The Boston Red Sox have fired manager Alex Cora, who led the club to the 2018 World Series title, reports Jeff Passan of ESPN.
Boston is off to a brutal 10-17 start to the season. The club had lost four games in a row before defeating the Baltimore Orioles on Saturday, April 25. The Red Sox also fired hitting coach Peter Fatse, bench coach Rámon Vazquez, and game-planning coach Jason Varitek, per Passan.
Former MLB first baseman Chad Tracy will take over as interim manager. Tracy was most recently the manager for Boston’s Triple-A affiliate, the Worcester Red Sox.
Alex Cora Out As Boston Red Sox Manager After Disappointing Start
Cora took over as Boston’s manager heading into the 2018 season. He took over for John Farrell, who won a title in 2013. The Red Sox had won 93 games in back-to-back seasons when Cora got the job. He was inked to a three-year contract. The club put together a phenomenal season in Cora’s first year, winning 108 games. The organization hadn’t reached triple-digit wins since 1946.
Boston knocked off its hated rival, the New York Yankees, in the American League Divisional Series. The team then moved past the Houston Astros in the American League Championship Series. The Los Angeles Dodgers waited for them in the Fall Classic. The Red Sox largely dominated LA, cruising to a 4-1 series win.
Cora was relieved of his managerial duties in a mutual parting of ways in 2019. He was implicated in the Astros’ sign-stealing scandal. Cora served as a bench coach with the club in 2016 and 2017. The league suspended him through the 2020 postseason for his involvement in the trash can banging debacle. Despite the ban, Boston re-upped with him for the 2021 season. He’s been at the helm for the past five campaigns. Cora led the club to a 92-win year in his first season back with the squad. The team fell in the ALCS that year.
Boston has been stuck in a rut for much of Cora’s second stint as the skipper. The team finished dead last in the American League East in 2022 and 2023. The Red Sox improved slightly in 2024, finishing at an even .500. The group finally put together a winning season last year, going 89-73 to earn a third-place finish in the division. Boston was dispatched by the Yankees in the Wild Card round.
Who Will Take Over For Cora as Red Sox Manager?
Boston has tabbed Tracy as the next man up. The 45-year-old spent parts of nine seasons in the big leagues. He last played for the Washington Nationals in 2013. Tracy was a full-time player when he first debuted with the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2004. He slipped into a part-time role after a few seasons as a regular. Tracy spent time with the Chicago Cubs and Miami Marlins in between his stretches with the Diamondbacks and Nationals.
Tracy got his coaching start in the Angels organization as the manager of Single-A Burlington in 2015. He was a minor league field coordinator in the system from 2018 to 2021. Tracy has served as the WooSox manager since 2022.
Red Sox Fire World Series Winning Manager Alex Cora, Name Replacement