Considering where Buchholz was just 14 months ago, a talented but unproven kid who had a short leash wrapped around his neck each time he took the mound, that says a lot. And every time Francona chooses to give his young right-hander a chance to prove himself, Buchholz has not let him down.
Consider the last three starts for Buchholz. Facing the Minnesota Twins on May 7, Buchholz threw two scoreless innings before a two-hour, seven-minute rain delay that would've ended the night for most starters. Francona, needing something from his starter on a night when the bullpen was lean, surprisingly stuck with Buchholz after the delay and got nine more critical outs.
Then came the start last Friday in New York. Nothing special about that one except for Buchholz dominating with his varied arsenal all night. He allowed two runs in seven innings of a 5-4 win.
And then there was Wednesday night at Fenway Park. Swapping zeroes with Detroit's Phil Coke on a rainy, foggy, cold evening, Buchholz was given the biggest vote of confidence yet. He threw 27 of his career-high 127 pitches in his seventh and final inning, striking out Austin Jackson with the bases loaded to preserve a shutout.
The pitch count, which was 10 more than Buchholz had ever thrown, matches the second-highest total in baseball this season and is the highest amount for a Red Sox pitcher since Jon Lester threw 130 in his no-hitter two years ago Thursday.
It was not lost on Buchholz, who knows he has come a long way.
"No, I don't think so," Buchholz said when asked if Francona would have left him out there to finish the seventh two years ago. "I don't think he would've let it get to that point."
The point Buchholz refers to was reached when he hit two batters and gave up a single to another. The second of the two hit batsmen loaded the bases and prompted a visit from pitching coach Curt Young. In years past, that would've been the time for the hook, if not sooner.
"I felt like that would've been a time where [Francona] would've come out instead of Curt," Buchholz said. "It feels good to go out there with confidence in yourself, and the team having a little bit of confidence in you, too."
Although he had Matt Albers ready in the bullpen, Francona never even gave it a thought.
"That needed to be his inning," Francona said. "He deserved that."
It's hard not to have confidence in Buchholz right now. All that he has given up in his last 20 2/3 innings is a two-run homer to Yankees catcher Russell Martin. Other than that, it's been nothing but zeroes, the biggest of which came to end his latest gem.
By striking out Jackson, Buchholz contributed to a night that saw Detroit go 0-for-10 with runners in scoring position, stranding eight. Buchholz left at least one man in scoring position in each of his last four frames.
"He got in some situations that he got himself out of, which is huge," catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia said. "He's the MVP of the game by far. There's a lot of situations for them to score, and he kept them in check."
Through a stretch marked by inclement weather and injuries that has thrown the pitching staff into a state of flux, Buchholz has been one of the few constants. Lesser pitchers would break down under the strain of rain-delayed outings and 127-pitch performances. Buchholz is taking it all in stride, and feeling none the worse for wear.
"Body felt good, legs felt fine," he said of the dramatic seventh. "It's been the first time that I've done that. Looking up at the board and seeing how many pitches you've thrown, you know you're almost at the end of it. But I was glad that Tito left me out there."
With confidence, such decisions are rather easy.
