For all the champagne showers Terry Francona’s taken at Fenway Park in his baseball lifetime, this one was different.

While the players he spent all season leading as Indians manager stormed the field to celebrate advancing to the ALCS for the first time in years, the players he spent so many years with as manager of the Red Sox — some of them his closest friends — were walking into a quiet clubhouse, their season ended.

Plastic covered the lockers in the notoriously cozy visitors clubhouse. Bottles sprayed like Bellagio fountains. Francona darted around the room trading hugs and smiles.

The feeling was familiar, but the experience was something all its own.

“I’ve done it before,’’ Francona said. “You know what, what it meant to celebrate with the Indians and our crew — I don’t care where it is — I mean, I respect that we beat a heck of a team, but to celebrate with our guys, that’s what was meaningful to me.’’

Whether the Indians advanced, Francona had the sense this group he was managing was special. Finishing off a sweep of the Sox with a 4-3 victory in Game 3 on Monday to advance to the franchise’s first since 2007 only confirmed what he already knew. When Francona arrived in Cleveland four seasons ago after an unceremonious ending with the Red Sox in 2011, it was something of a fresh start.

There was familiarity with the organization from his playing days. But there was also a comfort. In four seasons, he’s developed some of the same bonds and trust with players as he had in Boston.

“Honestly, he just lets us go out there and play,’’ said Tyler Naquin, who delivered a two-run single in the fourth inning that put the Indians in the driver’s seat early.

If a playoff series against his former team carried extra significance,Francona never let it show, Naquin said.

“I think all of us know exactly what it means,’’ said Naquin.

First baseman Mike Napoli, who was one of several players — from Andrew Miller to Coco Crisp — in the Indians clubhouse who once wore a Red Sox uniform, understood the feeling of celebrating a playoff victory in a ballpark where they had had done it before.

“It’s bittersweet,’’ Napoli said. “I’ve got a lot of friends over there that I’m close with. But when you step in between the lines, you want to win. But being able to win here on both sides is kind of crazy.’’

For Francona, though, the satisfaction is solely in enjoying the success of the team he’s with now, Napoli said.

“You know what, Tito doesn’t really get caught up in that,’’ Napoli said. “It was important for our team. It was never anything towards Boston or anything like that. It was important to us as a group, as a family, to be able to come here and try to play good baseball and try to win. So it was fun to be a part of.’’

Still, Francona couldn’t help but be somewhat sentimental.

While the Indians celebrated their victory, Red Sox slugger David Ortiz watched and waited. For Ortiz, it wasn’t just the end of a series and a season, but a storied career. Francona had front-row seat for many of Ortiz’s milestones.

“I’m glad he didn’t get a hit to beat us,’’ Francona said.

But as the Fenway crowd chanted for Ortiz while the Indians were still on the field, Francona had as much appreciation for Ortiz as they did.

“I thought it was an honor to be on the field competing against him in his last game because he’s truly one of the best,’’ Francona said. “You can tell the way the people were hanging around, yelling his name and everything, he deserves that.’’

As it all unfolded, Francona carried himself like someone who had been here before — because he had. “I don’t think you get too carried away,’’ Francona said. “We’re happy, we’re thrilled, we’re honored that we won. We’ll let them blow it out a little bit and then we’ll regroup tomorrow and then start thinking about Toronto.’’

Julian Benbow can be reached at jbenbow@globe.com.