Alex Cora has played a prominent role in the epic rivalry between the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees over the last two decades.
First, he lived it as a player with the Red Sox from 2005 to 2008. Now, he’s seen it as a manager during his seven seasons in Boston’s dugout.
While he just missed the rivalry’s peak in 2003 and 2004, he’s still experienced plenty of heated battles with the Yankees, including five postseason games as a manager. Cora’s 4-1 in those contests, leading the Red Sox to a 3-1 ALDS win in 2018 and a Wild Card Game victory in 2021.
Cora’s played and managed well over 100 games against New York, but one in particular stands out. During his press conference on Monday before this week’s AL Wild Card Series against the Yankees, Cora revealed his favorite moment from the rivalry so far.
“Xander (Bogaerts’) homer in ’21, that was the loudest it’s been in Fenway Park,” Cora told reporters. “That was electric. That ball went out and the place went nuts. That’s the one that really gets my attention.”
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Bogaerts’ two-run homer off Gerrit Cole in the bottom of the first ignited Boston to a 6-2 win over New York in the 2021 AL Wild Card Game. It was the team’s first playoff game in three years, and Fenway Park erupted when Bogaerts’ blast cleared the centerfield wall.
The Red Sox cruised to an easy win after striking first in the one-game playoff, knocking out Cole in the third inning and advancing to the ALDS behind a gem from Nathan Eovaldi.
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This marks the first fall that Boston has been back in the postseason since 2021. While Bogaerts and most members of that year’s team are no longer around, perhaps this year’s young group of underdogs can author a new favorite memory for Cora.
Featured image via Rafael Suanes/Imagn Images
