With Terry Francona out again, Sandy Alomar makes case for future jobs

Terry Francona will miss another game due to an illness, meaning Sandy Alomar will again get a shot to show the world what he can offer as a manager.

The Indians manager Terry Francona will miss another game during the team’s spring-training schedule due to an illness. He’s expected to rejoin the club on Friday, though that could obviously change. The front office and team doctors were advising Francona to take this time off, which no one will disagree with, as it’s merely spring training.

We know that Francona is a Hall of Famer. The Indians don’t need to see what he can do as a manager.

That means that first base coach Sandy Alomar will again get to show what skills as a manager he has when the team takes on the Giants. Alomar is currently undefeated as a manager for the Tribe this spring-training, leading the team to a 6-2 win over the Diamondbacks. According to Paul Hoynes, Alomar also managed the Indians split-squad teams in Las Vegas on Saturday and Sunday when they played the Oakland A’s.

Alomar has been a candidate in the past for previous manager openings. He’s widely viewed as a great prospect to lead a team, which is why every off-season the fear of losing him is very real. Losing Alomar would be a blow to fan morale because of what he represents.

Alomar was an all-time great player for the Cleveland Indians. At one point he was an MVP candidate in 1997 while winning the 1997 All-Star Game MVP, which happened to be in Cleveland that year. With him joining the club as a coach, fans past and present are able to enjoy a link to a bygone era due to Alomar’s involvement. So much of baseball is rooted in the past, and bonding over moments gone by is how many young people became fans in the first place. Baseball is nostalgia.

Alomar could be gone really at any time, he’s that good of a coach that a team in need of a manager would absolutely look at him for the job. With Francona again missing games, it’s not out of the realm of thinking to ponder about Alomar as a possible replacement one day for Francona. Would he be a viable replacement for a legend? They’re not that far apart in age, would Francona really retire or walk away when Alomar is young enough to get started as a first-time manager?

Who knows, but right now Alomar’s stock is rising with his Spring Training performance, which shouldn’t surprise anyone.