Francona looks to a former Sox player to inspire 2025 Reds

Terry Francona knows a thing or two about how to win in the Major Leagues. He has the two World Series rings to prove it.

And the Reds' new manager is trying to bring the winning culture he had with the Red Sox to the young, talented Cincinnati team he's taking over.

"We're young. That will never be used as an excuse when we don't win," Francona said on Wednesday on MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM.

To help deliver his message, Francona even had Dustin Pedroia -- who starred on Francona's 2007 World Series champion Red Sox team and led Boston to another title in '13 -- come to Spring Training to speak to the Reds.

"We had Dustin Pedroia come in here and talk to our guys the other day," Francona said. "I was ready to run through the wall. If you were a player and you weren't ready to -- you don't have a heartbeat. My palms were sweating. It was incredible."

And Francona said he believes the Reds are ready to do what it takes to contend in the National League Central in 2025.

"There are no guarantees on how good we're gonna be. But we're gonna see," Francona said. "We're young enough where hopefully you'll start to see them take another step forward. And maybe we can keep our staff healthy. Maybe we can make some noise."

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