Upon being traded from the Cincinnati Reds to the Cleveland Indians ahead of the MLB Trade Deadline, Yasiel Puig said he was looking forward to playing for his new manager.
And while Puig's time in Cleveland has yet to hit its one-month anniversary, the Terry Francona experience has already been as good as advertised for the former All-Star right fielder.
“That’s the best manager I’ve ever been around,” Puig told Chris Russo during an appearance on MLB Network's 'High Heat' show. “Yes sir.”
Francona marks the fourth manager Puig has played for in his seven-year MLB career -- the first six years of which were spent with the Los Angeles Dodgers. In L.A., Puig played for Don Mattingly (2013-15) and Dave Roberts (2016-18) before playing for David Bell during his four-month stint with the Cincinnati Reds to start the 2019 season.
While Francona has typically been popular with his players, it hardly comes as a surprise that Puig feels the way he does about the 2-time World Series champion manager. In 17 games with the Indians, Puig has hit for a .303 average (.870 OPS) to go along with 2 home runs, 5 doubles and 11 RBIs.
Since Puig's first game with the team on Aug. 1, Cleveland has amassed a 10-7 record with the Cuba native in the lineup. Entering Thursday's matchup with the New York Mets, the Indians find themselves 3.0 games back of the Minnesota Twins in the American League Central and a half-game ahead of the Tampa Bay Rays and Oakland Athletics for the top A.L. Wild Card spot.
Currently in the final year of his contract, Puig also addressed his impending free agency.
"I want to play the best I can in this month and the playoffs with the Cleveland Indians and later we'll see what's going on later," Puig said. "I don't have any preference -- National League, American League -- I spent six years in the National League and now only three weeks in the American League. Everything's going to be fine because supposedly next year, there's going to be a DH in both leagues."
While Puig's time in Cleveland may ultimately be short, it's already been plenty memorable -- for all involved.