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What they’re saying nationally about Red Sox parting ways with Alex Cora
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- What they’re saying nationally about Red Sox parting ways with Alex Cora
The Red Sox made sweeping changes Saturday that included firing manager Alex Cora and five members of his coaching staff .
The shakeup came hours after Boston earned a blowout 17-1 win over the Baltimore Orioles . Despite the lopsided victory, it’s been a rough start to the 2026 season for the Red Sox , who have a 10-17 record.
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WooSox manager Chad Tracy will be take over for Cora in the interim.
Here’s what’s being said about the Red Sox’ decision to move on from Cora.
“But in the end, Cora became the scapegoat for a 2026 season that veered off the tracks early. Even with Saturday’s win, the Red Sox were tied with Houston for the second-worst record in the American League and ranked at or near the bottom in virtually every hitting and pitching category.
“Upper management determined it could wait no longer.”
“Alex Cora, who never traded Mookie Betts , did not lowball Alex Bregman and won a World Series championship as Boston Red Sox manager, was fired by the team on Saturday, April 25, the club announced.
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“It marked the end of a Boston tenure that was at times tumultuous - almost redundant in Beantown - but also marked by the significant job security Cora enjoyed. The 2018 World Series champions were constructed by GM Dave Dombrowski, who was let go after the 2019 season in favor of a more “sustainable” approach.
“And despite the seemingly overmatched roster, it will be Cora who will take the fall, and not the baseball operations side. He did go out with a bang, as the club scored 10 ninth-inning runs in beating Baltimore 17-1.”
“The timing of the news was surprising, if only because the Red Sox had just pulled off an impressive 17-1 win behind ace Garrett Crochet and a finally-revived offense earlier in the day. Saturday’s 16-run victory stands as the largest winning margin in any Major League manager’s final game with a team in the Modern Era (since 1900), per the Elias Sports Bureau.
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“This marks the first time the Red Sox have let go of a manager in-season since they did so to Jimy Williams in August 2001.”
Red Sox rival evaluator via ESPN’s Buster Olney:
“How does it make it better to fire one of the best managers in the game?”
Stephen King, award-winning author
“Instead of firing Alex Cora, the Red Sox might consider firing the team.”
“Cora’s not the one who spent on the wrong players (Matasaka Yoshida, Trevor Story ), traded Chris Sale at exactly the wrong time, and pulled away from every big-name free agent last winter.
“Cora is not the one who failed to give Alex Bregman a no-trade clause, then said, “If Alex Bregman wanted to be in Boston, he’d be in Boston.”
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“Cora is not the one who promised “full throttle,” than went middle market. Nor is here the one who came up with the snappy slogan of “pitching and run prevention” as the theme of this season.
“Is it Alex Cora’s fault that a Red Sox third base position once filled by the likes of Frank Malzone, Wade Boggs, Devers , and Bregman is now manned by 5-foot-6-inch Caleb Durbin , he of the .165 batting average and one home run (off a utilty player in mop-up duty Saturday)?”
Kevin Pillar, former Red Sox outfielder
“Should have fired Breslow.. Fatse best hitting coach I had in my career.”
“As is the case with a lot of underperforming teams, Cora only bears so much responsibility for an offense that isn’t delivering and an ace (Garrett Crochet) with an ERA nearing 8.00 prior to Saturday.
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“Reshuffling the coaching staff to this degree in late April is also a bit puzzling. If Cora and some of his assistants were on this hot a seat, then making the change in the offseason was seemingly the smarter call.
“Firing Cora in the winter wouldn’t have been a total shock, either.
“The 50-year-old helped the Red Sox win a World Series in his first season in 2018. Boston didn’t win more than 92 games and reached the playoffs twice in his next six years at the helm, though.”
“Alex Cora will now be the hottest commodity for the next managerial vacancy, and it’s no secret that he has a close relationship with Phillies president Dave Dombrowski.”
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“No disrespect at all to Chad Tracy, I hope he has a wonderful career. But you’re trying to tell me that Chad Tracy is a better manager right now than Alex Cora? Who is out there and actually available, that is a better manager than Cora, at this time?”
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