Red Sox Championship Trio Linked As Managers Once Again In 2025

BOSTON — Terry Francona, Alex Cora and Kevin Cash all contributed to the Red Sox winning their second championship in four seasons with the 2007 World Series.

All three men found themselves as managers following their respective playing careers, which came long before for Francona as he managed the Red Sox to a pair of championships. He then spent 11 seasons at the helm for the Cleveland Guardians from 2013 to 2023.

Cash went on to manage the Tampa Bay Rays and Alex Cora followed the lineage in Boston, winning the World Series with the Red Sox in his first season in 2018. Since then, the trio managed simultaneously in the American League for five seasons. That number will increase with Francona returning to baseball in 2025 as the manager of the Cincinnati Reds.

“Pretty exciting,” Cash told reporters before “The Tradition” last month at TD Garden. “Similar to when Bruce Bochy came back. Baseball is better with Terry Francona in it. The Reds are very fortunate to have, what I consider, the best manager in baseball. A lot of people that he’s come across and impacted along the way are pretty excited within the game.”

While Cash didn’t expect such a swift return from his former manager, the return of Francona bodes well for the sport in his opinion.

“I wasn’t actually surprised that he was gonna come back because I know him pretty well and figured he’d get bored pretty quick,” Cash added. “I did not think it was going to be after just one year. That was a little surprising. Talking to him, it sounds like just a great situation for him in Cincinnati.”

While the three Red Sox-related managers compete for their own teams in 2025, their roots through Fenway Park remain strong.

“Boston is a special city, special sports town,” Cash said.

“The Tradition” airs Wednesday, Dec. 11 at 6 p.m. ET on NESN.