Great story about Francona in the Athletic:
https://theathletic.com/4899711/2023/09/26/terry-francona-manager-retire/
A tidbit:
Another proprietary Francona trait: bringing levity to a situation that calls for anything but.
Sean Casey once launched a pitch off the Green Monster and was erased trying to stretch the hit into a double. The next day, he belted a ball to the right-center gap. He thought it was a home run, so he settled on a pace between a trot and a dead sprint. As he neared first, the ball bounced off the top of the wall and caromed to
Baltimore Orioles outfielder Nick Markakis, who snagged it with his bare hand and threw to second to retire Casey
Two days, two unforced errors on the basepaths for Boston’s first baseman.
Casey, fuming at himself and fearing what his manager might say, approached Francona.
“Hey, have you been to the doctor lately?” Francona asked.
Casey had no idea where this was going.
“Is there any chance you might have polio?”