Alex Cora named Red Sox manager

PapaSox

New Member
Dec 26, 2015
230
MA
Not sure how much Alex affected last nights game but if that is the kind of coaching we will see from him then I am happy with the Sox choice for manager.
 

joe dokes

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 18, 2005
30,233
Huge loss...whatever will this team do without him?
For one thing, the new guy could get the staff to improve on their abysmal rankings in ERA and runs allowed, and maybe figure out a way to get the team to pitch fewer innings. They led the league in innings pitched. Getting that number down will be good start for the new guy.
 

soxhop411

news aggravator
SoSH Member
Dec 4, 2009
46,274
For one thing, the new guy could get the staff to improve on their abysmal rankings in ERA and runs allowed, and maybe figure out a way to get the team to pitch fewer innings. They led the league in innings pitched. Getting that number down will be good start for the new guy.

This post is a joke right? have you looked at the Sox pitching stats the last two years?
 

BestGameEvah

Member
SoSH Member
Oct 21, 2012
1,089
We loved Carl in this house!
My son pitched in college and everyone who has a pitcher
knows how stressful THOSE days can be.
Carl always showed his deep & sincere rooting interest for his staff...
As if they were his own boys.
Happy he ended up with such a gem as Tito. Wish him all the best.
 

Rovin Romine

Johnny Rico
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Jul 14, 2005
23,673
Miami (oh, Miami!)
This post is a joke right? have you looked at the Sox pitching stats the last two years?
Staff ERA (with new players arriving) is not the best way to evaluate a pitching coach. The real question is whether the pitching coach did what he could to help/maximize each pitcher, which is something we really can't know. Complicating that, I would think that some excellent/maxed out pitchers don't really benefit from pitching coach A as opposed to pitching coach B. Likewise, some pitchers probably can't really be "fixed" no matter who is pitching coach.

I would guess the Sox need "maintenance" for Price, Sale, Pom, Kimbrel, but need someone to help Porcello and E-Rod take a "next step." I don't know if Porcello and E-Rod are in the 'pitching coach resistant" category or not, but they're clearly the ones with the greatest upside to their performances. That's where the focus should be.

Someone who can deal with players recovering from injury/surgery/TJ is probably going to be a plus, given the staff.
 

joe dokes

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 18, 2005
30,233
Damn shame about Butter. Devers needs a guru out there.
I know what you mean. But after watching the praise heaped on Turner Ward (who I last remember as the Brock Holt of the 90s) as LA batting coach, it sort of reinforces the idea that there a re a lot of good coaches out there.
 

JimD

Member
SoSH Member
Nov 29, 2001
8,681
Nothing against Butterfield and the other coaches, but I'm more than Ok with giving Cora a completely fresh start with his coaching staff.
 

Green Monster

Member
SoSH Member
Sep 29, 2000
2,277
CT
Damn shame about Butter. Devers needs a guru out there.
Best of luck to Butterfield......Not sure where this reputation of him being some exceptional fielding coach comes from. Were the Sox particularly better than other teams with respect to infield defense? Without looking at any data, I would say the right side of the infield was above average but not sure that was because of Butterfield.
 

Mighty Joe Young

The North remembers
SoSH Member
Sep 14, 2002
8,401
Halifax, Nova Scotia , Canada
Best of luck to Butterfield......Not sure where this reputation of him being some exceptional fielding coach comes from. Were the Sox particularly better than other teams with respect to infield defense? Without looking at any data, I would say the right side of the infield was above average but not sure that was because of Butterfield.
He was given lots of props for his efforts with X. And his reputation in the game is one of being an outstanding fielding coach.
 

Green Monster

Member
SoSH Member
Sep 29, 2000
2,277
CT
He was given lots of props for his efforts with X. And his reputation in the game is one of being an outstanding fielding coach.
That is my point........He has a great reputation. What is the reputation based on? I would tend to think it is based on something more than Xander Boegarts. Just a quick look, in 2017 the Red Sox were ranked 23rd in team fielding % and 7th for most errors
 
Last edited:

joe dokes

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 18, 2005
30,233
That is my point........He has a great reputation. What is the reputation based on? I would tend to think it is based on something more than Xander Boegarts. Just a quick look, in 2017 the Red Sox were ranked 23rd in team fielding % and 7th for most errors
One data point: Derek Jeter made 56 errors in A ball. He credited Butterfield with making him competent. (that others rated Jeter as God-like in the majors is besides the point).
 

scotian1

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 19, 2005
16,324
Kingston, Nova Scotia
I have no doubt that Butterfield is a great teacher of infielders and helped many including Jeter. Wade Boggs credited Johnny Pesky with helping him improve as a fielder. I believe that Cora will bring someone on board just as capable.
 

Red(s)HawksFan

Member
SoSH Member
Jan 23, 2009
20,673
Maine
That is my point........He has a great reputation. What is the reputation based on? I would tend to think it is based on something more than Xander Boegarts. Just a quick look, in 2017 the Red Sox were ranked 23rd in team fielding % and 7th for most errors
And they were also 9th best in Total Zone and #1 in baseball in BIS defensive runs saved. All depends on what you put the most stock in.

Butterfield came to Boston with the rep as a great infield coach. Incidentally, the 2012 Jays (Butter's last job before Boston) were #2 in both Total Zone and DRS. In other words, his rep isn't based on the 2017 Red Sox alone.
 

BTU

New Member
Jul 2, 2017
18
Berlin, Germany
So isn't Cora the first minority manager in team history? If so, shouldn't this narrative be a big part of his hiring? And once again, isn't this yet another level of behind-the-curve crap from this organization on minority hires (i.e., in addition to the players themselves)?
Geez, and I thought I could escape the daily barrage of identity politics by reading about baseball. Foolish me.
 

BTU

New Member
Jul 2, 2017
18
Berlin, Germany
Not every prospect is going to play for your major league club, as there are only so many spots to go around. The most important job of the front office is determining which ones are gonna be something, and which are expendable (you can't just keep those guys rotting away in the minors, its best to sell while they have value).

Has anyone traded for Sale, Kimbrel, or Pomeranz gone on to be something yet? You know which prospects have? Devers and Benintendi, who Dombrowski COULD have traded for some shiny toys at any time but showed that he gauged their value differently.

The bluster regarding trading prospects is overstated, trading second tier prospects is EXACTLY what you should do with them. What remains to be seen is if Dombrowski has the abilty to restock the system on the fly.
Agreed. Trade value for prospects would seem to be highest when the hype train is rolling with all fans and media aboard. I cannot imagine how challenging it must be for a GM to hang on to a high-ceiling prospect with faced with the opportunity to trade that potential talent for a proven major league performer.
 

PapaSox

New Member
Dec 26, 2015
230
MA
I'm really trying to understand. So what Cora brings with him from Houston is understanding the multitude of appropriate times to look surprised? I never thought of it that way.
Sorry! My Bad. The fact that Cora did not seem to be surprised by the ebbs and flows of the game was what I should have stated. I will try in the future not to write while I am still trying to wake up from a rare and wonderful afternoon nap.

By the way I am joking. Just having a little fun. I think Cora will be a fine coach because I think it is in his bones. He is one of those few individuals who was born to be a coach. Like Tito, Torre and a very few others. Although, thinking of it as you said does put an odd twist on things.
 

streeter88

Member
SoSH Member
Apr 2, 2006
1,807
Melbourne, Australia
Funny how he was released once the Sox had filled their opening. If he was available I'm sure he would have been part of the process.
Cute. There is the teensy matter of the fact that the Yankees were still playing until the weekend. The Sox had decided on Cora, and were waiting until the ALCS ended to announce it.

Anyway, Cora is a better hire - the feeling out of New York is that Girardi is spent.
 

Auger34

used to be tbb
SoSH Member
Apr 23, 2010
9,271
McAdam mentions Joe Espada, Carlos Febles, and Ricky Bones as candidates for Cora's coaching staff.

https://www.bostonsportsjournal.com/2017/10/26/mets-yankees-coaches-among-alex-coras-targets-looks-build-sox-staff/
I have no idea about the reputations of any of these names listed (I know Carlos Febles is very well respected) but I am not too excited with the idea of basically everyone on Cora's staff never serving in that capacity in the MLB before.
Would have liked for the bench coach to be an experienced guy who has been a manager before
 

joe dokes

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 18, 2005
30,233
I have no idea about the reputations of any of these names listed (I know Carlos Febles is very well respected) but I am not too excited with the idea of basically everyone on Cora's staff never serving in that capacity in the MLB before.
Would have liked for the bench coach to be an experienced guy who has been a manager before
Bones has been a MLB bullpen coach for awhile. They're pitching coach-ish (although clearly not the same responsibility). Espada has been a 3rd base coach for several years in MLB and managed in teh winter leagues. So neither is totally without MLB experience.
Febles was touting Devers's MLB-readiness for awhile. Whether that's a point in his favor, or just makes him captain obvious remains a question. I think he's also considered a solid IF coach, to the extent they're trying to replace Butterfield's alleged skill there.
 

soxhop411

news aggravator
SoSH Member
Dec 4, 2009
46,274
Some coaching news


And:
The Red Sox new coaching staff is slowly starting to take on a more defined shape.

A baseball source indicated Friday that the team has identified Tim Hyers as its first choice to serve as hitting instructor, the role officially vacated Friday when Chili Davis was named to the Chicago Cubs coaching staff.
Davis had filled that role for the past three seasons, but with no promise that he would be retained under new manager Alex Cora, took the opportunity to look around. Davis first interviewed with the San Diego Padres before agreeing to the Cubs offer.

Hyers, 46, is no stranger to the Red Sox organization, having worked as an area scout in the organization from 2009-12 before being made minor league hitting coordinator from 2013-2015. During that time, he also served a short stint as interim major league hitting coach after hitting coach Greg Colbrunn suffered a cerebral hemorrhage.
https://www.bostonsportsjournal.com/2017/10/27/red-sox-targeting-familiar-face-hitting-coach-alex-coras-staff-takes-shape/
 

JimD

Member
SoSH Member
Nov 29, 2001
8,681
Have to like Hyers's familiarity with the younger hitters from his time as minor league hitting coordinator.