Boston, MA – The Boston Red Sox reportedly have their man.
Bobby Valentine will become the new manager of Red Sox, according to several reports Tuesday, landing his third major league managerial job and first in almost a decade.
Valentine's hiring will be the first big move made by new Red Sox general manager Ben Cherington, who took over when Theo Epstein left to be president of the Cubs.
WCVB in Boston, citing sources, reported that the Red Sox and Valentine have reached an agreement that will be finalized when Valentine returns from a charity event in Japan.
The Boston Globe also reported the deal was imminent but not complete, while ESPN said Valentine was offered and accepted the job Tuesday. ESPN said he was flying back home at midnight (et) on Wednesday.
Valentine will replace Terry Francona, who left after eight seasons, two World Series titles and a September collapse that started in motion the upheaval in team leadership.
It will be Valentine's first MLB job since he was fired in 2002 after six-plus seasons managing the New York Mets. Valentine also managed the Texas Rangers for parts of eight seasons and owns a 1,117-1,072 regular season record in the majors.
He managed in Japan and was a TV analyst since being fired by the Mets.
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