Terry Francona and Don Orsillo are from the golden era of Red Sox baseball. Their time together in Boston was filled with championships and fun, with no shortage of memorable interactions.
Whenever they get together, there seems to be a viral moment.
That was the case Tuesday in Cleveland. With the Padres and Guardians rained out, Orsillo visited Tito in the bowels of Progressive Field. It didn’t take long for them to get wrapped up in a bear hug.
Orsillo’s friendship with Francona has continued long after Tito unceremoniously parted ways with the Red Sox in 2011. They’ve had a wrestling match in the dugout, and in one instance, Francona playfully flipped Orsillo off. Tito sent Orsillo a touching video message when he was ousted from the NESN booth.
Francona knows about bad exits from Boston. Team sources disclosed salacious information about his divorce and personal life to the Globe following the 2011 collapse, and two years later, Francona published a tell-all book that painted the Red Sox in an unflattering light. In it, Francona bemoaned ownership’s search for “sexy guys,” and said they don’t love baseball.
It’s apparent Orsillo still harbors ill feelings over his departure from the Red Sox as well. Last month, he said the Red Sox didn’t play his video tribute for Jerry Remy during his tribute ceremony (we later found out no such video exists).
Once Orsillo and Francona are done with their horseplay, they certainly have a lot to gossip about. Oh, to be a fly on the wall.