Alex Cora won’t be heading to Philadelphia after all.
The former Boston Red Sox manager was viewed as a natural fit for the Phillies once Boston moved on from him, but that path has now closed. According to Bob Nightengale of USA Today, Cora told Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski that he plans to take the 2027 season off instead of taking the job.
“The Philadelphia Phillies have been spurned again by Alex Cora.
"Dave Dombrowski, Phillies president of baseball operations, spoke with Cora about becoming their manager in 2027, but Cora informed Dombrowski he’s taking the season off, a high-ranking Phillies executive with direct knowledge of their talks told USA TODAY Sports," he wrote.
Cora’s departure from Boston on April 25 opened the door for plenty of speculation that he’d be one of the most sought-after names on the market. Instead, he’s stepping away for a year. The Red Sox, meanwhile, were one of the better teams in Major League Baseball under Chad Tracy after parting with Cora.
There’s also the money still coming Cora’s way. He remains set to receive $7.25 million from the Red Sox in 2027, the final year of his three-year deal.
Philadelphia’s next move is less clear than it looked just days ago. Don Mattingly is still under contract as a bench coach and could return, though he may be disappointed the club isn’t giving him a shot to shed the interim tag after helping turn the season around.
When Cora does decide to come back, he figures to draw plenty of interest from other teams.
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Washington has already shown it can hang with Milwaukee, which makes the broader lesson from this kind of model even more interesting. The Brewers approach, as discussed in analysis from Wilytics, points to offense that keeps improving and a run-scoring profile supported by complementary pieces rather than one expensive solution. For the Nationals, the bigger issue is whether they can find that same kind of balance, the sort that turns a decent payroll into a playoff-caliber roster. [Read more 🡒]