My Thoughts on Alex Cora and Whats to Come

 Alex Cora takes stock of 9-16 Red Sox and 'very loud' criticism of team: 'I don't think we have a bad team' - masslive.com

    After a disappointing 10-17 start, the Red Sox have parted ways with manager Alex Cora, as well as hitting coach Pete Fatse, third base coach Kyle Hudson, and first base coach Ramon Vazquez. Game plan and run prevention coach Jason Varitek, who has spent nearly 30 seasons with the organization, has been reassigned to a new role. AAA Worcester manager Chad Tracy will step in as interim manager for the time being. 

    The Red Sox hired Cora prior to the 2018 season, a season in which the Red Sox won 108 games and walked through the playoffs in route to a World Series championship. Since that season however, the Red Sox have made the playoffs just twice, and finished dead last in the AL East 3 times (including the shortened 2020 season).  

    Since that 2018 season, the Red Sox have struggled to find the organizational consistency that was so important to the Red Sox teams of the 2000s and 2010s. They have traded multiple star, homegrown players while going through 3 different heads of baseball operations. It seems as if majority owner John Henry and current CBO Craig Breslow have formed a relationship where Breslow had more power than Cora, according to Buster Olney at ESPN. 

    Internally, early indicators are that the move ins't going down great with Red Sox players. Trevor Story, the defacto veteran leader of the team, said "some of the best coaches in the world didn't get a fair shot." Garret Whitlock has also came out to say players were not asked whether or not they thought this was the right decision. 

    Personally, AC represented the only piece of stability through the 2020s. While not a perfect coach, some of his lineup construction and bullpen decisions have been questionable, I've heard nothing but praise from current and former players about Cora and his ability to lead a team.

    It will be interesting to see how Henry and Breslow find their next manager. Chad Tracy, who has managed AAA Worcester since 2022, is very promising manager and should be given a fair chance to turn this team around. Tracy also has connections to much of the roster, having coached a good majority of the young core in AAA. Commanding the room, and commanding the respect of veteran players, will be a tough task for a team that looks lost. 

    Labeling Cora as the scapegoat, even after a few questionable decisions by Breslow and Co. over the offseason, doesn't feel very fair though. Cora has had to work around multiple franchise stars being traded, as well as a lack of spending by John Henry. 

    My immediate, raw reaction is disappointment that we got to this situation, but excitement for the future under Chad Tracy. Since I became an Everton fan, they have gone through 5 different managers since 2020, and it was not until an ownership change last winter that things have started to look up. 

     

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