If there’s one man who knows John Farrell’s toughness, it’s Terry Francona. And if you ask Francona, he’ll tell you cancer doesn’t stand a chance against his longtime friend.
Francona, now manager of the Cleveland Indians, immediately called Farrell after the Boston Red Sox skipper revealed Friday he’s been diagnosed with Stage 1 lymphoma. He wanted to check in with his buddy, even though he fully expects Farrell to tackle the disease head-on and defeat it.
“I have no doubt that he will beat the hell out of this, probably with one hand tied behind his back,” Francona told reporters Friday in Minneapolis before the Indians’ game against the Minnesota Twins. “He’s so upbeat and he’s such a tough guy. And he has so many people who care about him. I honestly feel like he will come through this with flying colors.”
Francona played with Farrell in Cleveland in 1988. He also served as Boston’s manager when Farrell was the Red Sox’s pitching coach from 2007 through 2010. Farrell even selected Francona as one of his coaches when managing the 2014 Major League Baseball All-Star Game, and Francona served as a coach this past offseason when Farrell managed a team of MLB All-Stars during a tour of Japan.
In short, the two are extremely close, and they know each other quite well, which is why Francona is so confident that lymphoma will be no match for Farrell.
“He had that hernia and he said he was really fortunate that he had that because there’s no reason to go look inside somebody’s body,” Francona told reporters, alluding to the hernia surgery Farrell underwent Monday in Detroit that revealed his lymphoma. “Obviously, some red flags came up. He seemed really upbeat. I’m glad we’re going to go through there (in Boston) in a few days, because I’d like to see him.
“He sounded really good. Like I said, if having people root for you has anything to do with it, he’ll kick this thing’s (butt).”
Farrell’s own assessment was just as positive. While he won’t manage the Red Sox for the remainder of this season — bench coach Torey Lovullo will serve as Boston’s manager while Farrell goes through chemotherapy treatment and recovery — Farrell fully intends to return in 2016.
Thumbnail photo via David Richard/USA TODAY Sports Images
