Francona Is Back in Dugout for Red Sox

Terry Francona didn’t feel well when he woke up Monday morning. But he wasn’t worried.

Doctors had checked him out extensively after he felt tightness in his chest last Wednesday.

“I got my OK the other day,” he said.

So the Boston Red Sox manager ran out of the dugout toward the first base line where he was the first member of the World Series winners to receive his championship ring during a ceremony before the home opener against the New York Yankees.

“I’m just glad I’m available to be here to get introduced,” Francona said.

Team physician Thomas Gill has said that tests showed no evidence of a serious heart problem, and Francona’s chest pains probably were caused by “a recent viral illness.”

On Monday, he returned to the team when he entered the clubhouse for the Red Sox’s first game at Fenway Park since they won Game 2 of the World Series on their way to a four-game sweep of St. Louis.

“He was just about crying when he walked in,” center fielder Johnny Damon said. “He really missed us.”

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Colorado outfielder Jorge Piedra was suspended 10 days for violating baseball’s new policy on performance-enhancing drugs, becoming the second player to be publicly identified under the major leagues’ tougher rules.

The suspension began with the game at Arizona on Monday, the commissioner’s office said.

“My understanding is that he is not filing an appeal,” said Gene Orza, chief operating officer of the players’ association.

Piedra was recalled from triple-A Colorado Springs of the Pacific Coast League on Wednesday and sent back down the next day.

“It’s unfortunate,” Commissioner Bud Selig said. “I’m afraid this probably won’t be the last one.”

Tampa Bay outfielder Alex Sanchez was suspended for 10 days last Monday. He said he tested positive from a supplement he bought over the counter before Jan. 15, when it was made a controlled substance.

Selig wouldn’t say whether he believed Sanchez. “I want to be kind,” Selig said. “He did not fight his suspension, and I’ll rest my case on that.”

Under the new policy that took effect last month, steroids and other performance-enhancing substances are the only drugs to draw a 10-day suspension.

Baseball officials and the players’ union agreed they would not disclose the exact substance for which a player tests positive.