Terry Francona’s interview with the Cleveland Indians began this morning according to the Indians Twitter account:

Terry Francona arrived at 8:15AM ET today. Even spent some time on the field with Chris Antonetti watching our employee softball game.—
Cleveland Indians (@tribeinsider) October 05, 2012

The Indians brought Francona in to discuss their managerial position that’s been open since the firing of Manny Acta last week.

Francona is considered the front-runner for the position, though the Indians are also considering interim manager Sandy Alomar Jr. Alomar was scheduled to interview for the position Thursday.

Alomar recently told MLB.com that he knows his experience doesn’t match up with Francona’s two World Series titles with the Red Sox and more than 1,000 wins on his MLB resume:

“I don’t have the resume that Terry has,” said Alomar, who was a teammate of Francona’s during winter ball in Puerto Rico in 1988. “Obviously, that’s a slam dunk. Geez, I wish I had that. As a player, maybe I did. But as a coach? He has an unbelievable resume. Obviously, anybody would want a Terry Francona. I’m just going to go out there and do what I have to do and let the rest take care of itself.

“Who wouldn’t want a guy like that? He has everything. He has championships. He’s a great guy. He’s a great communicator. He’s the perfect guy to have;

“I have a ton of respect for him. The organization has to make a huge decision. It’s not about who’s the most popular guy or that I played here or did this in the playoffs. They’ve still got to make a decision for the organization. I feel like I’m prepared for it.”

Fox Sports’ Ken Rosenthal reported yesterday that major-league sources are saying Terry Francona is a candidate to manage the Cleveland Indians — if he wants the job. Francona’s impact on the job search is rising on Twitter today as more sources speak up.

There is mutual interest between Francona and Indians. They'll all know better after weekend. Peace, love and understanding may be >$—
Peter Gammons (@pgammo) September 28, 2012

Rosenthal reported Francona has had contact with the Indians, but the team must put together a deal lucrative enough to lure him away from his job as an ESPN analyst. Rosenthall also wrote the former Red Sox manager’s friends are saying his first choice would be managing the Los Angeles Angels if Mike Scioscia is fired or leaves the position.

Francona may not be the Indians’ first choice. Anthony Witrado of Sporting News reported Francona is on the Indians’ list, but the job remains Sandy Alomar Jr.’s to lose.

The Indians started their search after firing Manny Acta and naming Alomar as acting manager on Thursday.

The Indians have dismissed manager Manny Acta, according to a press release issued on Thursday:

“The Cleveland Indians would like to thank Manny Acta for everything he has done for the organization in his three seasons as our Manager,” said Cleveland Indians Executive Vice President and General Manager Chris Antonetti. “Managerial changes are never easy or taken lightly, but as we approached the end of the season and turned our attention to assessing the year, we determined a change was necessary.”

Acta had a 214-266 (.446) record since joining the team in October 2009. He came in fourth place in AL Manager of the Year voting in 2011. Prior to joining the Indians, he managed the Nationals from 2007 to 2009.

The team announced that Sandy Alomar, who served as the team’s bench coach in 2011, would be the team’s interim manager for the final six games of the season. The team’s search for a new manager will begin immediately, and Alomar will be a candidate. The team is currently in fourth place in the AL Central with a 65-91 record.

The Boston Red Sox interviewed for MLB catcher Sandy Alomar Jr. Wednesday as a possible replacement for former manage Terry Francona, according to an MLB.com report. Alomar is expected to interview for the Chicago Cubs vacancy later in the week.

Though Alomar has never managed, he was a player for 20 years and grew up in the game. His brother, Roberto, also played in the majors and his father played and coached.

“Well, I have played many years at this level,” Alomar said, according to the report. “I have great managerial people that I played for and in fact I think I played for nine managers. All nine managers I played for have participated or managed in the postseason and six out of the nine have reached the World Series and two out of those six have won the World Series. I have learned a tremendous amount of baseball from those kind of people and my father has been very influential in my career in the coaching department. I feel like I can help an organization.”

Even without any personal experience, Alomar still believes that he can get the job done.

“The only weakness that I have, to be honest with you right now, is that I haven’t managed anywhere in the past,” Alomar said. “That’s the main concern for everybody. But I’ve managed myself, and I’ve managed people throughout my career with leadership and I feel like I could do it.”

The Cleveland Indians have reportedly granted the Boston Red Sox permission to interview Sandy Alomar Jr. for their managerial opening, according to the Cleveland Plain Dealer.

Alomar had previously served as the first base coach for the Indians, and is currently slotted to serve as the Indians’ bench coach during the 2012 season.

As a player, Alomar was a six-time All-Star behind the plate. In his 20-year-career he hit .273/.309/.406 with 112 home runs and 558 RBI. His best season came in 1997 when he hit .324/.354/.545 with 21 home runs and 83 RBI for the Indians.

The Red Sox managerial position became vacant after longtime skipper Terry Francona parted ways with the team after a dramatic collapse this past September. The club is also rumored to be interviewing Mike Maddux and Dale Sveum.