MVN: Most Valuable Network

The most successful postseason manager in the history of baseball has agreed to a contract extension to stay with the Red Sox through at least 2011.

Francona, who has a .710 winning percentage in the playoffs (minimum 20 games), acknowledged that talks got a little rocky at some points but in the end, it got solved.

He'll be among the upper echelon of managers in terms of highest salary, as he certainly deserves after leading the team to two World Series titles in four years and bringing stability to a position often known for it's instability.

As I mentioned earlier this off-season, I think Francona is one of the greatest managers in the game.

The ESPN/Associated Press story had some great nuggets about Francona:

Epstein studied that and decided that Francona had learned a lot from managing a team with mediocre talent.

"But for that experience in Philly, he wouldn't be the manager that he is today for us," Epstein said. ...

Despite being the most successful manager over the past four years, Francona, who prefers to deflect praise to his players, hasn't gotten the national recognition that comes with such accomplishments, third baseman Mike Lowell said.

"I think he was underpaid for a couple of years, too," Lowell said. "He's not that outspoken guy where he says what he did, but he has his own way of allowing guys to maximize their talent. I actually view that as a strength."

It's great to hear that Francona's going to be around at least through 2011 and potentially for the next decade should his option years be picked up. While I can't sit here and project out the next four years, I can't fathom a scenario where the Sox feel it's time to move on from Francona. There is an adage that after too much time, the players stop responding to managers and their styles. This is true of most managers, but not great managers. I firmly believe Francona is a great manager and look forward to him breaking Joe Cronin's record as longest tenured manager (1935---1947).

Cy Young winner joins Red Sox

The 2005 A.L. Cy Young winner is now a member of the Red Sox, having inked a minor league deal with the club. If Colon makes the big-league roster, he'll earn a little over a million dollars. Having someone who went 21-8 with a 3.48 ERA in his Cy Young year with major innings (he's always been a workhorse until recently) is a bonus to the staff, but only if utilized correctly.

Colon has struggled majorly the last two years with injuries and reports are that he's lost all speed on his fastball, making him eminently hittable. The reports have him hitting 88-91 which is doable if he has strong secondary pitches, but Colon has so far lived and died with his fastball. Teams were scared off by his work in the Caribbean Series (as they should be) and now he's settling for a minor league deal.

Having veterans who clearly know how to pitch is definitely a great thing. But Colon's at the point where he should be looked at as a fallback. I have no problem with him coming in to camp to push Clay Buchholz for the No. 5 spot in the rotation, but I'll be deathly scared of the decision-making prowess of Francona and Epstein if they're actually banking on him defeating Buchholz to open the season in Pawtucket.

Colon should be a safey net. If Buchholz or Lester completely blows up in April, you bring Colon up. If Colon is still with the club after May 1 (I'm assuming he has the standard May 1 opt-out clause if he's not in the major leagues) and injury strikes, you call him up. If the Red Sox want to send Buchholz down in July just to limit his innings and Schilling's not back yet, you call Colon up. It will allow the Red Sox to get a viable glimpse at Colon at the Triple-A level without harming the Sox's chances at repeating as World Series champions. Last year showed us how important it is to get off to a fast start.

Job security for a manager and more pitching depth. Not a bad day at work.