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Saturday, February 04, 2023

Red Sox manager Alex Cora on his time with 2017 Astros, per new book: ‘We stole that ... World Serie

According to Evan Drellich’s new book, “Winning Fixes Everything,” Cora would boast about the Astros’ sign-stealing exploits to members of the Red Sox once he changed jobs. Notably, he’d reportedly get a little loose with the lips once he started drinking.

From the Boston Herald:

When Cora arrived in Boston to manage the Red Sox in 2018, he would “occasionally talk about the Astros’ sign-stealing from 2017, even brag, sometimes in a late-night setting,” Drellich wrote.

“Especially when they started drinking,” a member of the Red Sox reportedly said.

“We stole that (expletive) World Series,” Cora allegedly said.

While many teams were accused of illegally stealing signs during those years, Cora’s acts were seen as particularly egregious.

“We knew the Astros did [steal signs],” another member of the Red Sox told Drellich, “because Alex Cora told us. He said that when they played the Dodgers, ‘We already knew what everybody was throwing before we even got on base. We didn’t have to get on base.’ And everybody was like, ‘What the hell does that mean?’ “

The book details much more than simply the Astros’ sign-stealing operation in 2017, including habits of teams like the Yankees, Red Sox and Dodgers.

RoyalsRetro (AG#1F) Posted: February 04, 2023 at 10:38 AM | 14 comment(s) Login to Bookmark
  Tags: alex cora, astros, sign-stealing

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   1. Darren Posted: February 04, 2023 at 02:55 PM (#6115702)
Wow, that sounds really, really bad. I'm surprised the Red Sox went back to him after his suspension with this stuff circulating within the team.
   2. What did Billy Ripken have against ElRoy Face? Posted: February 04, 2023 at 03:04 PM (#6115704)
Wow, that sounds really, really bad. I'm surprised the Red Sox went back to him after his suspension with this stuff circulating within the team.
Note the title of the book.
   3. Pat Rapper's Delight (as quoted on MLB Network) Posted: February 04, 2023 at 04:37 PM (#6115725)
Note the title of the book.

With apologies to Lionel Hutz, "'Winning Fixes Everything'? No! 'Winning Fixes? Everything!' Yes!"
   4. The Duke Posted: February 04, 2023 at 05:09 PM (#6115732)
He looks like every ambitious 2nd in command I've seen.
   5. Darren Posted: February 04, 2023 at 05:44 PM (#6115744)
I guess I was already surprised they went back to him even before these quotes came out. He's a good manager and all, but he's not the only choice out there.
   6. cHiEf iMpaCt oFfiCEr JE Posted: February 04, 2023 at 06:04 PM (#6115756)
The continued pearl clutching over 2017 is pathetic, even more so since the only ones who got punished as a result of this grave "scandal" didn't enjoy union representation.
   7. The Yankee Clapper Posted: February 04, 2023 at 06:10 PM (#6115763)
He's a good manager and all, but he's not the only choice out there.
The question may be is Cora a good enough manager to survive another last place finish? Ownership & the front office could be looking for a scapegoat if things don’t turn around, and any further tarnishing of his reputation probably doesn’t help him. Cora will likely have to endure a new round of sign-stealing questions at his next news conference, so he should get his mea culpas ready.
   8. villageidiom Posted: February 04, 2023 at 09:39 PM (#6115778)
Your concern is noted.
   9. Jose is an Absurd Sultan Posted: February 04, 2023 at 10:25 PM (#6115781)
I’m not sure what the big news here is. We already know Cora was involved. It seems to me the big news is if the Yankees and Dodgers (and others) were doing something or if there is more to come on the Red Sox.

Personally I don’t care about any of it. Astros, Sox, Yankees, whatever. Teams try to steal signs. They broke a rule, they got caught, they got punished. As JE says, the pearl clutching is over the top.
   10. MuttsIdolCochrane Posted: February 05, 2023 at 05:29 AM (#6115784)
The big news is old news. They cheated exceptionally well, they won because of it, they're happy and proud they did it, and in this case, cheaters prospered, got caught, but still got totally away with it. Then Cora did it again.
   11. Captain Joe Bivens, Pointless and Wonderful Posted: February 05, 2023 at 08:44 AM (#6115788)
As JE says, the pearl clutching is over the top.


While he internally rages against the strength of unions.
   12. Walt Davis Posted: February 05, 2023 at 12:57 PM (#6115809)
Were I a modern tean executive, I think I'd be more concerned about “Especially when they started drinking.” The coaches tossing back one or a dozen after the game is the sort of old-school behavior that can cause embarrassment to the organization. Especially if they're all so drunk that somebody says "Hey Skip, tell the one about the trashcans again." :-)
   13. McCoy Posted: February 05, 2023 at 01:19 PM (#6115813)
People drink.
   14. Lowry Seasoning Salt Posted: February 05, 2023 at 02:49 PM (#6115817)
Here is the only part of the article that wasn't excerpted above:

Alex Cora is the current Red Sox manager and also led the team to its 2018 World Series championship. But before that, he was the Astros bench coach for the 2017 season and we know by now the connection with that team and the sign-stealing scandal.

[excerpt above]

The focus, though, is heavily on the 2017 Astros and 2018 Red Sox, who both won championships and were punished for breaking the rules during those runs.

The fallout included eventual firings of Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow and manager A.J. Hinch in addition to Cora from his Red Sox job and Carlos Beltán from his Mets managerial post before he ever managed a game. No active players were punished, as they were granted immunity from the commissioner's office in exchange for honest testimony.

I mean,

—journalist breaks story;
—journalist turns story into book;
—local newspaper covers book content related to local figure;
—national outlet writes about 200 words to post something based on that local coverage.

What about this constitutes pearl clutching? There's no outrage or dramatic protest here. Figures it's Mr. WhatAboutIsm who used that phrase and thought scandal necessitated scare quotes.

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