Ron Roenicke knew who he wanted to take over as manager of the Boston Red Sox after he and the team parted ways in September.
That man? Alex Cora.
Cora, as you've probably heard by now, was hired by Boston on Friday after serving his year-long suspension. The 45-year-old, of course, managed the Red Sox in 2018 and 2019.
We knew the hiring has current and former players fired up. And now we know Roenicke was hopeful the Red Sox would reunite with Cora after he had a meeting with chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom and general manager Brian O'Halloran.
"I was hoping that he would (return) because I know how I left it with Chaim and BOH," Roenicke said in a phone interview with MassLive's Christopher Smith. "And I told them what I thought about Alex and how good he was. And I thought it would be a good hire for Boston. ... Alex is really good at what he does. And the communication part of it, he’s really as good as I’ve seen.
"For a first-year guy, he (had) great feel. He cares for the guys. And he’s a smart baseball guy. I think probably the role he was in when he played, you learn a lot more. You know more about what happens on the bench. You know about substitutions. And so he learned all that while he was playing. He’s got a good feel for this. And that’s why I know it was too bad what happened there in Houston but I just know what kind of guy he is and how smart he is. And I know he’s going to be a good manager. And he is a good manager."
Roenicke was promoted from bench coach to manager for the 2020 abbreviated season. Boston finished 24-36, good for dead last in the American League East division.
But now it's Cora's team (again), and we'll see how this all pans out come the 2021 season.
