Alex Cora Addresses Future With Red Sox: ‘I Love This Place’

Red Sox manager Alex Cora hasn’t lost joy in sitting in the manager’s chair in Boston, despite a rollercoaster 2023 season.

Attempting to muster up a last-minute playoff run in a competitive American League Wild Card race, the Red Sox slipped to 7 1/2 games back, on the edge of finishing dead last in the division. Yet, that isn’t affecting Cora’s view on next season. The 47-year-old clarified his stance on remaining with the Red Sox in 2024, while also setting the record straight on his long-term view.

“I love this place, but obviously there’s other stuff that comes into play and things more family,” Cora told Jon Heyman and Joel Sherman on the New York Post’s “The Show” podcast. “I’m 47, I turn 48 next week. I don’t see myself like Tito (Francona) and Tony (La Russa) to manage until 70 whatever. But at one point we gonna have to move on to do something else. … As of now, I enjoy this and it is a challenge.”

Unlike Cora’s debut as Boston’s skipper in 2018, the 2023 campaign presented plenty of challenges to navigate.

Injuries to Chris Sale and Trevor Story were critical, but just the start. The rotation and bullpen weren’t consistent in terms of health or reliability, forcing Cora to get creative at several points throughout the year in order to keep a postseason hunt afloat in the second half.

“Hopefully we can improve the roster with some acquisitions and go for it next year,” Cora said.

With 435 wins in five seasons with the Red Sox, Cora ranks sixth in Boston’s all-time manager wins leaderboard. If that optimism remains in place, perhaps Cora can move up a few more spots before saying goodbye to the dugout and moving on.