The Cincinnati Reds are hiring Terry Francona to be the team’s next manager, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reported.

Francona most recently spent 11 seasons with the Cleveland Guardians organization before retiring after the 2023 season.

Francona’s 23-year managerial career also includes eight years with the Boston Red Sox and four with the Philadelphia Phillies. He spent one season of his ten-year playing career with the Reds in 1987.

The Reds made a surprise move and released David Bell on September 22nd after six seasons. The decision came 14 months after he signed a three-year extension through the 2026 election campaign.

Bell’s departure came as the Reds posted a 77-85 record in 2024. He finished his tenure with the club with three wins on the season and one postseason appearance in 2020 at 409-456.

Since reaching the playoffs three times in the four seasons from 2010 to 2013, the Reds have the fourth-worst record in Major League Baseball (753-927). The only teams that performed worse are the Miami Marlins, Chicago White Sox and Colorado Rockies.

There is hope that the Reds can challenge for a playoff spot sooner rather than later. Elly De La Cruz is one of the most dynamic talents in the sport and is coming off a season in which he had 71 extra base hits and an MLB-high 67 stolen bases. Hunter Greene is an ace after posting a 2.75 ERA in 26 starts during the 2024 season.

Top prospect Rhett Lowder looked great late in the season with a 1.12 ERA in six starts after being called up from Triple-A. Chase Burns, the No. 2 pick in the 2024 MLB Draft, could move quickly through the minors and be in Cincinnati sometime next year.

There is work for the front office to help this core group of players, but this quartet is a good starting point for any organization to build on.

Francona compiled an overall record in his previous managerial career from 1950 to 1672, highlighted by breaking an 86-year championship drought by leading the Red Sox to World Series titles in 2004 and 2007.

He then moved to Cleveland in 2013 and led his team to an AL pennant in 2016. When Francona left the MLB after the 2023 season to focus on his health, he left the season as the winningest manager in Guardians franchise history.