So far, Cora not all talk
One job at a time for new manager
‘I think he’s going to do well . . . . I think that he connects with players, and there’s got to be a trust.’ — DODGERS MANAGER DAVE ROBERTS on Alex Cora
LOS ANGELES — Well, this is a little awkward.
Alex Cora, the next manager of the Red Sox, is right under our noses, he’s in our thoughts, he’s in your prayers and he’ll be in the Astros dugout for the World Series staying completely
RED SOX BEAT Michael Silverman
mum about his next job.
Too much of a distraction, he said all he was going to say for now in the press release, sorry, hope you understand — the two Boston print reporters here heard all the explanations, but not even our considerable charm and knee-buckling good looks could get Cora and the Astros to change their minds came to naught.
We’re all just going to have to wait until Cora comes to town for his Welcome-toBoston press conference to find out what’s been going through his head. He’s had a ton going on, that’s for sure, which when you think about it is a nice little warmup act for what’s going to hit him nearly every day for the next couple of years. His actions will count for far more than his words, but still, it’s going to be great to hear from Cora one of these days.
Until then, the best we can do is scour the Fall Classic to collect clues about what makes Cora tick and whether his qualities will help make him a successful manager. That’s really what anyone cares about, which is why Dodgers manager Dave Roberts is the perfect place to start.
After all, two seasons ago, the Dodgers picked him to be their next manager and Roberts, just like Cora, had no managerial experience. Also like Cora, Roberts is known for being an effortless communicator, a positive clubhouse source, good with both young and old players, and a keen observer of the game.
Roberts and Cora were Dodgers teammates from 2002-04, before Roberts headed over to the Red Sox for a memorable threemonth stint. And now, two years into his Dodgers job, that first-time manager is on the cusp of leading a team to a championship.
So, if Cora won’t talk about Cora, Roberts will. He’s certainly qualified.
“I think he’s going to do well,” Roberts said. “He’s very intelligent, understands the game tremendously. I think that he connects with players, and there’s got to be a trust. He’s a grinder; he likes to work. But obviously until you do it, there’s going to be some challenges as far as managing your time. And it’s considerably different than just being a coach, a major league coach. But the core of understanding the game of baseball, connecting with players, and taking on information and how you sort of get it to the players and the coaches — I think that he’ll do very well. And obviously he played well there in Boston, and has some relationships with certain players that are still there, which I think is a good thing. And I think he’s a great leader.”
Let’s see, who else? Astros right fielder Josh Reddick had Terry Francona as his first big league manager from 2009-11 with the Red Sox, and for the next week or so, he’ll continue to have Cora as his bench coach.
Reddick spoke about Cora, and he spoke quite highly of him. Fans are “going to love him,” said Reddick. And so will the players.
“He’s in there working his butt off, every half inning he was working with us about something, about getting a sign, working on pitching and stealing, every aspect he seemed to cover really well,” Reddick said. “He’s real personal with the players, gets close to you, talks to like he’s a friend — he is a friend. He does that with everybody, treats everybody the same. He’s versatile, he speaks Spanish, he’s got that going for him.”
Don’t expect any Apple Watch sign-stealing fiascos with Cora, either. He can do it himself.
“He’s pretty good at it, he’s been really good at it this year, so we’re going to have to keep an eye on him when we get to him next year,” Reddick said. Cora’s into details. “He’s really good at realizing what pitchers may or may not do when they’re picking or going home for stealing a bag, what pitchers don’t field bunts well — he covers a lot of things, whether guys are bunt threats, first to third threats on a base hit, everything he breaks down into a smaller core to analyze things, he does that so well,” Reddick said. “He lets everyone know. He doesn’t just call a meeting, he goes around one to one and lets everybody know about it.”
It’s a tribute to the Red Sox and their enduring popularity that everyone wants to know everything there is to know about Cora.
Soon enough, it will be all Cora, all the time.
We might as well watch a few more baseball games while we wait.