The Boston Red Sox fired manager Alex Cora after 27 games this season (10-17 record). Since then, Boston is 13-15 and still sits at the bottom of the AL East.
Though there have been some highlights (an 8-0 victory against the Atlanta Braves on May 27, and a three-game sweep against the Detroit Tigers and Kansas City Royals), things have not gone much better for the Red Sox under interim manager Chad Tracy, which highlights the real problem the team is dealing with: the roster isn't good enough, and firing Cora was never going to solve anything.
Alex Cora wasn't the problem for the Red Sox
To put it all out there: 1) yes, there were reports about Cora having tension with Boston's front office that likely negatively impacted the team's performance, 2) outside of 2018 and 2021, Cora was mostly underwhelming as the Red Sox' manager (even Bobby Valentine would've won it all that year with that roster), and 3) firing Cora gave Boston a chance to completely reset its coaching staff and start over.
None of that means he was the problem, though.
On paper, this Red Sox team (particularly its lineup) isn't built to be successful. There are some bright spots (its rotation, the performances of hitters like Willson Contreras, Wilyer Abreu, and Ceddanne Rafaela, and Aroldis Chapman still looks like a dominant closer... when he actually gets the chance to show it). But this team doesn't compete with any of the contending teams in the majors. Not even close.
It all starts with Boston's front office and ownership
"When I arrived in Boston 25 years ago, I was told, 'If you win the World Series in Boston, you'll never have to buy another drink in this town. It doesn't actually work that way."
^^That was a real quote from John Henry, who has officially owned the Red Sox since 2002, during the 2026 Sports Business Awards.
The Red Sox have won four World Series since Henry entered the fold. Do you know how badly things have to become for an entire region (and half of Connecticut) to essentially beg you to sell the team even after four World Series wins? Even Bill Chisholm, who has officially owned the Boston Celtics for less than a year, is held to a higher regard in New England.
It's easy to see why, too. This is the same ownership that will go out of its way to make the team worse just to save a buck. This is the same ownership that thought it would be a good idea to trade a 27-year-old Mookie Betts to the Los Angeles Dodgers (on second thought, maybe it was a good trade... how else was Boston going to get Connor Wong?!). And this is the same ownership that seems allergic to homegrown talent (see: Betts, Rafael Devers, Xander Bogaerts)
Boston's ownership and front office (led by CBO Craig Breslow, who was its Plan Z after so many candidates rejected interviews for the job after it fired Chaim Bloom in 2023) are the real problem. And until that gets fixed, Red Sox fans are going to be stuck watching a middling team while reminiscing over the days of yore.
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