Francona pinch hits for McCarver on Fox

October 05, 2011|By Chad Finn, Globe Staff

By Chad Finn, Globe Staff

Terry Francona is in between managerial jobs after taking the fall for the Red Sox' 20-loss disaster in September. But he's found some high-profile work to keep him busy in the meantime.

Francona, whose tenure as the Red Sox manager ended Friday after eight seasons, five playoff berths, and two World Championships, and one epic collapse, will view the postseason from a different perspective this October -- he will join Fox Sports as a color analyst during the American League Championship Series, the network confirmed this afternoon.

He will fill in for at least games 1 and 2 of the ALCS between the Texas Rangers and the winner of the ongoing Tigers/Yankees series on the network telecasts. Analyst Tim McCarver will miss at least the first two games of the series with what the network called a "medical issue'' but is expected to return for Game 3.

It's uncertain whether Francona, who will be paired with play-by-play voice Joe Buck, will continue to contribute to the telecasts once McCarver returns.

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