The Boston Red Sox have named former bench coach Ron Roenicke their interim manager, leaving many to speculate if they are leaving the door open to bring back Alex Cora next season. As of now, it does not sound like that is the team’s plan.
In an interview with WEEI’s “Greg Hill Morning Show” on Thursday, Red Sox general manager Chaim Bloom was asked if there’s a chance of bringing Cora back depending upon what Major League Baseball’s investigation into the Red Sox’s alleged cheating in 2018 uncovers. Bloom made it pretty clear that Cora’s time with the franchise has come to an end.
“I’ve heard that a little bit over the last couple of days, but that hasn’t even been a thought,” Bloom said. “That’s been out there, but that’s not a consideration. The decision that we made with Alex was a result of the 2017 report (on the Houston Astros), and everything there is still there. I don’t see how anything that’s going on with our organization would change that.”
The part about what Cora did in Houston is the key takeaway. Even if you think Bloom is trying to show he has full confidence in Roenicke and simply does not want to put his new manager in an awkward spot, the fact that he brought up the Astros investigation says a lot. That means Boston no longer wants to be associated with Cora even if MLB determines there was no illegal sign-stealing with the Red Sox during their World Series season two years ago.
All indications have been that Roenicke is likely to shed the interim title after MLB completes its Red Sox investigation, as the team wants to be certain he is not implicated in any way. Even if Cora comes out of that investigation clean, he was basically painted as one of the masterminds behind what went on in Houston. Bringing him back would be highly controversial for the Red Sox.
