Why Alex Cora’s Mom ‘Hates’ Red Sox Being In Tight AL Playoff Picture

BOSTON -- The Red Sox look at the tight American League wild card standings and see opportunity. Alex Cora's mom just sees family chaos.

The Red Sox have an outside chance at a playoff spot as they try to chase down the Minnesota Twins. That's not the problem. The issue is that the Detroit Tigers, whose third base coach is Cora's older brother Joey Cora, are in the exact same position.

The Red Sox, Tigers and Seattle Mariners all entered Tuesday night with an identical 73-71 record and were all three games back of the Twins for the third and final AL wild-card spot. And realistically, only one member of the Cora family, or none, will see October baseball this season.

"You know who hates it? My mom," Alex Cora said prior to Tuesday's matchup against the Baltimore Orioles. "My mom is hating it right now. Let's see who Iris is actually pulling for. Let's see."

The Red Sox were in control of a playoff spot in mid-July, but lost their spot by stumbling out of the All-Star break with a 20-28 record. The Tigers have clawed their way back into the race and the Mariners have stayed in the hunt in hopes of catching the Twins, who have lost 11 out of their last 15 games.

It was in 2022 that MLB expanded the playoff field and added another wild card team to the postseason mix. That means meaningful games in September for the Red Sox for the first time since 2021.

"I think it's good for the sport, regardless," Cora said. "It’s one of those where they were way back and now they're in the middle of it. Seattle, for the ups and downs, they still have a pretty good team over there. I know they got rid of the manager and the hitting coach and they're playing better. So, there's going to be meaningful games in September and that's what the group wanted, MLB. They have accomplished that. Is it perfect? I don't believe so. I think there's more into it and they can make some adjustments, but these are the rules.

"This is the tournament, like I’ve always said. Three games are three games. Let's be realistic it's three games. We just have to play better. We've been saying that the whole season, but I think people should be excited about it. I mean, before the season started not too may people thought the Red Sox were going to be three games back from making it to the playoffs, regardless of the record. I know we're kind of like at .500, but we're three games back from a playoff spot, so let's embrace it."