
“It’s not my situation to deal with. I know the better they deal with it, the quicker it will go away.”
Appearing wistful over his first non-uniformed Spring Training in 32 years, Francona admitted he really wanted the St. Louis managerial gig—that ultimately went to the inexperienced Mike Matheny. He also believes that many Red Sox players will have a "chip on their shoulder" in 2012 that will result in some having "pretty good years.” Tito will spend at least a year in the broadcast booth with ESPN and reassess his managerial options in 2013.