PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. — When asked Thursday morning about his former center fielder and brand new Tampa Bay Ray Johnny Damon, Red Sox manager Terry Francona lit up.
Speaking under a deck at the Charlotte Sports Park that was leaking through some of the torrential rain falling on the area, it was as if the sun had come out in Francona's world.
"One of my all-time favorites," Francona said. "One of the best guys you could ever have play as a manager. You can't appreciate him too much. There were days when he just got beat to [expletive]. He'd call in the morning and say, 'Don't not play me.'"
Damon was with the Red Sox from 2002-05, his last two years playing under Francona. That was when Damon was essentially in the prime of an outstanding career. Now, Damon, who calls the Tampa area home, has essentially found a place to wind things down before retirement.
That is not to say he is washed up by any stretch of the imagination.
"I've been in some great situations in my career," Damon said. "This is the opportunity I finally get to come home. Unfortunately, Tampa Bay loses one of their franchise players [in Carl Crawford], their hits leader and all that stuff, but everyone knew he wasn't going to be able to come back [due to] financial situations and all that stuff.
"It opened the door for me and I'm excited, and I know I'm going to give the fans many things to cheer about."
Francona knows that Damon could still do some damage in the American League East. For his part, Damon, who spent last season in Detroit, couldn't stay away from the competition.
"I think so many players enjoy the American league East that if you don't have it, you feel kind of lost," Damon said. "For me, I'm going to be on my third team in the AL East. I feel like every team is getting better. … Baltimore with the lineup they're throwing out. Toronto, they've never been easy. They have a bunch of great young guys, and then the big three. Who knows what's going to win this division. Ninety games? Maybe?"
That might be a bit low, but perhaps Damon, a veteran of AL East clashes, knows that there's a chance that teams could just beat up on one another this season.
Damon will play some outfield, some first base and possibly DH from time to time for the Rays. He said that he and Manny Ramirez have helped with the clubhouse vibe in Tampa, installing a pair of veterans who have been through it all before.
While Francona would not comment in the same way about Ramirez ("That's none of my business," he said when asked about Manny in a Rays uniform), he knows a thing or two about Damon's altering presence.
"He was very dear to me, and we loved him," Francona said.
