(Photo by Keith Allison)
Let me preface this blog by saying that Terry Francona is my favorite MLB manager of all time. That being said, he had a particularly disgusting habit that any Red Sox fan from 2004 on should remember.
Back in the good old days, Tito used to stand up on the stop step of the dugout and throw together one of the grosser concoctions that I’ve ever seen a baseball player/coach put in his mouth. He’d grab a handful of “Dubble Bubble” from the pail sitting on the bench, unwrap a few pieces, and chew them ‘till they were nice and soft. Then, he’d throw a fat pinch of chewing tobacco in his lower lip, warming that up too.
But wait, it gets better: Terry would then pull the wad of tobacco out of his mouth, wrap the ABC gum around it, and throw that entire mess back into his oral cavity. If that isn’t a recipe for mouth cancer, cavities, and/or gingivitis, then I don’t know what is. Often, the camera would pan over to Francona as he chomped away at this mass of brownish-pink goo.
Terry poppin' Dubble Bubble.
(Photo by Keith Allison)
Tito is preparing for his sixth season as Cleveland skipper, and he still chews away at that hunk every game. Let’s do a little math--he started coaching in 1997, and he took a three-year hiatus in between the Phillies and the Red Sox. This means he’s coached 17 seasons, 162 games apiece. That’s more than 27,000 games, and he’s been practicing this habit since the first time I can remember. That’s at least 27,000 three-hour periods of bombarding his mouth with sugar and tobacco (not counting practices, preseason, and offseason); it’s a wonder his mouth hasn’t fallen apart. Take a look at his smile below--either he’s had serious reconstructive dental surgery, or he’s incredibly good at brushing his teeth.
(Photo by Arturo Pardavila III)
Ya know how the dentist always urges you to brush three times a day? That must be Terry’s secret.
Addendum: Box Score Bishop reminded me that sunflower seeds were often thrown into the mix as well. Yuck.
(Career information courtesy of Baseball Reference)
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