ARLINGTON, Texas — In all likelihood, Alex Cora is closer to the end of his time as the Boston Red Sox manager than the beginning. As he finishes his fifth season at the helm and with one year left on his contract, the topic of Cora’s future is beginning to merit a discussion around Fenway Park.
After firing chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom last week, team president Sam Kennedy said he does envision Cora managing the Red Sox in 2024. Cora was noncommittal that day but has, in the days since, echoed that he expects to be back. Boston’s performance in 2024 may dictate Cora’s future, especially considering the team has had back-to-back disappointing seasons and a new baseball operations chief is about to take over. But Cora’s personal goals are at play as well.
Cora, who managed two seasons (2018 and 2019) before leaving the organization while suspended in 2020, then was rehired in November 2020 and is finishing the third season of his second stint, has made it no secret he doesn’t envision himself managing for life. He has talked about how he envisions having a short shelf life in the dugout before moving to another career path. On the latest episode of MassLive’s Fenway Rundown podcast, Cora echoed that sentiment, noting he doesn’t plan on managing for decades.
“I don’t know, win a few championships and then see what the future holds,” Cora said when asked about his future. “My kids (twins Xander and Isander) are 6 and they’re very important to us. I don’t want to be not present in their development as human beings. That’s the most important thing. Yeah, could we move to Boston and be there the whole time? Yeah, but … we love to be around our family. They’re very important. The language thing is important for us to try to keep our roots, and for the kids to understand what it is to be a Puerto Rican. That’s something that I take a lot of pride and we’re going to try to do that as long as possible.
“What the future holds, I don’t know. Like I’ve said, I’m not here to be Tito Francona or Tony LaRussa. I think there’s more in life than just being a manager. We’ll see what happens.”
Cora has long been interested in a front-office role after enjoying stints as the general manager for the winter ball team in his hometown of Caguas, Puerto Rico, as well as Puerto Rico’s World Baseball Classic team in 2017. Early speculation after Bloom’s firing centered around Cora moving up to Bloom’s old seat in a move similar to how Brad Stevens of the Celtics moved from the bench to the front office in June 2021. But Cora threw cold water on that idea over the weekend in Toronto and did again Tuesday.
“Where I’m at right now, I turn 48 next (month), I’ve got one more year of my contract. Let’s see what the future holds,” he said. “But I feel like this is where I belong in the dugout, trying to lead this organization to another championship. That’s my goal right now. Obviously the future is the future, but as a family we feel very comfortable with what we’re doing. It doesn’t give you too much flexibility, but at the same time we’re very comfortable with me being the manager of the Red Sox and everything that comes with it.”
Hired after one year as the Astros’ bench coach in 2017, Cora led the Red Sox to a magical 2018 season, winning the World Series as a rookie manager. The Cora-led Sox then missed the playoffs in a disappointing 2019 before his suspension. In his first year back, the team reached Game 6 of the ALCS. The last two years have produced subpar finishes.
Cora said he has gained perspective since jumping into the managerial chair in 2018 but still loves the job as much as he did back then.
“I’m able to sleep, to be honest with you,” he said. “I understand that you’re gonna go through ups and downs throughout and it’s part of 162, right? Not every year you’re gonna win a World Series championship. Not every year you’re gonna have solid seasons. I’m getting to understand that now.
“When people talk about Fenway Park, you’re like, ‘Oh yeah, this is special.’ It’s still special. We love it. I love it as an individual. I love it as a manager. And my family enjoys it.”
Cora, who is about to work with his third baseball operations chief following Dave Dombrowski and Bloom, believes the future is bright for a Red Sox team that was propelled by many young, controllable players for most of the year.
“You start looking around and you feel good about what we have,” Cora said. “Whoever is gonna run the show next year and upcoming years understands that this is Boston, of course, and there’s gonna be noise and all that stuff. At the end, what matters is this (the majors), and I think we’re in a better place.”
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