Alex Cora Open to Managing in 2027, Citing Family and Personal Growth

Alex Cora, who was fired by the Red Sox in April, has indicated that he is not ruling out a return to baseball management in 2027. Cora stated in a recent interview that while he has not committed to managing next season, the possibility remains open.

Cora, 51, was let go by the Red Sox after a 10-17 start to the season. He has turned down opportunities to manage the Philadelphia Phillies twice since his dismissal, citing a desire to spend time with his family. He is currently preparing for his wedding and has twins born in 2017, as well as a daughter from a previous marriage.

"I don’t know, man. We have to wait and see. We’ve still got one more year for that, which is great," Cora said on the "Baseball Isn’t Boring" podcast, referring to the final year of his contract with the Red Sox. "If we decide as a family that’s the route we want to take, we’ll do it. It’d be cool to go through the process again, it’d be cool."

He believes that going through the interview process again, should an opportunity arise, would be beneficial for both him and potential employers. "It will help whoever — if I decide I want to go through the process and somebody gives us a chance to interview, it’d be good for them to hear it, how I see it, my values as a manager, understand everything that goes with it and go from there, and they make a decision," he added.

The Phillies, led by president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski, had offered Cora the managerial position. Dombrowski, who had hired Cora in 2017 to manage the Red Sox, a team that won the World Series in 2018, made the offer. Cora initially declined to prioritize family matters and later declined again after the season concluded. The Phillies subsequently appointed Don Mattingly as their manager.

Cora maintains frequent contact with Dombrowski, who was one of the first people Cora consulted after his firing. "I’ve got to be very honest — obviously pride comes into play early on, but then when people that you really care (about) and you love, they fly into Boston and they slow things down, it’s like, OK, we’ve got to make sure we do the right thing," Cora said regarding his conversations with Dombrowski.

Reflecting on his dismissal from the Red Sox, Cora acknowledged the complexities of inheriting a manager like Chaim Bloom and Craig Breslow, but ultimately attributed his firing to the team's poor performance in April. "I got fired because we didn’t pitch in the month of April. It’s as simple as that," he stated.