Alex Cora Not Impressed By Competition During Red Sox Surge

BOSTON -- Alex Cora has no plans of the Boston Red Sox taking their foot off the pedal. The team is 4-0-4 in series in the month of June and currently sits in a tie for the final playoff spot in the American League.

Playoff races are not decided in June, but staying in that conversation is not something to overlook for the Red Sox in the coming weeks, especially prior to the July 30 trade deadline.

This stretch is critical for the Red Sox regardless, though Cora recognizes the Red Sox have to strike while the iron is hot with several other AL contenders, particularly in the AL East, seeing a decline in recent weeks.

"There's teams ahead of us," Cora said at Fenway Park on Tuesday. "They're not playing good baseball. I know for probably one of them, it's only for five days. There's more out there."

Boston remains out of sniffing distance in the division at eight games back. At the same time, the New York Yankees just got baffled in the Subway Series by the New York Mets to drop them to 2-8 in their last 10 games while enduring a three-game losing skid. The Baltimore Orioles are not dominating as of late either, losing six of their last 10.

Boston also faces competition in the wild-card race from the Minnesota Twins and the Kansas City Royals with those clubs fighting for position behind the AL Central-leading Cleveland Guardians.

The Red Sox will have a chance to create separation and hold their ground in the races with series against the Yankees and Royals prior to the All-Star break.

In regards to both the playoff standings and the upcoming trade deadline, Cora's mindset centers around an aggressive approach for the Red Sox.

"Let's not settle for the third wild card," Cora said. "Let's go higher and see where the season takes us."