BOSTON – AUGUST 1: Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora (20) watches from the dugout during the seventh inning as his team teeters on being swept by the Tampa Bay Rays. The Boston Red Sox host the Tampa Bay Rays in a regular season MLB baseball game at Fenway Park in Boston on Aug. 1, 2019. (Photo by Barry Chin/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)
In a shocking turn of events, the Boston Red Sox are looking for a new manager after Alex Cora was implicated in two sign-stealing scandals.
Before Major League Baseball could even hand down a punishment, the Boston Red Sox made the decision to fire manager Alex Cora, who was at the center of the sign-stealing scandal that has turned the baseball world upside-down.
Cora had been a shooting star in the industry, leading the Red Sox to the 2018 title, but became part of two separate sign-stealing investigations. Boston did what they had to do and removed Cora before the league could issue a suspension.
It was the right decision for the Red Sox to part ways with Cora, but that does not make it any easier. Boston now faces a great deal of uncertainty in the clubhouse on multiple fronts. Trade rumors have swirled around MVP Mookie Betts all winter, and the pending sanctions from the league could force their hand on that front. New front office head Chaim Bloom has his work cut out for him.
The Red Sox will have to move on quickly to find the right candidate to manage the team. In some ways, this could turn into a blessing in disguise for Bloom, who now gets the chance to install his first choice at the helm. The Red Sox don’t have to be in an extreme hurry to find their new manager, but these five candidates stand out as the most likely to land the job in Beantown.
Washington Nationals manager Dusty Baker (12) in the dugout before Game 2 of the National League Division Series against the Chicago Cubs at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C., on October 7, 2017. Baker will meet with the Philadelphia Phillies on Wednesday, according to a source with knowledge of the situation, after receiving permission from the San Francisco Giants. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
5. Dusty Baker
Until he unequivocally states that he is not interested in managing in the big leagues, Dusty Baker’s name will continue to be connected with every high-profile job. The 70-year-old Baker still wants to manage and is a players’ favorite. He has had a lengthy career in baseball and has taken all four teams he has managed to the playoffs, including the 2002 NL pennant with the San Francisco Giants.
Baker is a players’ manager first and foremost and has some unconventional methods. There’s no denying that they work, however. Given a talented roster like the Red Sox, there should be no doubt in anyone’s mind that Baker will push the right buttons and have the team ready to contend.