The Cincinnati Reds moved quickly to fill their managerial vacancy after firing David Bell just before the end of the regular season.

Future Hall of Famer Terry Francona will become the next Reds manager per MLB insider Mark Feinsand of MLB.com.

The 65-year-old Francona is returning to the Major Leagues after stepping down as manager of the Cleveland Guardians last season, citing health issues.

Francona is one of the most well-respected figures in all of baseball. He managed the Philadelphia Phillies from 1997-2000, the Boston Red Sox from 2004-2011 and the Guardians from 2013-2023. Francona won the World Series with the Red Sox in 2004 and 2007, brought the Guardians to the World Series in 2016 and won manager of the year in 2013, 2016 and 2020.

Why the Cincinnati Reds are hiring Terry Francona

Cleveland Guardians manager Terry Francona (77) waits in the dugout during the pre-game against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre.
© Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images
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After showing some signs of improvement in 2023, the Reds failed to take the next step to become legitimate postseason contenders in 2024. While injuries to infielder Matt McLain and outfielder Christian Encarnacion-Strand certainly did not help, it was clear that the Reds could have done much better than a 77-85 fourth-place finish.

Even though 2024 was disappointing, the future is very bright for the Reds. 22-year-old shortstop Elly De La Cruz is already one of the best players in baseball in just his second season, leading all of baseball with 67 stolen bases and hitting 25 home runs. 24-year-old Hunter Greene dominated on the mound, pitching to a 9-5 record with a 2.75 ERA through 26 starts.

Francona will have his work cut out for him as he takes over a promising young Reds squad led by De La Cruz and Greene. If the Reds plan on competing in 2025 instead of going into more of a rebuild, Francona's first priority will likely be to upgrade his closer and add more depth to the starting rotation outside of Greene and Andrew Abbott.

There were questions about whether or not Francona would return to baseball. Now that those questions have been answered, the Reds were able to get the absolute best available manager on the market.

Francona is a game changer with World Series experience who is beloved around baseball. The Division Series has not even started yet and the Reds are already winners of the offseason.