The Boston Red Sox have ended their search for a new manager, and they are bringing back Alex Cora.
MLB Network’s Jon Heyman reported on Friday that the Red Sox will re-hire Cora as manager.
Cora was suspended for the entire 2020 season due to his role in the Houston Astros’ cheating scandal. There has been speculation for quite some time that the Red Sox could bring him back, and he was believed to be a finalist for the job for more than a week.
Cora was painted as one of the masterminds behind the Astros’ sign-stealing scheme. He was a bench coach with Houston at the time, but the Red Sox were also accused of committing violations while Cora was manager. Those violations were much less severe and Cora was found to be not involved.
The Red Sox fired Cora after he was suspended by Major League Baseball and promoted Ron Roenicke to manager. Boston finished 24-36 in the shortened season and then fired Roenicke.
Cora won the World Series with Boston in his first year on the job in 2018. Players stood by him after news of the Astros scandal blew up.
After former Houston manager A.J. Hinch was hired as manager of the Detroit Tigers last month, it seemed more likely that Cora would find a job quickly. That job happened to be his old job.
