After the Sox recent walkoff victory over the Braves, Terry Francona and Brad Mills--his bench coach and best friend--were particularly excited by the gutsy way the team had played, winning several consecutive series over some of baseball's best teams. Call of the Green Monster has learned that before they ran out onto the field to congratulate the players, Francona and Mills eschewed their normal handshake, and instead leapt into the air for a celebratory chest bump. It proved to be an ill-advised decision.
"Millsy's kind of a little bit stronger than me," Francona said, "and he bumped my chest pretty hard. My heart is hanging by shreads as it is, but it literally stopped beating for a couple of minutes before I hiccupped and it kicked back into gear." The situation got worse as Francona stumbled down the dugout steps, spitting out a massive wad of tobacco onto Mills's face. This caused Mills to fall back to the floor and Francona plopped down on top of him, accidentally driving his knee into Mill's groin. Mills was later informed he would never be able to have children again. "It was awful," Mills said, in an unusually high-pitched voice.
After an MRI revealed no structural damage, Francona had a temporary pacemaker put in, and is in a cast that extends from his navel to his shoulders. "Millsy and I held a meeting this morning to discuss our celebratory practices," Francona said, at time grunting slightly from the pain. "We're going to stick to handshakes from now on."
Follow Call of the Green Monster on Facebook
Follow Call of the Green Monster on Twitter
bill@callofthegreenmonster.com
