It'll take some time to get used to seeing someone besides Terry Francona at the top step of the home dugout at Progressive Field. His legacy as a Future Hall of Famer was solidified during his time with the Cleveland Guardians and Tito became the organization's all-time leader in wins over the decade he was in town.
That being said, there's a lot of excitement around new skipper Stephen Vogt and deservedly so. One more reason to be eager for the Vogt era is that he's already getting advice from Tito himself.
"I called Tito and asked him the questions I had about Cleveland and he had nothing but phenomenal things to say about the entire group," said Vogt. "And one of those things that it just confirmed what I was feeling and Tito has helped me since."
Cleveland's new manager admitted he hasn't had a ton of conversations with Francona as he's been busy figuring out his coaching staff and getting acclimated to being a big-league manager. However, it's still possible for a partnership to prosper.
Vogt said, "You know [Francona] has made himself available to me as much as I was as a resource. He said, 'I'm not going to look over your shoulder, not going to tell you what to do, but just know I'm a phone call away any time. I want you to succeed and I want to see Cleveland win.' So, couldn't be more thankful for Tito."
It's important to note that Tito will have some sort of role within Cleveland's organization once he gets healthy enough to do so. This makes a potential partnership between these two make even more sense.
There's no better way for Vogt to start his coaching career than being mentored by one of the game's best. That's not to say Tito's fingerprints need to be all over Vogt's managing style, but having that aid available is not one many first-year managers can say they have.
More must-reads: