Red Sox tab Roenicke as interim manager
FORT MYERS, Fla. — It took Ron Roenicke almost five years to get another chance as a major league manager. He’ll need to wait at least until next week for “permanency.”
The Red Sox made Roenicke their interim manager Tuesday, promoting the former Brewers skipper to replace Alex Cora on the day Boston’s pitchers and catchers reported for the start of spring training.
Although there is no expiration date on Roenicke’s tenure, the interim tag will stay until MLB completes its investigation into whether the Red Sox engaged in illegal sign-stealing during their 2018 World Series championship season. If the probe clears Roenicke, who has denied being part of any rules violations, he is expected to stay.
“We felt that naming Ron our interim manager was the best way to respect the investigation that’s ongoing into our 2018 club. But we feel very strongly about Ron’s ability to lead this group and how well-suited he is for this task,” chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom said on the eve of the team’s first formal workout.
“We have no reason to think that there is anything that would cause an adverse result for Ron in this investigation. We’re going to respect the ongoing investigation, and we’ll address permanency once it’s complete.”
Just one year after winning the World Series in his first year in Boston, Cora was let go when commissioner Rob Manfred named him as a ringleader behind the Astros’ 2017 illegal sign-stealing. The Red Sox have maintained that there was no similar scheme after Cora took over in Boston the next year.
Manfred said last week that he hoped to have the Red Sox investigation completed before the start of spring training. But a person with knowledge of the probe said the investigation will continue at least into next week.
Roenicke, Boston’s bench coach the last two years, spent five years as the Brewers manager from 2010-15, winning 96 games and the NL Central title in his first season and finishing as runner-up for NL manager of the year. In all, he led Milwaukee to a 342-331 record in five seasons.
“Right away, I thought I would” get another chance, Roenicke said. “But then as years go by you, you kind of wonder about it.”
Odds and ends
Teams improved to 4-0 in salary arbitration this year when Colorado defeated catcher Tony Wolters, who will earn $1.9 million rather than his request for $2,475,000. … Seattle agreed to a minor league deal with former All-Star outfielder Carlos Gonzalez, according to a person familiar with the deal.