Even after rejecting an offer to manage the Philadelphia Phillies less than a week following his dismissal from the Boston Red Sox, the Phillies are still optimistic that the World Series-winning skipper will lead their team next season.
According to USA Today’s Bob Nightengale, “While Alex Cora will be the hottest free-agent commodity this winter, the Phillies are confident that he will be managing their team in 7. Cora also is expected to be wooed by the Houston Astros and New York Mets.”
The Red Sox made the surprising decision to part ways with Cora following a sluggish start to the regular season, despite his two stints as manager covering nearly seven years. Even with Boston’s early struggles, Cora remains highly regarded as one of baseball’s top managers evident by Philadelphia’s immediate offer after moving on from Rob Thomson.
Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski, who previously hired Cora in Boston ahead of their 2018 World Series championship, expressed great respect for Cora even after the rejection.
“We talked about potentially taking the job,” Dombrowski said, per MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand. “I had told him I had really come to the conclusion at that point that if he took it, I was going to make a change. I thought that he might take it, but as time went on over the next day into Monday morning, it was apparent from his perspective that he wanted to take time with his family. I think Alex Cora is one of the finest managers in the game of baseball.”
Though Cora is currently stepping away to spend time with his family after years of managing the Red Sox, it will be intriguing to see if he ultimately joins the confident Phillies next season.
Leave a Reply