In the top of the ninth inning on Opening Day, Cincinnati Reds manager Terry Francona called on unheralded middle reliever Ian Gibaut to go for the save. Gibaut imploded and took the loss, but Francona set the stage for this season. “If you manage like a fan, you’ll be a fan,” he said.
Francona put Gibaut into the game because of his confidence in Gibaut throwing strikes. The move didn’t work out, but Francona made it clear right away he’s incredibly comfortable doing things his way.
Sixteen games isn’t a big enough sample size to gauge how Francona’s approach will work in Cincinnati, but the future Hall of Fame manager is sticking with some principles that he has believed in since his playing days. Here are the five most interesting areas where his philosophy has shown up so far.
A new identity running the bases
Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz isn’t running as much this season. He has just three steals across the first 16 games this season, and Francona is impressed with what he’s seeing from the Reds’ superstar on the bases.
In the third inning on Friday, De La Cruz perfectly read a ball in the dirt that got away from the Pittsburgh Pirates catcher, took third base and then scored on a throwing error that sailed into left field and also gave the runner behind him the chance to score.
De La Cruz isn’t stealing as much this year, and neither are the Reds as a whole. The Reds rank 21st in baseball with just nine stolen bases, which is a part of Francona putting his spin on this year’s team. “(We’ll run) only when it makes sense,” Francona said. “When it makes sense, we want to be aggressive. When it doesn’t, we really don’t want to just run to run. That doesn’t make sense. So far this year, teams have done a really job with their times to the plate. And when they don’t, we’ll try to run more. But not when it doesn’t make sense.”
While they stole a lot of bases last season, they were caught stealing 45 times. This year, Francona is having the Reds do most of their running on balls in the dirt, when a runner is on first with two outs in the inning, and when they’re facing a pitcher who’s slow to the plate.
“When it makes sense, we want to be aggressive,” said Reds infielder Santiago Espinal. “When it doesn’t, we really don’t want to just run to run. Just be smart running the bases. Last year, running the bases, we made a lot of mistakes. This year, we’ll try to be smart but stay aggressive at the same time. Friday was a perfect example of what (Francona) is talking about.”
Prioritizing different analytics
Francona embraces analytics, and there are so many numbers out there that each manager has numbers that carry more weight. He recently moved designated hitter Spencer Steer up to the cleanup spot, citing Steer’s impressive stats against the starting pitcher the Reds were facing that night. Last week, Francona didn’t have Reds right-handed reliever Emilio Pagán intentionally walk San Francisco Giants left-handed hitter Mike Yastrzemski with a base open because Yastrzemski was just one-for-six in his career against Pagán.
In general, Francona believes in the power of these specific matchup stats more than most younger managers. “If a hitter is 0-for-14 off of somebody, there’s a pretty good chance that he’s not running up to the plate going, I can’t wait to face this guy,” said Francona. “As a former hitter, there are a lot of times where a guy is four-for-five and even if he hit four hits off of the bat handle, you still feel pretty good about yourself. Hitting is so psychological at times that it means something.”
Other managers value other numbers. Former Reds manager David Bell put weight into how the shape of specific pitches from specific relievers matched up on paper against specific hitters. Some managers lean all the way into platoon matchups or all the way into a specific bullpen depth chart. There are a million ways to slice it, and Francona has a clear vision of what’s important to him.
Managing pitchers the third time through the order
Francona believes in the power of having starting pitchers go deep into games, which he’s made clear to Reds starters. Left-hander Andrew Abbott said, “I want to go deep into games, as Tito has alluded to continuously. We want our guys to get to the third time around and go six, seven, or eight innings. That gives us a chance to really showcase ourselves.”
It’s the opposite approach from what the Reds did over the last few years. Bell always felt like he was much more confident as a hitter against a starting pitcher when facing him for a third time in a game. On the whole around baseball, hitters’ stats typically climb when they face a starter for the third time in a game. So Bell often had a quick hook with his starting pitchers.
Francona is giving the Reds’ starters more leeway to pitch in the sixth and seventh innings. It cost the Reds a game last week in San Francisco, but it’s also paved the way for wins and standout games by Hunter Greene, Nick Lodolo, and Brady Singer.
A different idea of a “closer”
Francona also has a much different approach in the ninth inning. In an era where teams typically put a reliever with elite velocity or standout strikeout ability in for the save, Francona prioritizes a closer who throws strikes. “In this day and age, I know that it can be different,” he said. “But I do like the type you know can throw strikes.”
Emilio Pagán has settled in as the Reds’ closer this year, and former All-Star Alexis Díaz isn’t expected to be in a high-leverage role until he proves that he can consistently command his pitches.
Keeping the lineup as consistent as it can be
Francona believes in keeping guys in consistent spots, which has led to surprising decisions like hitting Blake Dunn or Santiago Espinal second—but he’s prioritized keeping De La Cruz in the No. 3 spot in the lineup. “Guys get comfortable in places,” Francona said. “You try to be consistent. You try not to be stubborn. Sometimes, one leaks into the other.”
He’s also giving badly slumping hitters like Spencer Steer, Jeimer Candelario, and Jake Fraley a longer runway to work through their struggles than some other managers would. “Guys get to their level,” Francona said. “I don’t have the formula for it. It happens. As cold as guys get, they get just as hot. It’s why you don’t give up on guys too quick. It’ll even out. I really believe that.”
Francona’s patience and conviction in his process have been defining aspects of his tenure as the Reds’ manager so far. “What I do is do what I think is right, answer questions, and then be confident enough to move on and not run to see how I’m being perceived,” he said. “I’ll never do that. I’ll always do what I think is right.”
Charlie Goldsmith has covered the Reds and Bengals since 2020, and his newsletter on the teams can be found at charlieschalkboard.substack.com. He’s @CharlieG__ on X.
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