Bob Melvin knows what it’s like to surprise Major League Baseball fans with how his team performed in 2018.
The Oakland Athletics strung together 97 wins with the lowest payroll in the league. They went on to secure a Wild Card spot, but ultimately lost to the New York Yankees in the one-game playoff contest.
Melvin was awarded for his turnaround of the team by being named American League Manager of the Year, despite many believing Red Sox manager Alex Cora, who led Boston to a season-high 108 wins and a World Series title, would go home with the honors.
The award marked Melvin’s third of his career, so he certainly knows what it takes to be a good manager. And even though the Red Sox aren’t starting the season the way many believed they would, Melvin doesn’t think any less of Cora.
“There’s a great presence that he has over there,” Melvin said, per the Eagle Tribune’s Chris Mason. “You can tell that the players really respond to him. It’s not too long ago that he was playing too. They know that he’s gone through what they’re going through. He handles his team really well.
“It’s a little bit of a different team this year, he’s not afraid to make some adjustments,” Melvin added. “I think he does a terrific job.”
Boston earned its first home sweep of the season against Melvin’s A’s this week, but the task for the Red Sox still is to get above .500 and get back on track.
