Alex Cora Throws Shade At Red Sox Doubters After Win Over Padres

The Red Sox were not expected to make a playoff push heading into the 2024 season. Now, at the halfway mark, Boston is 44-39 and just barely out of a Wild Card spot.

During the Padres series, the Red Sox started off on the wrong foot, taking two tough straight losses to San Diego. To close out the series Sunday, though, Boston delivered a 4-1 win to bounce back.

"We're a lot better than what people thought," manager Alex Cora told reporters, per NESN's postgame coverage. "So, we'll take that but at the same time we need to keep improving."

The Red Sox made a few mistakes defensively in the win and that left Cora unhappy. While Boston bounced back from what could have been a three-game sweep, Cora wants to continue to see more improvement.

"So, keep developing these guys to be better," Cora said. "The trade deadline is the trade deadline. The standings are the standings and we're going to talk about that of course because that's what people want to hear but at the end, I think we're doing a good job staying in the moment."

After the win, the Red Sox stood 1 1/2 games behind the Kansas City Royals for the third and final wild-card spot in the American League.

The Red Sox will head to Miami for a three-game series against the Marlins starting Tuesday. First pitch from loanDepot Park is scheduled for 6:40 p.m. ET on NESN.