By Jessica Camerato
CSNNE.comFollow @JCameratoNBA
BOSTON -- When Terry Francona sat down at the podium for his postgame press conference, there was little doubt as to what the topic of the first question would be.
After all, earning your 1,000th career win as a Major League manager is no small feat.
I guess Im more comfortable talking about our players and our team and the organization, he said. But Im just glad to win anyways, but yeah it felt good.
The Red Sox, on the other hand, had a lot more to say on the subject.
Their 3-1 win over the Seattle Mariners was Franconas 715th with the club. He previously earned 285 with the Philadelphia Phillies.
David Ortiz, who along with Adrian Gonzalez partook in a postgame celebration, was glad Francona reached the mark with the Red Sox.
When you win 1,000 games, that means youve been on top of your game, Ortiz said. Its great, it has been awesome through the years here and watching him get to that point with the Red Sox is just something very special.
Boston Red Sox
He continued, Hes just a guy that he doesnt have that many rules. He just tells you to be prepared to play the game and be on time. Thats about it.
Jacoby Ellsbury praised Franconas control over the clubhouse and his communication with the players. He was also glad that the team was able to pull through with a three-run seventh inning to take the victory.
We come out every game trying to win, regardless of whats on the line, he said. But obviously its a special win for him and we want to come out and we always put our best foot forward.
Francona became the eighth active managers to record 1,000 career wins - Tony LaRussa, Jim Leyland, Dusty Baker, Bruce Bochy, Davey Johnson, Mike Scioscia, and Jack McKeon. He is now the 57th manager in Major League history to reach the mark.
Daniel Bard extended his scoreless streak to 24.0 innings after getting out of a bases-loaded jam in the top of the eighth inning. He got Mike Carp to fly out to left field, struck out Jack Cust, and Kevin Youkilis threw out Franklin Gutierrez at first.
Its pretty special, said Francona. He got himself into that bind and got himself right out of it. Not too many guys can do that. That was impressive.
Bards streak now dates back to May 27. He gives credits to his teammates playing behind him.
Im definitely proud of it, but theres a lot of luck involved, he said. There have been some great defensive plays behind me throughout it. I owe it to those guys, too, playing behind me. Im just out there trying to do the same thing every day.
With the consistency comes focus. Even after getting out one batter, he looks ahead to getting the next one.
Its just keeping focus on the next pitch, he said. Youve really got to block out what just happened, whether it was good or bad. I get that strikeout and obviously Im pretty excited about it, but at the same time, Im not out of it yet. Ill maybe give a fist pump or something but then you get back and you know youve got one more guy to get out. So youve just got to stay focused on the pitch at hand.
Surrounded by thousands of fans, he gets into the zone and blocks it all out.
I didnt hear it. I didnt hear a thing, he said of the crowd. When you get locked in like that, the adrenaline kicks up. As long as you dont let the game speed up on you, just focus pitch to pitch.
The Red Sox improved to 53-2 when leading after seven innings this season. They scored all three of their runs in the seventh after trailing 1-0 through six. The Red Sox are still undefeated (54-0) when leading after eight.
Some stats from tonights final 3-1 score: The Red Sox improved to 16-11 when scoring three or four runs They are now 12-7 in two-run games The Sox inched closer to the .500 mark (17-18) when they do not hit a homerun in a game.
Jessica Camerato is on Twitter at http:twitter.comJCameratoNBA