CLEVELAND -- The Red Sox moved to clarify their managerial picture for 2016 on Sunday, announcing that John Farrell will return to the role -- providing his health allows -- while retaining Torey Lovullo, who successfully served as interim manager in Farrell's absence and will return to his role as bench coach.
The Red Sox had some concern about Farrell's availability next spring, since, as president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski noted, some stricken with lymphoma need up to six months to fully recover.
Under this scenario, the Red Sox will have Lovullo on staff and able to take over should Farrell not feel 100 percent early next season, or suffer any sort of medical relapse.
Lovullo's old contract runs through 2016. The Red Sox tore up that deal, extended him through 2017 and will pay him in the "upper echelon” of bench coaches in the game, according to Dombrowski.
In exchange for the raise and the extension, Lovullo has waived the right to interview for managerial openings this winter.
"Right now, (Farrell) feels he will be OK for next year to move forward,” said Dombrowski. "The doctors have given that indication...The commitment's made to John; he'll be our manager for 2016. He should be fine. But I also wanted to make sure that we protect ourselves.
"What happens if it's six months (before he's 100 percent)? Well, you're already into the start of next season. You're also in a position where you start talking about preparation for spring training. I don't want that extra stress on (Farrell to think) 'I've got to be ready, I've got to ready.'
Boston Red Sox
"So we had to come up with a fallback plan if he wasn't quite up to par. I thought long and hard about it. I've been very impressed with Torey and Torey's done a great job. I don't think he could have handled himself any better -- not only running the club in John's absence, but also how he's given the proper authority to John, stayed in contact with John. So I had a thought this might work to protect ourselves.”
Dombrowski proposed the idea to principal owner John Henry and chairman Tom Werner, who signed off on the plan. Dombrowski then offered the position to Lovullo during the last homestand, and after being given some time to think about the offer, Lovullo accepted last Thursday.
"Hopefully,” said Dombrowski, "we're protected as well as we possibly can. Hopefully, John's back, he's feeling great, he's ready to go. If for some reason he's little slow (in his recovery) his trusted right-hand lieutenant is there to help him at this point.”
Farrell was hired in November of 2012, and managed the Red Sox to a World Series win in 2013. Last season, the team finished last in the A.L. East with a 71-91 record and the Sox were again mired in last with a 50-64 mark when he took his leave of absence.
Dombrowski wasn't hired until four days later, making it tough for him to determine what kind of manager Farrell has been.
"The reality is, I haven't had a chance to evaluate John at all as a manager,” said Dombrowski. "He's managed successfully at the big league level and they won a world championship in 2013. So I think, in reality, it's hard to find established major league managers who have won. I've talked to people that I trust and I look forward to working with him and us working together. I think he deserves that opportunity to do so. And he has won a world championship.
“I guess time will tell. But I think he has proven himself that he can win at the major league level and it's hard to find those type of guys. But I can't tell you I've had the chance to sit and evaluate him. He's a knowledgeable baseball person. He's well-respected within the baseball community. But I can't say (his staying) is based upon anything that I've observed because it's not, other than coming to the conclusion that it's the right thing to do from the organizational perspective, he's won before, he's deserved it and I look forward to us bouncing back in 2016.”
In retaining Farrell but also keeping Lovullo on staff as an insurance policy, Dombrowski was asked if the arrangement puts Farrell in a tough situation from a perception standpoint, since the Sox will have an able and proven replacement if the team starts poorly next year.
"Not really, for the simple fact that he's John's guy,” said Dombrowski. "John is the one who brought him on board and (Lovullo) is his closest confidant. He's his bench coach. There's always speculation in today's world when a club's not playing well. Hopefully, that won't be the case; hopefully, we'll play well. But I can't think of a situation where he'd be more comfortable. It's John's guy.”
With Lovullo as the interim manager, the Red Sox were 28-19 heading into the final day of the season. The team responded well to him and several young players blossomed under his direction.
"I think Torey's done a great job,” said Lovullo. "I can't imagine anyone really doing a better job. He's come in, the club's played well. He has the respect of the players. They play hard for him. He communicates well with the players. He's handled it as well as you possibly could.”