2026 Red Sox/MLB Season Thread

[Phantom255x]

WOW!!! (confirmed by Passan and others too)

https://x.com/tylermilliken_/status/2048174943347642601

The Red Sox have fired Alex Cora, Pete Fatse, Ramon Vazquez, Jason Varitek, and Kyle Hudson, per @Jared_Carrabis. Massive changes to the coaching staff after only 27 games. Craig Breslow does something that Bloom never got to do.

It had to be done. Cora will find a job elsewhere I'm sure of it, maybe even quickly. But still, Breslow being around is a bummer and unless they change the spending + roster building philosophy it'll still be more of the same. But still, it had to be done, I'm not complaining. Keeping it status quo wasn't gonna work

[Goldstar88]

Sox fire Cora. Wow. Thought that Varitek would take over, but I guess not. Is Breslow going to be the team manager and GM? 

[Vermont Green]

Hard to imagine that Cora is the problem. 

[mef730]

Last one out, turn off the lights. Freaking Red Wedding at Fenway.

[ozgod]

Sox fire Cora. Wow. Thought that Varitek would take over, but I guess not. Is Breslow going to be the team manager and GM? 

Chad Tracy has the whole summer to audition for the job.

[ozgod]

WOW!!! (confirmed by Passan and others too)

https://x.com/tylermilliken_/status/2048174943347642601

The Red Sox have fired Alex Cora, Pete Fatse, Ramon Vazquez, Jason Varitek, and Kyle Hudson, per @Jared_Carrabis. Massive changes to the coaching staff after only 27 games. Craig Breslow does something that Bloom never got to do.

It had to be done. Cora will find a job elsewhere I'm sure of it, maybe even quickly. But still, Breslow being around is a bummer and unless they change the spending + roster building philosophy it'll still be more of the same. But still, it had to be done, I'm not complaining. Keeping it status quo wasn't gonna work

The fish rots from the head down. John Henry has become like Josh Harris of the Sixers - a portfolio owner who is more interested in the Sox's ROI than their playoff appearances.

[Goldstar88]

WOW!!! (confirmed by Passan and others too)

https://x.com/tylermilliken_/status/2048174943347642601

The Red Sox have fired Alex Cora, Pete Fatse, Ramon Vazquez, Jason Varitek, and Kyle Hudson, per @Jared_Carrabis. Massive changes to the coaching staff after only 27 games. Craig Breslow does something that Bloom never got to do.

It had to be done. Cora will find a job elsewhere I'm sure of it, maybe even quickly. But still, Breslow being around is a bummer and unless they change the spending + roster building philosophy it'll still be more of the same. But still, it had to be done, I'm not complaining. Keeping it status quo wasn't gonna work

The fish rots from the head down. John Henry has become like Josh Harris of the Sixers - a portfolio owner who is more interested in the Sox's ROI than their playoff appearances.

Totally agree. Cora made some comments recently about how teams are paying players based on potential alone and that he didn?t really agree with the philosophy. This is exactly what the Sox are doing. They are playing moneyball and I don?t think that?s what Cora signed up for. Bregman was his guy too, so I think Henry not wanting to pay him was an issue as well. This firing seems personal considering how few games into the season they are. Didn?t give Alex a chance to right the ship. 

[Redz]

Their timing is weird. I know it?s just one game but the offense erupted and Crochet looked like Crochet yesterday. The start is the start, I get it.  They?re just not the most optics aware franchise at the moment.  Last year trading Devers after a big sweep in NY was similar. 

Maybe I?m reading too much into it. 

A shake up was needed.

[Goldstar88]

Sox have played 27 games out of 162. They won 17-1 yesterday and are 3.5 games out of a wildcard spot. I mean, Toronto isn?t doing much better with 11 wins on the season. Why haven?t they fired their manager?

This is what Olney had to say:

Boston had underperformed early in the season, certainly, but this firing has shocked many around the industry because of its timing and because of Cora's stature among managers. One rival evaluator: "How does firing one of the best managers in the game make it better?" An hour after Saturday's game, the Boston coaching staff was about to follow through on plans to go to dinner, but Cora then texted the group that something came up -- and a number of those on the text chain were fired.

This is a full flex by Craig Breslow, head of baseball operations for the Red Sox. He didn't hire Cora, and now he is firing him. In the long and storied Red Sox "Game of Thrones" in owner John Henry's tenure, Breslow comes out on top; this is his organization, unequivocally.

For years, Cora was the most powerful person in the organization. But with last year's success, sources within the Red Sox organization felt that Breslow had built a productive relationship with Henry. What's interesting about the timing of Breslow's increase in power is that the general perception of how he has done his work outside of the organization is not good -- his personal disconnect with Rafael Devers last year before the trade, the choices made with the Devers deal and with the players acquired in it, the failed negotiations with Alex Bregman, the pricey deal for Ranger Suarez and the apparent lack of power in the every-day lineup. But with Cora gone and unproven manager Chad Tracy promoted, the success or failure of the Red Sox will belong to Breslow; it will be his and his alone. As one rival exec noted about Breslow after the Cora firing: "I have to give him credit for his conviction."

[Vermont Green]

Totally agree. Cora made some comments recently about how teams are paying players based on potential alone and that he didn't really agree with the philosophy. This is exactly what the Sox are doing. They are playing moneyball and I don't think that's what Cora signed up for. Bregman was his guy too, so I think Henry not wanting to pay him was an issue as well. This firing seems personal considering how few games into the season they are. Didn't give Alex a chance to right the ship.

I had forgotten about that comment by Rosenthal quoting Cora:

​"But Alex Cora was talking to us about this today and he said the dynamic changes, though," Rosenthal said. "It changes when you have a number of players under those kinds of deals. And that's what the concern can be for some of these teams."

Cora responded later as follows:

"You know what? I think it's f****** bull**** to be honest with you," Cora said pregame, per MassLive's Chris Smith. "There's conversations about the Red Sox, there's conversations about the industry. I was an ex-player, and it's a lot different compared to what's in the past. So I know the dynamics of the business right now and ? this is what we're working for. It's not that ? now it's harder or not harder.​

"It's the dynamics of the business. It's a great business model. It is. Because you wanna keep your pieces as long as possible, as young as possible, and develop them. That doesn't mean that it's a bad product, or it's a bad roster or it's a bad team.  It's a different structure than in the past. And you have to deal with other stuff. It doesn't make it harder. It doesn't make it harder or 'Oh, it's so uncomfortable now to manage in the big leagues.' No, it's just different because there's a lot of young people here that you have to keep teaching the game."

It does not seem to me that this alone would be enough to get him fired but it may be that this was an indication of a broader philosophical difference between Cora and Management/Ownership.  This may have a part of the issue and maybe a large part of the issue.

[Roy H.]

Totally agree. Cora made some comments recently about how teams are paying players based on potential alone and that he didn't really agree with the philosophy. This is exactly what the Sox are doing. They are playing moneyball and I don't think that's what Cora signed up for. Bregman was his guy too, so I think Henry not wanting to pay him was an issue as well. This firing seems personal considering how few games into the season they are. Didn't give Alex a chance to right the ship.

I had forgotten about that comment by Rosenthal quoting Cora:

​"But Alex Cora was talking to us about this today and he said the dynamic changes, though," Rosenthal said. "It changes when you have a number of players under those kinds of deals. And that's what the concern can be for some of these teams."

Cora responded later as follows:

"You know what? I think it's f****** bull**** to be honest with you," Cora said pregame, per MassLive's Chris Smith. "There's conversations about the Red Sox, there's conversations about the industry. I was an ex-player, and it's a lot different compared to what's in the past. So I know the dynamics of the business right now and ? this is what we're working for. It's not that ? now it's harder or not harder.​

"It's the dynamics of the business. It's a great business model. It is. Because you wanna keep your pieces as long as possible, as young as possible, and develop them. That doesn't mean that it's a bad product, or it's a bad roster or it's a bad team.  It's a different structure than in the past. And you have to deal with other stuff. It doesn't make it harder. It doesn't make it harder or 'Oh, it's so uncomfortable now to manage in the big leagues.' No, it's just different because there's a lot of young people here that you have to keep teaching the game."

It does not seem to me that this alone would be enough to get him fired but it may be that this was an indication of a broader philosophical difference between Cora and Management/Ownership.  This may have a part of the issue and maybe a large part of the issue.

It could be.  Mostly I think they were just looking for a scapegoat.