On Friday, it was Francona’s turn.
Speaking with reporters prior to the club’s interleague opener in Philadelphia, Francona said his relationship with Ortiz remains a good one and explained how difficult some decisions can be during the course of a season.
"My job is to believe in our players," Francona said. "Not one — all 25."
The inquiries came roughly 24 hours after Ortiz expressed his displeasure with the move in question, which memorably occurred on April 27 in the Rogers Centre. Ortiz, considered by many the greatest clutch hitter in franchise history, was removed for a pinch hitter with two outs and the bases loaded in the eighth inning of a 1-1 game.
The designated hitter, who was hitting .154 with one home run at the time, was rumored to have left the stadium in a huff — a report Francona shot down on Friday.
"That was wrong, whether it was a lie or somebody made a mistake," Francona said. "That doesn’t help me."
The skipper said that the purportedly false report forced him and Ortiz to have a talk, one of several this year that have not been the most comfortable for the two.
"I think anytime you’re in my position, you have to tell people things they don’t want to hear," Francona added. "That’s just the way the game is. Not that things don’t happen, but the way you move through them is just as important.
"He hasn’t always liked what I’ve told him. But I think he knows I care about him."
Ortiz, whose platoon at DH with Mike Lowell continued for several days after that game in Toronto, has seen the lion’s share of playing time of late, in large part due to his hot bat. With the club in Philadelphia for the weekend, Ortiz will reintroduce himself to the bench, at least for the opener.
He acted on Thursday as if he doesn’t expect that to happen when interleague play ends.
"You have to believe in your players. Period," Ortiz said on WEEI’s "The Big Show" on Thursday. "You chose to have me on your roster since day one. You’ve got to ride with me."
It was Lowell who said earlier in the week that sticking with a surging Ortiz is the right move, and lately, it has paid off for Francona. The 34-year-old Ortiz is hitting .358 with seven home runs and 17 RBIs in May.
"He might be the player of the month!" Francona said loudly when asked if it is difficult to handle a player some thought was on the back end of his career.
With that the inquiries ceased, and Francona had hammered in the final nail in a bridge over troubled water.
