08:42 AM EST on Friday, April 2, 2004

BY STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

AP photo Terry Francona likes to be around his players, often throwing batting practice, to keep the lines of communication open.

It was the Boston Red Sox' first exhibition game, a contest against the Minnesota Twins in Fort Myers, Fla.

Terry Francona had been in uniform and on the job as the Sox' new manager for only 13 days. He grabbed the lineup card and wrote in the names.

When he came to the No. 3 hitter in the lineup, Francona wrote "Manny Ramirez." For his cleanup hitter, Francona jotted down "Nomar Garciaparra."

That constituted a major change. In his first three seasons with the Red Sox, Ramirez batted cleanup and Garciaparra batted third.

After the game, Francona was bombarded with questions about his lineup switch.

"If the players hit the way they have in the past," said Francona, "I think this is the best way to go. Nomar hits a lot of doubles. That leaves first base open a lot for Manny."

Francona had taken note of the league-leading 28 intentional walks issued to Ramirez last season. He wants Ramirez to have the opportunity to swing the bat this season, hence his lineup switch.

That Francona's answer was rooted in statistics should come as no surprise.

When Grady Little's contract was not renewed after the 2003, Red Sox management insisted he was set free not just because he didn't take out Pedro Martinez earlier in what became an excruciating Game 7 ALCS loss to the New York Yankees. Instead, the Sox' brass, while lauding Little's ability to calm the clubhouse and keep it harmonious, did not think he had done a good enough job managing games or blending the scouting reports and statistical analysis available to him with his baseball instincts.

Not that the Red Sox want to become a "stats-geek organization," said CEO Larry Lucchino on the day it was announced Little wouldn't return.

But Boston management knew what qualities it wanted in the 44th manager in the organization's history. The Sox wanted a new manager "for the long term to take us in a new direction and, we hope, to the next level," as Lucchino put it.

And in Francona, the Sox think they have found their man.

"He is someone who has a commitment to preparation and someone who has the interpersonal skills needed for this job," said general manager Theo Epstein of Francona.

This is the second time around for Francona as a big-league manager. He did not exactly thrive in his first tour of duty, a four-year stretch in Philadelphia (1997-2000) during which he was unable to guide the rebuilding Phillies to even a .500 record.

But, hey, Bill Belichick didn't exactly set the National Football League on fire in his first head coaching experience. He lived and learned, though, using those painful first-time experiences in Cleveland to help mold him into a head coach who has won two Super Bowls in the last three years with the New England Patriots.

Maybe Francona can forge the same success with the World Championship-starved Red Sox. Since getting fired in Philadelphia, Francona has been a scout and a bench coach in Texas (2002) and Oakland (2003), giving him time to reflect on what he might do differently this time around.

And when he takes a gander at his roster, Francona has to be pinching himself. There are All-Stars, MVP and Cy Young candidates everywhere he looks.

"That is some team he has. They've got everything," said Glenn Hoffman, the Los Angeles Dodgers' bench coach who also interviewed for the position that went to Francona.

It was suggested to Hoffman that with a team as good as the Red Sox, the only thing a manager can do is mess it up.

"That's not fair to Terry," said Hoffman, sitting in the visitors' dugout at City of Palms Park for an exhibition game last month. "I'm sure it will take a little while for him to put his stamp on the club."

The Francona Stamp wasn't visible during camp, probably for good reason. Francona, who batted .274 in 10 big-league seasons, is aware that he is managing a veteran ballclub. He was prone to let the veterans progress at their own pace this spring.

He also tiptoed around the starting rotation. He knows from managing Curt Schilling in Philadelphia that the right-hander wants to pitch every fifth day. He also knows Pedro Martinez needs and prefers to have an extra day of rest between starts. So Francona, along with pitching coach Dave Wallace, has tried to devise a rotation that will accommodate their wishes.

Francona's personality, meanwhile, is upbeat. He likes throwing batting practice because it keeps him on the field, where he can communicate with his players.

But is Francona prepared for the challenge of managing in Boston, where the glare of an unforgiving media and fan base can turn every seemingly innocuous decision into a cause for a diatribe on some Internet Web site, not to mention a pink slip?

Yes, Francona had experience in Philadelphia, another city with demanding fans and media. Boston, though, is a horse of a different color. Francona began getting that message when he was asked about his lineup switch on the opening night of the exhibition season.

The questions weren't critical. They were simply asked to uncover the reasoning behind the strategy. Yet Francona appeared surprised that the move would become such a focal point.

Welcome to Boston, where the nightly third-degree from the media and the fans is the baggage that comes with trying to lead the organization to its first World Championship since 1918.

Only time will tell if the second time is a charm for Terry Francona.