaker 2: he was healthy enough now and invigorated enough that he
Speaker 2: felt like it was time to come back. And thank God,
Speaker 2: this is a situation that seemed to be the kind
Speaker 2: of thing that I think any manager would want to
Speaker 2: take a look at this club because it's the core
Speaker 2: is a bunch of young, very talented players, a team that,
Speaker 2: if healthy, is deep in pitching. And I think all
Speaker 2: of that has made a major difference.
Speaker 1: Now Marty, it's kind of odd in baseball. It's a
Speaker 1: big industry, but it's so small in a sense. Buddy
Speaker 1: Bell brought in Terry Francona. When Buddy Bell was I
Speaker 1: believe with then the Indians, now the Guardians, and so
Speaker 1: here we are. Buddy Bell brings in Terry Francona, and
Speaker 1: then Bell's son, David Bell, is left and Terry francone
Speaker 1: and takes his place.
Speaker 2: Somewhat peculiar, Yeah, it is, you know, I mean, Terry
Speaker 2: and and Buddy were dear friends forever, and you know,
Speaker 2: Francona knew David, he knew every member in the family.
Speaker 2: And then it is kind of ironic that they have
Speaker 2: now come to the point in which they are all
Speaker 2: individually and collectively are part of And it's just an
Speaker 2: interesting situation, it really is.
Speaker 1: I know you're busy, but a couple one more question,
Speaker 1: and that is there was a perception, you know, after
Speaker 1: last year, not this year, but last year the team
Speaker 1: won eighty two games. In the last ten seasons, the
Speaker 1: Reds have had one winning record in a full season,
Speaker 1: which was last year, and there was a sense in
Speaker 1: March April of last year, this club's ready to take off.
Speaker 2: Why didn't it well, you know, I said, I said
Speaker 2: last spring, and people got all pissed off and jump
Speaker 2: me because I was being a negative, But I made
Speaker 2: the point. Then I said, you know, God bless what
Speaker 2: this team did last year, because it was a team
Speaker 2: that'll always be remembered as a team that made baseball
Speaker 2: relevant again. I said, but to automatically assume that a
Speaker 2: bunch of young kids with one year of big league
Speaker 2: baseball under their belts is going to come back this
Speaker 2: year and collectively produce more than they did in their
Speaker 2: rookie year, I said, there's a saying in baseball it's
Speaker 2: if applicable to only this sport, and that is to
Speaker 2: stophomore jinks. And I said, just get ready, because you're
Speaker 2: going to have some guys here that are not going
Speaker 2: to have the kind of years in twenty four that
Speaker 2: they did in twenty three, never dreaming it would be
Speaker 2: as bad as it was. So you can't take anything
Speaker 2: for granted. And I would like to think that with
Speaker 2: Bell and probably some new coaches on the staff that
Speaker 2: they are, I mean, with Terry and new coaches on
Speaker 2: the staff, they're going to do some things that obviously
Speaker 2: were addressed or we're not addressed enough this past year
Speaker 2: that will bring this club back to its full potential
Speaker 2: and perform the way it should. That one thing they
Speaker 2: got going for him, and I think is a real plus.
Speaker 2: They're in a division where there is no dominant team.
Speaker 2: I mean, it's never easy to win a division, but
Speaker 2: God knows, I'd hate to be in the American League
Speaker 2: East for the National League West. But that they are
Speaker 2: in the division that's very winnable. And they have to
Speaker 2: tweak some things with this club to bring Francona in.
Speaker 2: There's one thing, but he's not America worker, so he's
Speaker 2: got to have some players. And I think there are
Speaker 2: some needs at this club needs to fulfill to allow
Speaker 2: them to bring out their complete potential towards trying to
Speaker 2: get to the postseason in twenty twenty five.
Speaker 1: And is every expectation, and we have a news conference
Speaker 1: coming up a little bit here, but there's every expectation
Speaker 1: that Terry Francona is going to clean house. And Freddie
Speaker 1: benavinis Et said, a great guy. But isn't there a
Speaker 1: belief that Terry he's going to bring in his own
Speaker 1: guys because he's mana always come well, he's got a
Speaker 1: wealth of experience. Everyone that worked with him in Boston
Speaker 1: or in Cleveland, they love working with Terry Francona. Can
Speaker 1: we assume the entire coaching staff is gone.
Speaker 2: No, I don't think so. I think there will be
Speaker 2: some coaches on the staff that'll be back. I think
Speaker 2: there will be some that are gone, but I think
Speaker 2: there'll be some that'll be back. And you do have
Speaker 2: to give a new manager some latitude. That doesn't mean
Speaker 2: did you go from one extreme to the other. And
Speaker 2: that is to say to him, well, we won't choose manager,
Speaker 2: but you're going to have to take the coaching staff intact.
Speaker 2: No manager would do that. At the same time, a
Speaker 2: club will have a one or two or three coaches
Speaker 2: that you know, they go to the new manager and say, look,
Speaker 2: well you really like to have these guys back. You
Speaker 2: will find there'll be an asset to you. But you
Speaker 2: do have the freedom to bring in whatever number it is.
Speaker 2: I think it'll be a collection of old and new.
Speaker 1: Yeah, and I would assume Frank Cone has talked to
Speaker 1: the key players on the team already. What is your perspective,
Speaker 1: Let's get together, let's talk. Tell me what went right,
Speaker 1: what went wrong? This year, and he's got the general
Speaker 1: manager who got the Casteline. He's so you know, one
Speaker 1: thing Terry Francone is going to have. He's gonna have presence.
Speaker 1: In other words, he's gonna have credibility. He's done it
Speaker 1: before he can bring in his World Series rings. I
Speaker 1: know what to do. I've done it before, I can
Speaker 1: do it here. And Terry Francone is not looking forward
Speaker 1: to a rebuild. He's not going to come in here
Speaker 1: at the age of sixty five years old saying let's
Speaker 1: take two or three years. He wants to win this year, correct.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I don't think is any question about that that
Speaker 2: he wants to win this year. But at the same time,
Speaker 2: you know, let me put it this way to you.
Speaker 2: If they don't, if they don't win the division, I
Speaker 2: think you'll see a vast improvement in this club as
Speaker 2: long as it can stay healthy. That's the key, because
Speaker 2: I think he and his people will bring out every
Speaker 2: bit of good that they can with his club. They
Speaker 2: will make players be accountable, which I don't think they
Speaker 2: were this this past year. Despite what David Bell might say,
Speaker 2: and I think Jonathan in India summed it up better
Speaker 2: than anybody when he admitted that we have to have
Speaker 2: a manager who will uh put accountability at the top
Speaker 2: of the list. Yeah, you know, I remember when Lou
Speaker 2: I told somebody the other day when Pinela was here,
Speaker 2: if he had gone through a season like this team,
Speaker 2: the clubhouse would not be a comfortable place to be.
Speaker 1: Well, Terry, I'd be great.
Speaker 2: You know. I think he very subtly and and and
Speaker 2: in a in a much calmer way. I think lou
Speaker 2: will make these guys understand that I'm not going to
Speaker 2: accept anything but the best you got all the time.
Speaker 1: Well, Marty, I'm glad, I know you're busy. Thanks for
Speaker 1: calling in and this afternoon. We'll see what happens later on.
Speaker 1: But hit him straight and make a few.
Speaker 2: Putts, all right, Pal, I appreciate it, Billy, thank you, Mario.
Speaker 1: I was continued more and you know Marty brings it up.
Speaker 1: But this year, the first baseman didn't play, the second
Speaker 1: baseman didn't play, the third baseman didn't play. Most of
Speaker 1: the season, the entire Reds pitching staff was on the
Speaker 1: d l at some point or another, and uh, David
Speaker 1: all went from red hot to ice cold. And as
Speaker 1: he said, Lou Panella would have been rolling around on
Speaker 1: the carpet with some of the players in the dressing room.
Speaker 1: And that's not Terry Francono, but the eyeball to eyeball,
Speaker 1: he will hold the players accountable. And so we'll see
Speaker 1: what happens. Bill Cunningham with you every day in your
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