Terry Francona‘s book has not made number one yet, but last week it was number two on the NY Times Best Sellers list.
The book is really a combined narrative of the manager and GM of the Red Sox for eight years, as Theo Epstein’s name appears on 155 pages out of the 345 page book.
The book portrays the odd couple of Theo and Tito as a tandem to the owners trio, a good vs. evil portrayal.
One time when Tito was going to leave a meeting, his good buddy Theo grabbed his leg, and said sit back down.
The book has turned into a mystery story, without the mystery man revealed at the end of the book.
The plot of the book is who is the person was that leaked a story to Bob Hohler of the Boston Globe in October of 2011.
It was that story which detailed Terry Francona’s pain pill addiction that Hohler wrote about. Many people have searched to find who the source really was.
I wrote to Hohler last February:
“Why don’t you let everyone know who the source was that gave you the information about chicken, beer, and pills?
Your story destroyed Tito Francona‘s chance to manage in 2012.
I don’t care about the chicken and beer, but you are the chicken, if you do not reveal the true snitch that gave you that story last October.
The only way for the Red Sox to move on, is for the source to be known to all.
For this team’s sake, I hope it is someone that is no loner with the team. Someone like Reddick or Scutaro would be the perfect source, since neither is with this team.
On the other hand if Adrian Gonzalez or Carl Crawford were the source, how can they stay here.
I don’t think you should write a story if you can’t name the source that gives it to you.”
Hohler to his credit replied to me the next day:
“There was not one source for the “chicken, beer, and pills.” There were many, and I won’t let everyone know who they are because they spoke to the Globe on the condition that they wouldn’t be identified. You may be familiar with that practice. It has been commonly accepted in journalism for centuries. Anonymous sources have played roles in exposing some of the worst transgressions in sports as well as politics and government.
You say my story destroyed Francona’s chance to manage in 2012. Others might say that Francona himself destroyed his chances to manage in 2012.
I don’t care that you don’t care about the chicken and beer. I also don’t care that you call me a chicken if I “do not reveal the true snitch.” You must be a pretty tough guy. You’re probably a big fan of Josh Beckett, the only Red Sox player who has used the word “snitch” and the only one who has been bitching since the Sox banned drinking in the clubhouse.
You say the only way for the Sox to move on is for “the source to be known to all.” What are you talking about? Are the Red Sox not going to be able to play baseball until you are satisfied that “the source” is “known to all”? Are they that dysfunctional? Or is this more about you?
No Red Sox player has said the information in the story was inaccurate. Rather than look in the mirror, some of them — actually, only Beckett, it seems — wants to find out who told the truth about them cheating the team and the fans by slacking in September when everyone needed them the most. They have only themselves to blame.”
Now in a strange Shakespearean sort of way the truth may be starting to emerge.
Last week when Dennis and Callahan had Larry Lucchino on their show, there was a noticeable tone in their voice, one that gave the impression they might really know who the source was, but they were not telling Larry at that time.
Then two days later on their show this was written: http://www.fenwaynation.com/2013/02/d-theory-theo-dropped-dime-on-tito.html
It all makes sense now, and if you look on page 281 of the book you find the answer:
“It was just Theo, Dr. Ronan, and me with that agreement,” said Francona. “I remember Larry (Dr. Ronan) looking at me as a friend and saying, ‘Tito, nobody outside of this room will ever know.’ And I said to him, “This will come back to bite me in the ass. I know how shit works here. This will f*** me someday.”
The source is revealed and it is Theo Epstein.
Theo was the one that must of spread the rumors about Nomar when he left, and about others that left the organization.
It was Theo that wanted Crawford, and traded for Gonzalez too.
Before his last step out of Fenway, Theo Epstein gave up his friend Terry Francona, and moved on to Chicago, and let everyone blame the owners for selling out their manager.
The reason Terry Francona was not a manager in 2012, was because his good buddy Theo Epstein turned out to be a real life Brutus, and stabbed him with pills instead of a knife.
