Cora got a great view of the Boston media
when he was Manny's closest buddy in 2008 when Manny was traded during that media circus.
"Cora likened those days to the ones before the New York Mets fired Willie Randolph as manager, when every question to every player every day revolved around what might happen to Randolph.
"Same thing here," Cora said. "We were getting our [butts] kicked by Anaheim and the Yankees, and everybody was pointing the finger at Manny."
It got so ridiculous, Cora said, that teammates had to answer when the Boston media determined Ramirez had run too slowly to first base on one particular double play."
Mike Lowell says Cora had a great positive impact on Manny and his unique personality:
"You had Manny, who was a superstar, and you had Alex Cora, who was basically our backup infielder. Both of them took their crafts very seriously. I enjoyed the talks we had, because you saw different angles. I think Alex Cora doesn’t get enough credit for how much of a positive influence he was on Manny. He would say things like, ‘Hey, you’re the man and you have to carry us and do this and that,’ and stuff like that. Manny liked that, and you have to work those personalities. Alex was great at that."
Cafardo says Cora is also candidate for 3 other jobs:
"Cora is a hot commodity. He’s received a high profile for his work with the Astros, but has been hurt by the Astros’ policy of not allowing coaches to speak to the media. Cora would be an interesting choice for a team that has a big Latino presence. Cora will also draw interest from the Phillies and Tigers."
Hinch big-ups his bench coach and says he could interview for managing jobs during the playoffs:
"I'm happy for him that his name is being talked about," Astros manager A.J. Hinch said. "It's no surprise. It's very talented. He's interviewed for a few jobs before. He's equipped to handle this job whenever somebody sees him as a fit. His relatability skills to players, his baseball intellect, all impressive. His transition to coaching has gone well and I think his name will always be in the middle of the conversation until the right fit is found. But he will manage. Not a doubt in my mind."
Cora has previously interviewed for openings with the Rangers, Padres and D-backs. Adding a year of experience as the bench coach on a 100-win team -- a team that's deep into analytics -- only makes Cora more appealing.
Cora wasn't made available to be interviewed by reporters, but Hinch said he'd expect Cora to be able to interviewed for any managerial openings while continuing his duties with the Astros, who are preparing for a possible long run in the playoffs. Teams would have to ask the Astros for permission to interview Cora.
"I trust him to be prepared, trust him to be able to handle it," Hinch said. "He can compartmentalize very, very well. If anybody ever asks for permission, we'll have to handle it depending on what we're doing, where we're at, what his timeline is. Regardless of whether he would have conversations about potentially being the manager somewhere or not, when he shows up to the ballpark he's ready to go and prepared. I have the utmost trust he's going to have his attention here."