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Red Sox are scuffling - what can Alex Cora do about it?
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- Red Sox are scuffling - what can Alex Cora do about it?
BOSTON – Owners of a 2-8 mark after 10 games, the Red Sox find themselves in crisis mode less than two weeks into the season.
Fans want a quick fix — for that matter, so does the team — but there are no magic buttons to push. There’s a feeling that Alex Cora should single-handedly be able to right things, but other than a few lineup tweaks and batting order adjustments, there’s a limit to one person’s impact.
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What’s a manager to do?
“Probably people think that (I can do a lot) outside these walls,” said Cora, “and I respect their opinions. But I think it’s a total team effort. (I have to) make sure we’re able to slow it down, make sure we’re swinging at the right pitches, make sure the process is the correct one.
“The one thing (we need to do better): we’ve got pitch and play defense. And that goes hand-in-hand. That’s the reality of our team. We have to make plays and we have to pitch better.”
Cora cited some defensive breakdowns that happened behind starter Ranger Suarez Sunday and additional defensive issues from Monday’s loss to Milwaukee .
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In the big picture, however, Cora sees a turnaround as the result of a “total team effort. You talk to the coaches, you talk to the players, see where we’re at.”
Cora met with Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla, who accompanied a few Celtics players to Fenway Monday, and the two commiserated together.
“You’ve got to stick to your process,” said Cora. “It looks bad because we haven’t played well. But then you start breaking it down — we were up 4-0 (Sunday), we were up 3-0 (Monday night), we were up 2-0 in Cincinnati...We expect to win those games with the way we built our team. It’s about pitching and we haven’t pitched yet the way we’re capable of. So we just have to continue to preach that, and at one point, they’re going to get hot and this is going to be in the past."
When the team is underperforming and the losses are piling up, Cora said it’s important not to display any signs of panic.
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“I try to do my best (to remain calm), but I’m human,” said Cora. “I suffer just like them; I suffer for the 26 of them. I want them to be great, all of them. I know that’s not possible. Even when you’re going great, somebody is struggling. As manager, I just have to stay calm and keep my mind where it should be and help them to keep growing through this.
“I’ve been in this situation before, with another team, and we were able to get to .500 and then play over .500. It wasn’t enough; it felt like we were going to make it then we didn’t do it. It’s the same with this team. We’ve played 10 (games) already, let’s put our minds on the next 10, see where we’re at and get closer to .500. That should be the goal right now. One step at a time. Let’s win a series first, then get hot and see where we’re at in two weeks and keep going.”
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