The World Series is under way, and after a Game 1 victory the Cleveland Indians are only three wins away from capturing their first championship since 1948. Their manager, Terry Francona, already has two World Series rings from his time in Boston, and while another championship would be ideal, he’s already winning another big battle in his life – his battle with chronic pain.

Francona played eight seasons in the majors before eventually transitioning to a coaching role, but his years in the big leagues took a significant toll on his body. He eventually needed a couple knee replacement operations, and complications left him in severe pain with blood clots and staph infections. He was in a great deal of chronic pain, and he eventually turned to opioids to help manage the pain. Unfortunately, like many others, what started as a technique to manage pain transitioned into a habit and later abuse.

Opening Up About Life On Painkillers

Francona opened up about his battle with painkiller abuse in a book by Dan Shaughnessy titled, “Francona: The Red Sox Years.” He said his descent into pain pills began after some complications from knee surgery.

“I think I probably should have died with all that happened,” said Francona, referencing an extended hospitalization in 2002 when he almost needed to have his leg amputated. “There were a couple of nights in the hospital where I was thinking, I can’t take this anymore. The nurses would come running in because I’d stop breathing. I was in bad shape. There were people around who did not think I was going to make it. I know I came real close to losing the leg.”

He turned to painkillers like oxycodone and Percocet to ease his discomfort as he recovered.

“I lived on it at that time,” Francona recalled in Shaugnessy’s book. “When I left the hospital, I was on heavy-duty drugs, and it was tough.”

He eventually recovered from the problemed surgery, but he still kept taking pain pills, and eventually started hoarding them because they were easier to obtain in the clubhouse. That was until one day when his daughter found a bottle at home with more than 100 Percocet pills, and she eventually convinced her father to seek professional help and to enter a confidential drug treatment program managed by Major League Baseball. That same year, after the Red Sox collapsed in the weeks leading up to the playoffs, the Boston Globe published a piece saying that “team sources expressed concern that Francona’s performance may have been affected by his use of pain medication.”

Francona was not hired back after his contract expired that year, but he’s found a home with the Indians and appears to have put his days of painkiller abuse behind him. He mentioned that he still takes a blood thinning medication, but he’s taken to other options, like exercises and compression sleeves, to improve his blood circulation so he’s not relying solely on pills.

Francona is a shining example of how easily someone can get sucked into the world of painkiller abuse, and it’s fantastic that he’s been able to get professional help and more forward with a healthier lifestyle. Win or lose in this World Series, he’s won his battle with painkiller abuse.