Jul 30, 2021; St. Petersburg, Florida, USA; Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora (13) looks on during the fourth inning against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora’s comments fell flat after they were swept by the New York Yankees in a doubleheader on Tuesday.
The Boston Red Sox looked like the favorites to represent the American League in the World Series in the first half of the season. But the franchise has been on the decline so far in the second half of the 2021 campaign, as they not only lost first place in the AL East, but they also got leapfrogged by the New York Yankees following their doubleheader sweep on Tuesday.
After the Red Sox lost the second game by the score of 2-0, manager Alex Cora stressed that the sweep was “not deflating,” saying that it is only two losses.
Alex Cora not stressing Red Sox’s doubleheader sweep by the Yankees
While Cora believes that the doubleheader sweep was just two losses, he may want to look back at their schedule.
Since the July 30 trade deadline, the Red Sox have lost 12 of their last 18 games. The Red Sox played 12 games against division rivals in the postseason hunt during that stretch– the Yankees, Rays and Toronto Blue Jays. Out of those games, the Red Sox lost 10 of them. Hence their free-fall down the AL East standings.
The Red Sox do have the chance to bounce back in the standings, not only with a win against the Yankees on Wednesday, but also with Boston’s next two series coming against the Texas Rangers and Minnesota Twins, both of whom sit near the bottom of the American League standings. If they cannot win those series, it may be time for Cora to officially hit the panic button.