BOSTON -- Following Boston Red Sox manager John Farrell’s announcement that he has cancer and will not lead the team for the rest of the season, the franchise’s biggest stars went to bat for him.
Designated hitter David Ortiz and second baseman Dustin Pedroia followed Farrell at the podium at Fenway Park before Friday’s homestand opener against the Seattle Mariners. Both were present in the room as Farrell told the story of his lymphoma diagnosis to the assembled media and became choked up while talking about his relationship with his players.
“By a way, you live vicariously through their careers,” Farrell said. “Yours is over. You try to help, when you can, with them. That support, it’s meaningful.”
Before his public announcement, Farrell addressed the team concerning his diagnosis and course of action, with bench coach Torey Lovullo operating as manager for the duration of the season.
Ortiz and Pedroia echoed the theme of turning that support around for their manager now in a great time of need.
“Obviously, anybody in that room would do anything for John,” Pedroia said. “We know he’s going to get through this and get through it together and do anything we can to help him out.”
Ortiz, who implied tension in his relationship with Farrell earlier in the year after stating his displeasure with playing first base, made a similar vow.
“We’re going to give John all the support we can give him so he can get through this and he’ll be back next year,” Ortiz said.
Ortiz also managed to find a silver lining in Farrell’s news. Farrell hadn’t experienced symptoms typically associated with the condition. If doctors hadn't discovered the tumor during a hernia surgery earlier this week, he might not have known of his condition for some time.
“It’s not the news you want to hear about, but when it comes down to what it was, I think we should all be happy about what it was because now he knows,” Ortiz said. “Otherwise, if he didn’t get the surgery, then the news would’ve been different.”
Pedroia, who is still on the disabled list with a hamstring strain, sees the parallels in the troubles the Red Sox clubhouse has endured before and the battle with cancer. Farrell was the Red Sox's pitching coach when Jon Lester completed his triumph over lymphoma with a World Series championship in 2007, and Pedroia sees a similar future.
“It’s your family. Your first reaction is shock,” Pedroia said. “The next reaction is, ‘How do we get him better?’ And he’s going to start that process soon.”
