Just Say No

With the World Series in full swing the Boston Red Sox (who will not win their fifth title despite losing the fewest games in a single season in franchise history) are searching for a new manager.  Reports from all manners of places have had them interviewing Pirates coach Don Kelly, Diamondbacks bench coach Luis Urueta (oh to hear Remy pronounce that), possibly Dodger coach George Lombard, Cub coach Will Venable and possibly others.  Of course, all of these interviews come while the elephant in the room waits for the end of the World Series.

Alex Cora.

The former manager remains a popular figure among Red Sox fans and seemingly the players. For an organization that is well over a year beyond any meaningful good publicity re-hiring Cora would be a coup.  A fanbase deep in the throes of apathy (at best) would be reclaimed and the link back to the magical season of 2018 would be immediately forged.  Having said all of that I am here to tell you that in my opinion, the right thing for the Red Sox is to say “thanks but no thanks” to Alex Cora for a variety of reasons.

First and foremost is why would the Sox want to do this to themselves?  How long would the questions about Cora’s ethics be on the front burner.  At the very least it would be a question asked in the first game against every team they played.  Regardless of where you stand on the issue of what Cora was involved in it is going to be a non-stop distraction.  It would also create an avenue to questions about players who were here in 2018 and those who feel that the investigation and subsequent punishment of the club were inadequate for real or perceived events.

Second is the fundamental question of whether or not Alex Cora is actually a good manager.  Cora absolutely, without question deserves major credit for guiding the greatest team in club history.  He also deserves major criticism for guiding fundamentally the same team to a major disappointment the following year.  While the issues of 2019 can be laid on injuries Cora’s laid back approach to spring training and a desire for a less rigorous build up to the season can’t be ignored in the bad start.  If pressed I’d say Cora is probably a good manager but let’s not overpraise him; he’s managed two full seasons, one tremendously successful, one tremendously disappointing.

My third problem with bringing back Cora relates to the first.  For a team that is going to be integrating young players (Verdugo, Dalbec, Downs, Mata, etc…) is a guy with Alex Cora’s track record the guy you want guiding them?  If the Sox were more likely to be contending next year than I currently expect then maybe you say “hey, let’s win and everything else be damned.”  But from the standpoint of developing young players I think it is reasonable to ask if a guy coming off a one year suspension for breaking league rules is really the mentor you want.  Now having said that I should note that it is possible the answer to that question is a resounding yes.  It is quite possible that Cora, having gone through all of this, has learned a lesson and can be a voice in the way a recovering alcoholic sponsors a fellow alcoholic in AA.

All of this is not to say it would be a catastrophic error to hire Cora.  Like I said, I think he’s probably a good manager but I’m not 100% convinced.  It is likely that if it is not Cora it will be someone else without any track record in that seat so the Sox aren’t getting any kind of certainty.  There is something about going with what you know but I think hiring Cora is just a way to open old questions and concerns* and create a lot more drama than a team looking to build is going to benefit from.

* And here is where I note that I had a similar concern about another Boston sports coach being hired.  “Why do they want another link to Parcells? Belichick sucked in Cleveland and he’ll suck in New England” said someone who looks a lot like me.