Terry Francona Reveals Details on Graham Ashcraft's Trip to Bereavement List

"Graham came in (Tuesday) night, and his grandpa had had a tough time during spring, and then really kind of rallied," Francona said, per Reds reporter Mike Petraglia. "And then things were taking a turn for the worse (Tuesday), saying he was really, he was really upset. So I just told him 'I don't know what the rules are, but go.' I said, we'll figure that part out."

The part of this statement that sticks out most to me is when Francona told Ashcraft, "I don't know what the rules are, but go."

While this may seem like something every manager would say, it might not be as common as many think. Francona said this before knowing how the Reds could pull strings to fill out their roster for Wednesday's game. He was willing to play a man down if that meant Ashcraft would be able to be by his grandfather's side.

Some managers would have waited for the player to request to leave the team. Some would have found out how to fill out the roster before telling the player to leave. But Francona clearly cares about his players beyond what they can do for him on the field.

It's no surprise they rally behind him. It's no surprise they're willing to go to bat for him whenever the media wants to crush him. Francona has the backs of all the players in the Reds clubhouse. It makes sense why they have his back, too.