See, I can't say with any degree of certainty that Terry Francona would have even wanted to come here.

But that, that still doesn't stop the stomach from turning when you see how he carried himself yesterday in Cincinnati.

Good morning to you. Good. Tuesday morning, I'm Dan Kovachievich of D.K. Pittsburgh Sports.

This is Daily Shot of Pirates. It comes your way bright and early every weekday if you're into football and or hockey.

I also offer daily shots of Steelers and Penguins that I hope you'll also

check out. Francona met with the media at Great American Ballpark, and yes, I know this show

is not called Daily Shot of Reds, but let's not pretend that this isn't going to be something

that people talk about around here who follow this franchise,

you know, for quite a while.

Because on one hand, Francona's inheriting some pretty good players that for whatever reason

David Bell just couldn't win with in his half decade there.

And if anything, the hiring of Francona alone would strongly suggest beyond some sort of symbolism

that the Red's ownership and management is dropped dead serious about trying to get the most

out of Ellie Delacruz and everybody else there in short order.

As such, there's no reason for the Reds to not be a better baseball team than the Pirates in 2025.

That's not a shot at the Pirates' current core.

That's exactly where you would imagine that shot is intended.

You don't get a Francona and say, eh, let's just tread water.

Let's work toward winning. You make it known right then and there. Hey, this is it. Right now,

here we go. Holes have to be filled. Instruction needs to be improved. Development needs to be

upgraded. And yeah, money needs to be spent. The Red spend more than the pirates. Almost everyone

spends more than the pirates. But we'll see if that maybe goes to another level. I don't know. I

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