Terry Francona adds 2013 Red Sox legend to Reds' staff for 2025 season

The good news keeps on rolling for the Cincinnati Reds. Since the club's season ended in 2024, the Reds have been active in every capacity to make next year's team better. Bringing Terry Francona aboard as manager with almost 2,000 wins to his name was only scratching the surface.

Since then, Cincinnati has traded for right-handed pitcher Brady Singer and got Nick Martinez to accept his qualifying offer.

The acquisitions haven't stopped there. It really seems like Cincinnati is all in on winning in 2025, and now, they just signed a beloved veteran to the coaching staff.

Terry Francona welcomes 2013 Red Sox hero Mike Napoli to Reds' 2025 staff

The Reds signed 12-year MLB veteran Mike Napoli as a staff assistant. This is a tremendous hire, considering Napoli played under Terry Francona in Cleveland during the 2016 campaign. Napoli belted a career-high 34 home runs that season alongside career-bests in RBI (101), runs (92) and walks (78).

Tito adding him to the staff feels like a no-brainer. Although the details are still unclear specifying Napoli's role, he also brings in some coaching experience. Napoli was the first base coach for the Cubs this past season and helped Chicago steal 143 bases, which was good for fifth-most in the National League.

Napoli spent half of his career as a catcher, and the other half as a first baseman. The most natural player-to-coach transition comes from catchers, such as Joe Girardi, Stephen Vogt, Mike Scioscia. His position with the Reds in 2025 might not hold much power, but Napoli's name has been thrown around as a future manager in Major League Baseball. Learning under Tito is unquestionably an advantage, so these two minds learning from one another should be beneficial for Cincinnati.

Napoli is a one-time All-Star, earning his nod with the Rangers in 2012. He is also a legend amongst Boston fans, helping the Red Sox win a World Series in 2013 after belting a pair of home runs and doubles in ALCS to eliminate the Tigers.

Behind a world of baseball experience with an already cemented relationship with Francona, mixing Napoli somewhere in the coaching staff is a great move. Even if he doesn't have an official title with the Reds jsut yet, Napoli is the kind of guy who will make a big impact regardless of where he sits on the totem pole. The Reds want to compete in 2025, and there's no reason to believe Napoli can't help in that area.