Alex Cora isn’t ruling out a return to the dugout.
A few months after the Red Sox moved on from him, the former Boston manager said on Monday night that he expects to manage again someday, even if the timing remains up in the air. Cora made the comments during an appearance with Karl Ravech and Justin Musil on the “Dirt from the Dugout” podcast.
“I’m like, you know what, I needed my family, for how much I love the game,” Cora said. “I’ll say it again, it’s three different feelings: happy for my family, upset that they didn’t let me finish the job and honestly, relieved I don’t have to go through scouting reports and the matrix and talk to the media twice a day and live in the bubble of, ‘We have to do this.’"
He also made it clear he sees another managing job in his future.
“I think at one point, I’m gonna get back. When?
We don’t know. We don’t know."
That’s a notable update after a quiet stretch for Cora following his firing. The Philadelphia Phillies reportedly offered him their manager opening, but he turned it down and decided to take the summer off instead.
Boston’s season has been a roller coaster since the start. The Red Sox opened 2026 expecting to contend in the American League after winning 89 games last season. Cora was back in charge, Roman Anthony came in with enormous buzz and even had some talking about him as a potential 2026 American League MVP, and Garrett Crochet headed the rotation after finishing second in the 2025 AL Cy Young race.
None of that translated right away. Cora and several coaches were fired, Chad Tracy took over as interim manager, and both Anthony and Crochet wound up on the Injured List for months. The Red Sox stumbled badly early, falling as far as 14 games under .500 before completely flipping the script in late June.
Now Boston sits at 64-54, and Tracy has emerged as one of the favorites for AL Manager of the Year.
Cora’s departure stunned plenty of people around the league, especially given how highly he’s regarded as a manager. But Boston clearly felt the season had gone off track, and the organization has since found new life under Tracy. As for Cora, the break appears to have given him what he wanted - time with his family - while keeping the door open for another shot in the near future.
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The appeal is obvious from the Red Sox side: if they are looking for an internal way to inject more offense, Campbell offers a name with upside and some positional flexibility. The challenge is that Boston does not have an easy opening waiting for him, which is what makes this more than just a hot streak in Worcester. Campbell is forcing the organization to weigh present depth against a player who is starting to make a stronger case for another major league look. [Read more 🡒]
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Alex Cora Turns His Red Sox Exit Into A Bigger Debate
Alex Cora spent part of his latest reflection on his Red Sox departure sounding less like a manager looking back on a job and more like someone weighing what the job asks of a person. He said he was happy for his family, even as he admitted frustration over not getting to finish the work he started in Boston. The thread running through his comments was clear: the role in Major League Baseball can be all-consuming, with the constant media demands and scouting responsibilities piling onto everything else.
Cora also made a point of putting baseball in perspective, even while acknowledging how significant it remains. His remarks framed the exit not just as a team decision or a career detour, but as a reminder that life comes with priorities bigger than the game. For Red Sox fans, it was a familiar Cora mix of candor and edge, only this time the bigger debate was less about what went wrong on the field than what the job itself asks of the people doing it. [Read more 🡒]