Indians president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti didn’t have much of a medical update on Francona’s condition other than he has an appointment at the Cleveland Clinic Monday, and they hoped to have more information by Tuesday.
“Let’s get the information from his visit and chart a course from there,” Antonetti said Monday afternoon. “The thing we’ll continue to prioritize is Tito’s health and well-being. That’ll always be first and foremost.”
Antonetti was among those that convinced Francona to see doctors and finally have the problem looked at. Francona had been dealing with it since spring training.
“It makes Tito really uncomfortable and so it’s just something we want to try and navigate and help him feel better,” Antonetti said. “As you guys know how much Tito loves being around the team and his high pain tolerance, but the continual discomfort was something we wanted to get checked out.”
Sandy Alomar Jr. will continue to manage in Francona’s place.
“We’re at our best when we’re relying on each other and helping each other,” Antonetti said.
Most of the Indians coaching staff has been together for years under Francona, which comes as a great help to Alomar, who was told an hour before Sunday’s game in Minnesota he would need to sub for Francona.
“This is a collaborative effort right now while Tito’s gone,” Alomar said. “I’m not by any means just calling my own shots 100%.”
“It shows the diligence of our players and staff to do the best we can to not get exposed away from the ballpark,” Antonetti said. “And then that we’ve been really diligent as a group in following the protocols while we’ve been here.
“The last week has reinforced the importance of us staying diligent and making sure that we do the best we can to protect each other.”
Naquin is recovering from a hairline fracture of a toe suffered July 20 in an exhibition game against the Pirates and Perez is on the injured list with shoulder discomfort.
“I talked to Roberto a couple days ago and he’s improving fast,” Alomar said. “He feels a lot better with his shoulder. I don’t know what the timetable is going to be. I don’t think it’s going to take more than 10 days. I assume he’s continuing to work out and stay in great shape. He works very hard.”