Alex Cora's first season

SouthernBoSox

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The far far easier, and more important, decision was made in the 7th inning.

It's a 2-1 game. Eduardo Nunez puts up a great at bat to get on base and drive Severino out of the game. In comes David Robertson with a runner on first and no outs. He elects to let JBJ hit, which is whatever. Jackie isn't a slow runner and he's a left handed bat, I don't like it, but I can understand (I guess)...

Then comes Christian Vazquez to the plate with a runner on first and 1 out in a 1 run game.

This is Christian Vazquez' line... .196/.253/.239/.492 (!!!!) He is a right handed hitter. He has 3 GIDP. He is 0-4 against Robertson.

This is Mitch Moreland line... .347/.407/.653/1.060 (!!!!) He is a left handed hitter. He has 1 GDP. He has 3 hits and 2 BB in 9 at bats against David Robertson.

The upgrade from Vazquez to Moreland in that scenario is so unbelievably high that just the change alone would have made the winning odds skyrocket.

Not only that, but given the situation the only other time Mitch is going to pitch hit is the 9th. And guess who's pitching that inning? It may be the worst non pinch hit decision I've ever seen. It's something I'll never understand and in doing so Cora lowered his teams ability to win the game.
 

Pozo the Clown

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Moreland isn't a great matchup on Chapman being L on L, but I'd still have a lot more confidence in him than Vaz in that situation. Given that Swihart is a switch hitter and a direct positional replacement, they must truly believe he's got nothing to offer if he doesn't PH there, especially with another catcher on the bench behind him.[/QUOTE
During his weekly interview today on WEEI. Cora said that he didn't pinch hit for JBJ because Chapman had command issues with lefties. So, when it pans out and JBJ gets drilled, HOW does he not PH Moreland for Vaz?!?
 

Red(s)HawksFan

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I know it's small sample size and all that, but Vazquez was 1 for 1 with a walk against Chapman before last night, and the hit was a double during the last series at Fenway. Maybe, just maybe, Cora felt more confident in Vazquez being able to do something against Chapman than Swihart (never faced him) or Leon (0 for 1) or Moreland (0 for 5).
 

jtn46

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My minor gripe would be with Hembree coming into a tie game in the 7th when Kelly was available given he was brought in to clean up Hembree’s mess. Cora was likely thinking Hembree could handle the bottom of the Yankee lineup or maybe Barnes is not trusted in the 8th and Kelly was the intended bridge to Kimbrel. Ultimately Hembree gives up a double to the corpse of Neil Walker and walks Torres and if he deserves leverage he has to pitch better than that, and in May I am ok offering him that test, but I hope in October Cora goes straight to a better reliever there.
 

Red(s)HawksFan

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My minor gripe would be with Hembree coming into a tie game in the 7th when Kelly was available given he was brought in to clean up Hembree’s mess. Cora was likely thinking Hembree could handle the bottom of the Yankee lineup or maybe Barnes is not trusted in the 8th and Kelly was the intended bridge to Kimbrel. Ultimately Hembree gives up a double to the corpse of Neil Walker and walks Torres and if he deserves leverage he has to pitch better than that, and in May I am ok offering him that test, but I hope in October Cora goes straight to a better reliever there.
In a tie game on the road, you don't necessarily follow the same protocol you would with a lead. So if the plan with a lead is Kelly-->Barnes-->Kimbrel when the team is leading, they're not going to do that in a tie game because they don't want to use Kimbrel without a lead to protect.

In that case, I have no problem with Hembree pitching the 7th. He should be able to get through the bottom of their order without trouble, then you go to Kelly (or Barnes) in the 8th and Barnes (or Kelly) in the ninth assuming it's still tied.
 

Dewey'sCannon

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The far far easier, and more important, decision was made in the 7th inning.

It's a 2-1 game. Eduardo Nunez puts up a great at bat to get on base and drive Severino out of the game. In comes David Robertson with a runner on first and no outs. He elects to let JBJ hit, which is whatever. Jackie isn't a slow runner and he's a left handed bat, I don't like it, but I can understand (I guess)...

Then comes Christian Vazquez to the plate with a runner on first and 1 out in a 1 run game.

This is Christian Vazquez' line... .196/.253/.239/.492 (!!!!) He is a right handed hitter. He has 3 GIDP. He is 0-4 against Robertson.

This is Mitch Moreland line... .347/.407/.653/1.060 (!!!!) He is a left handed hitter. He has 1 GDP. He has 3 hits and 2 BB in 9 at bats against David Robertson.

The upgrade from Vazquez to Moreland in that scenario is so unbelievably high that just the change alone would have made the winning odds skyrocket.

Not only that, but given the situation the only other time Mitch is going to pitch hit is the 9th. And guess who's pitching that inning? It may be the worst non pinch hit decision I've ever seen. It's something I'll never understand and in doing so Cora lowered his teams ability to win the game.

I thought the same thing at the time - should have used Moreland there against Robertson.
 

DeadlySplitter

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Hembree was warming up when they were trailing 2-1 in the 6th. no adjustment when they tied it.

to be fair Hembree should be able to handle 7-9 and a struggling Gardner at 1. but he should have been pulled once he walked the #9 hitter after letting the corpse of Walker double

at the same time, isn't Hembree's career splits a ROOGY? so maybe this isn't that surprising.
 

Al Zarilla

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The far far easier, and more important, decision was made in the 7th inning.

It's a 2-1 game. Eduardo Nunez puts up a great at bat to get on base and drive Severino out of the game. In comes David Robertson with a runner on first and no outs. He elects to let JBJ hit, which is whatever. Jackie isn't a slow runner and he's a left handed bat, I don't like it, but I can understand (I guess)...

Then comes Christian Vazquez to the plate with a runner on first and 1 out in a 1 run game.

This is Christian Vazquez' line... .196/.253/.239/.492 (!!!!) He is a right handed hitter. He has 3 GIDP. He is 0-4 against Robertson.

This is Mitch Moreland line... .347/.407/.653/1.060 (!!!!) He is a left handed hitter. He has 1 GDP. He has 3 hits and 2 BB in 9 at bats against David Robertson.

The upgrade from Vazquez to Moreland in that scenario is so unbelievably high that just the change alone would have made the winning odds skyrocket.


Not only that, but given the situation the only other time Mitch is going to pitch hit is the 9th. And guess who's pitching that inning? It may be the worst non pinch hit decision I've ever seen. It's something I'll never understand and in doing so Cora lowered his teams ability to win the game.
I posted in the gamethread about this, but to regurgitate: Cora, when asked after the game if he considered pinch hitting Moreland for Vaz or anybody else, said, "there never seemed to be the exact right time to 'burn' them", meaning use the pinchitters. Oh boy, Moreland for Vaz in the 7th, what better of a time to "burn" a PH could there be? One other thing about Cora, when answering to the press, he has this kind of a little SEG on his face, as if it makes any answer he gives OK. Maybe that's just me. So, where are we on this list:

Enthralled that Dombrowski et al approved of and signed him.

Just a little over a month in, give him a chance!

Jury still out, probably for this year and next.

I already can't stand him. We had Tito, and at another time, Lovullo! Farrell was better!

Too early for any of this of course, have to give a rookie manager a chance. But I think there are some flies on the guy.
 

jon abbey

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the corpse of Walker
Just a nitpick, Walker has indeed been a corpse most of the season but has been NY's most consistent hitter for the last week or so, a .667 OBP in his last six games (5-11 with 6 walks and a HBP) and in the middle of seemingly every big late rally. If I was the manager, he'd be leading off tonight and Gardner would be hitting 9th (well, actually Gleyber would be leading off, but I get that the team seems to think that is rushing him at this point).
 

joe dokes

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So, where are we on this list:

Enthralled that Dombrowski et al approved of and signed him.
Just a little over a month in, give him a chance!
Jury still out, probably for this year and next.
I already can't stand him. We had Tito, and at another time, Lovullo! Farrell was better!
Too early for any of this of course, have to give a rookie manager a chance. But I think there are some flies on the guy.
That's only 5 options, and there are 7 days in a week.
 

rhswanzey

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The far far easier, and more important, decision was made in the 7th inning.

It's a 2-1 game. Eduardo Nunez puts up a great at bat to get on base and drive Severino out of the game. In comes David Robertson with a runner on first and no outs. He elects to let JBJ hit, which is whatever. Jackie isn't a slow runner and he's a left handed bat, I don't like it, but I can understand (I guess)...

Then comes Christian Vazquez to the plate with a runner on first and 1 out in a 1 run game.

This is Christian Vazquez' line... .196/.253/.239/.492 (!!!!) He is a right handed hitter. He has 3 GIDP. He is 0-4 against Robertson.

This is Mitch Moreland line... .347/.407/.653/1.060 (!!!!) He is a left handed hitter. He has 1 GDP. He has 3 hits and 2 BB in 9 at bats against David Robertson.

The upgrade from Vazquez to Moreland in that scenario is so unbelievably high that just the change alone would have made the winning odds skyrocket.

Not only that, but given the situation the only other time Mitch is going to pitch hit is the 9th. And guess who's pitching that inning? It may be the worst non pinch hit decision I've ever seen. It's something I'll never understand and in doing so Cora lowered his teams ability to win the game.
I agree. We have the luxury of carrying an emergency catcher right now and we're unlikely to have it later in the year - although it's worth noting, I suppose, that Houston carried a 3rd catcher in the postseason last year. You don't even have to use Swihart to still be covered in-game in the event of a Leon/Swihart injury. Plus, in an emergency type situation, Holt could probably get us through in a couple innings of a blowout or marathon game even if Swihart wasn't around. You've got to pinch hit for these catchers, especially if you don't really have an option to limit Bradley's exposure to hi lev LH relief. There just aren't a lot of situations you're going to be using this particular bench in - I don't understand letting Vazquez/Leon bat in hi lev late inning spots, at least while Moreland is on fire. I hope Cora adjusts on this.
 

Rovin Romine

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It's not only the luxury of the emergency catcher, it's an emergency catcher who can play an OF spot. Plus we have Holt. With the JD/Hanley/Moreland scrum, you may have one of them on the bench. That's a ton of flexibility - one good PH, many replacement options.

The only weak PH/replacement formulation is a lineup of:
OF: Mookie, Beni, JD
IF: Devers, Nunez, Boegarts, Moreland
DH: Hanley
C: Leon/Vaz

Leaving a bench of: Holt, JBJ, Leon/Vaz, and Swihart.

You can swap, but it depends on one of those 4 having their ducks in a row.
 

Red(s)HawksFan

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It's not only the luxury of the emergency catcher, it's an emergency catcher who can play an OF spot. Plus we have Holt. With the JD/Hanley/Moreland scrum, you may have one of them on the bench. That's a ton of flexibility - one good PH, many replacement options.

The only weak PH/replacement formulation is a lineup of:
OF: Mookie, Beni, JD
IF: Devers, Nunez, Boegarts, Moreland
DH: Hanley
C: Leon/Vaz

Leaving a bench of: Holt, JBJ, Leon/Vaz, and Swihart.

You can swap, but it depends on one of those 4 having their ducks in a row.
Otherwise known as "tonight's lineup".
 

uncannymanny

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So, where are we on this list:

Enthralled that Dombrowski et al approved of and signed him.

Just a little over a month in, give him a chance!

Jury still out, probably for this year and next.

I already can't stand him. We had Tito, and at another time, Lovullo! Farrell was better!

Too early for any of this of course, have to give a rookie manager a chance. But I think there are some flies on the guy.
At some point they’re sure to find a perfect manager.
 

mfried

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Had to dig deep to find the Cora thread. Things must be going well. One thing Farrell did pretty well though was to manage, at least for some series, to have his best starters lined up to face the Yankees. Who knows what will happen, but Pom and Price in games 1 and 2 don’t inspire confidence right now. Maybe Cora doesn’t believe in jerking his pitchers around, or maybe he didn’t want to with the great start. We’ll see what happens.

Edit, another thought, lining up pitchers for a particular series has to be started early, maybe a week in advance, using days off if you have them. Maybe, again, things were going so well Cora didn't want to mess with it.
Pom’s 6 innings in a losing cause were one of the positive surprises of the series.
 

rotundlio

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Cora pushing all the bellybuttons:
NESN said:
“Rafi [Devers], he’s been chasing a lot of pitches lately in the last month,” Cora told Olney. “This week, I asked him, ‘Rafi, what’s your favorite restaurant?’ And he told me. … And I go, ‘OK, let’s make a deal: You give me X amount of money every time you chase a pitch out of the zone, and then I’ll give you a gift certificate from your favorite restaurant if you walk or hit an opposite-field home run.’”

According to Cora, his bet with Devers paid instant dividends.

“Surely enough, that day that we made the deal, he walked for the first time in like three weeks, then he hit an opposite-field home run the next day,” Cora said. “And then he walked the next day, so I found something that motivates him.”

“Hopefully I keep his weight down because I don’t want to get in trouble,” Cora added.
nesn.com/2018/05/alex-cora-found-awesome-way-to-make-rafael-devers-stop-chasing-pitches/
 

Sandy Leon Trotsky

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Does anyone have any serious concern (a la Wil Middlebrooks) about Devers? Personally I don't... but a discussion about him from any points is always enlightening to me. He's a hacker still but he's always had a decent eye- nothing special- but enough to suggest over time his discipline will improve.
I still think the kid's defense will get much better and at some point this season he's going to lock in and beat the snot out of the ball.
I'm still confident that he'll have around 30 HR's for the season and somewhere around an .850OPS for the season, and he'll only get better over the next several years
 

UncleStinkfinger

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Does anyone have any serious concern (a la Wil Middlebrooks) about Devers? Personally I don't... but a discussion about him from any points is always enlightening to me. He's a hacker still but he's always had a decent eye- nothing special- but enough to suggest over time his discipline will improve.
I still think the kid's defense will get much better and at some point this season he's going to lock in and beat the snot out of the ball.
I'm still confident that he'll have around 30 HR's for the season and somewhere around an .850OPS for the season, and he'll only get better over the next several years
Ha, no. Devers is going to be awesome. Just trying to do too much.
 

rhswanzey

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Does anyone have any serious concern (a la Wil Middlebrooks) about Devers? Personally I don't... but a discussion about him from any points is always enlightening to me. He's a hacker still but he's always had a decent eye- nothing special- but enough to suggest over time his discipline will improve.
I still think the kid's defense will get much better and at some point this season he's going to lock in and beat the snot out of the ball.
I'm still confident that he'll have around 30 HR's for the season and somewhere around an .850OPS for the season, and he'll only get better over the next several years
When Middlebrooks was as old as Devers is, he was busy hitting .265/.349/.404 in high A.

I'm with you up until the last bit. He's a high variance guy at his age. If you had said, "I see him settling in long term at these numbers with improving defense", I'd be with you. Obviously he has the upside for even more long term and the raw talent to hit those numbers in 2018, but confident?
 

Hank Scorpio

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What's with us and third basemen driven solely by the acquisition and consumption of food?

In all seriousness though, Devers will be fine, but he's a work in progress. I think he'll shake out to be above average by year's end, but his performance thus far, and his age and inexperience is exactly why you go out and get JD Martinez and not stick Devers in the cleanup spot, "because he's gonna hit like 35 home runs" with half a MLB season under his belt... which many seemed to be advocating this offseason.

JBJ is still far more concerning, as he's seemed incredibly lost all season long. Some signs of life the past couple of days. Hopefully something clicked with him.
 

Reverend

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Middlebrooks didn’t want to wear contacts.

I’m not sure he’s a great comp for anyone.
 

Sandy Leon Trotsky

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I wasn't really making them comps.... was just saying that despite Middlebrooks amazing start to his career with the Sox, there were some obvious signs that pointed out it was a mirage.
I was inquiring if anyone had any insights into something similar. I personally don't see any other than his over agressiveness at the dish but there are signs that he's improving there and yes... is a work in progress.
And no, I do feel confident that he will improve his patience... continue to hit HR's, get more BB's and start to smack some doubles to the opposite field at tough pitches.
 

shaggydog2000

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I wasn't really making them comps.... was just saying that despite Middlebrooks amazing start to his career with the Sox, there were some obvious signs that pointed out it was a mirage.
I was inquiring if anyone had any insights into something similar. I personally don't see any other than his over agressiveness at the dish but there are signs that he's improving there and yes... is a work in progress.
And no, I do feel confident that he will improve his patience... continue to hit HR's, get more BB's and start to smack some doubles to the opposite field at tough pitches.
His K% and BB% are just about the same as JD Martinez. JD has about a 1% advantage on BB%. And almost twice the ISO, but that is an unfair comparison of the best power hitter in the game right now in his prime to a second year guy. Devers has a well below average for him BABIP so far this year. It's .276 this season, while it was .342 in MLB last year, and very high in the minors. The projection systems have him in the .310 to .325 range this year. If you raise his batting average to account for that, his numbers would look pretty good, and I anticipate that his BABIP will normalize and that average will come up. He can be very productive as the batter he is. But Cora, and fans, and the announcers, are right that he chases too many pitches, especially high ones. But he is aware of that it appears. Whether he becomes an average or a great hitter will depend on his ability to develop his selectivity. But considering his age, he's got time to figure it out, and will be a solid contributor while he does.
 

tonyarmasjr

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His K% and BB% are just about the same as JD Martinez. JD has about a 1% advantage on BB%. And almost twice the ISO, but that is an unfair comparison of the best power hitter in the game right now in his prime to a second year guy. Devers has a well below average for him BABIP so far this year. It's .276 this season, while it was .342 in MLB last year, and very high in the minors. The projection systems have him in the .310 to .325 range this year. If you raise his batting average to account for that, his numbers would look pretty good, and I anticipate that his BABIP will normalize and that average will come up. He can be very productive as the batter he is. But Cora, and fans, and the announcers, are right that he chases too many pitches, especially high ones. But he is aware of that it appears. Whether he becomes an average or a great hitter will depend on his ability to develop his selectivity. But considering his age, he's got time to figure it out, and will be a solid contributor while he does.
Speaking of JD, I really hope (and believe) as some of these guys see the success he has going the other way that it sinks in with them just how much of a better hitter they could become with that kind of approach. If Devers can unlock opposite field power, he'll be a monster.
 

Reverend

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Sounds like the theory that Alex Cora and DD were on the same page and Cora was batting him #3 to give him a chance is the correct one based on the press conference dialogue. This shines positive light on Cora too...he gave the guy a real chance to succeed in the middle of the top half of the order which has generally been mashing all year around him. But when it started to become obvious that Hanley was cooked, he wasn't afraid to cut bait.
What do we expect to see Cora do with the team now that Hanley has been DFA'd?

Hanley wasn't hitting, but he appeared to be a big, BIG part of the clubhouse. Not Big Papi big--who could be?--but he was the guy that Ortiz had been grooming to be "the clubhouse guy" after he was gone.

And we saw how the team just deflated with Papi gone [Note: It occurs to me that my uncle used to tell me how the old Minnesota team "deflated" after they DFA'd Ortiz--I think that was even the word he used.]. I've been of the mind that Cora has been going to JoKe to be one of the clubhouse guys, and that seems to have been going well on all fronts--heck, maybe that's part of what's been helping his performance too?

Pedroia back, Hanley gone. Cora seems to be a master of spirit management--what do we think we might see going forward?
 

joe dokes

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What do we expect to see Cora do with the team now that Hanley has been DFA'd?

Hanley wasn't hitting, but he appeared to be a big, BIG part of the clubhouse. Not Big Papi big--who could be?--but he was the guy that Ortiz had been grooming to be "the clubhouse guy" after he was gone.

And we saw how the team just deflated with Papi gone [Note: It occurs to me that my uncle used to tell me how the old Minnesota team "deflated" after they DFA'd Ortiz--I think that was even the word he used.]. I've been of the mind that Cora has been going to JoKe to be one of the clubhouse guys, and that seems to have been going well on all fronts--heck, maybe that's part of what's been helping his performance too?

Pedroia back, Hanley gone. Cora seems to be a master of spirit management--what do we think we might see going forward?
I would guess that Cora, *appearing* to being somewhat less deadly-serious than Farrell, sees "leadership" in a different light than Farrell.
Hard to tell from where we sit, but I think that Holt appears to be good at keeping things light, in the same vein as Kelly. Perhaps that's one reason -- aside from potential usefulness -- that Cora gave him so much rope to determine whether he could still be a multiple position, 80-100 OPS+ player. Maybe he's Cora's kind of "clubhouse guy." Hanley was more visible day-to-day, but a lot of leadering probably goes on far from prying eyes. Pedroia might be handy to kick some ass when needed, but a team needs people who will chop and burn a slumping player's bat, too.
 

Al Zarilla

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Had to dig pretty deep to find this thread...May 29 last post. Having lived through many message board threads where “Francoma” and Bruce “Botchy” (I had a strong second team love for a while) showed up frequently, even in World Series winning seasons, Cora seems to be getting off lightly. Last night bringing in a guy in his first appearance of the year late in a tie game looked rather stupid. Using a bad fielder, and this year also a bad hitter, Eduardo Nunez as an everyday player, that’s pretty bad. Not a lot of choices with Pedroia out, but Nunez has almost twice the plate appearances as Brock Holt, who’s having a good year. Maybe they’re going kid gloves with Brock because of his problems in recent years. Better be because Nunez is 156th out of 160, overall MLB players this year. That is the bottom of the barrel.

Hard to quantify, but Cora also seems kind of flighty during post game interviews. Maybe he’s asked why he made some decision and he smiles and says just because. So, he smiles nicely, but give us a valid reason. I think he’s getting better at this though, and recalling all situations and giving a reason for what he did.

It’s really hard finding a really good manager. Maybe we have one, maybe we don’t.
 

grimshaw

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Scott's sole job is to get lefties out. Not just crappy lefties once he's settled in. Good ones. If he isn't put into a position to do that, then he doesn't belong on the roster.

I can see the argument that Kelly could have just started the 8th - he has been excellent against lefties this year though terrible in his career- but Scott was put in a situation where he could succeed.
 

DeadlySplitter

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he tomahawked another game's chances tonight leaving in Wright way too long. definitely his worst week so far as a manager.
 

DeadlySplitter

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^ yeah. just because we won doesn't mean he made it much harder.

just start Johnson in the 3rd or give Wright 2 more baserunners total, instead of going all the way to Cruz in the 4th. Wright had zilch tonight, Johnson was a much better option (which panned out in the middle innings).

look, the long-term hitting approach and the change in clubhouse culture, whatever "intangibles" you want to say, are positives that far outshine anything else so far. he's been the right choice. but tha'ts two fuck-ups for Cora in 4 games on a baseball game management level. rookie pains I hope.
 

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I've had almost no complaints about the manager this year, but bringing in Kelly for the 8th last night after Workman was a swing and miss machine in the 7th on just 15 pitches made no sense to me. Kelly had pitched poorly the night before so bringing him in last night means you can't use him against the NYY tonight (maybe that was the idea?), and he got hit HARD. Benintendi with that great catch against the Wall and Mookie had a line drive hit right at him saved Kelly and Cora from themselves
 

joe dokes

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I've had almost no complaints about the manager this year, but bringing in Kelly for the 8th last night after Workman was a swing and miss machine in the 7th on just 15 pitches made no sense to me. Kelly had pitched poorly the night before so bringing him in last night means you can't use him against the NYY tonight (maybe that was the idea?), and he got hit HARD. Benintendi with that great catch against the Wall and Mookie had a line drive hit right at him saved Kelly and Cora from themselves
For whatever reason, he hasn't used Workman for more than an inning yet. (24 pitches max). I agree that last night would have been a good spot to give it a shot. Maybe the walk to Calhoun, and 15 pitches/7 strikes spooked Cora with the meat of the order due in the 8th.
 

tims4wins

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Yeah I have no complaints about using Kelly last night. It was 2-3-4 coming up in a 4-1 game. That's when you use your A guys. In a perfect world Kimbrel would have pitched the 8th but it's not a perfect world.
 

soxhop411

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Cora finally explains the game plan the Astros had Against Sale in the playoffs last year

KANSAS CITY -- Red Sox manager Alex Cora has said multiple times this season Chris Sale still had "good stuff" in the 2017 ALDS when the Astros rocked him in Game 1.

Sale allowed seven runs, all earned, nine hits (three homers) and one walk while striking out six in 5 innings at Minute Maid Park. He took the loss as Boston lost 8-2 to Houston in Game 1.

"They had a good game plan going on," said Cora who served as Astros bench coach in 2017. "We looked at two starts, only two starts. It was the Cleveland starts. And we decided inside we were not going to offer. And now he's painting inside so you can't do that. That's why I'm able to say it. We decided to split the plate in half and look away and it worked.

"Finally, huh?" Cora added as it marked the first time he revealed the Astros' game plan vs. Sale.
https://www.masslive.com/redsox/index.ssf/2018/07/alex_cora_reveals_astros_game.html
 

Al Zarilla

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Dec 8, 2005
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Cora finally explains the game plan the Astros had Against Sale in the playoffs last year


https://www.masslive.com/redsox/index.ssf/2018/07/alex_cora_reveals_astros_game.html
Don’t get me wrong, I like Cora a lot over Farrell as Red Sox manager, but he continues to be a digital guy. Something is either all correct or all wrong (swinging early on a pitcher rather than seeing a few pitches; only swing if the ball is over one half of the plate). I guess he’s a KISS guy. Working so far/not complaining, just observing.
 

reggiecleveland

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I will point out a positive. A few times Kimbrel has been up and then the Sox have scored and he did not bring him in, JF had his "if he warms up I am bringing him in" policy.
 

Rasputin

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I think bringing Porcello out for that last inning was questionable and leaving him in to finish doubly so.
 

joe dokes

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I think bringing Porcello out for that last inning was questionable and leaving him in to finish doubly so.
I was surprised when he started the 7th. But the mound visit suggested to me that there was something to it beyond stealing outs.
 

soxhop411

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Dec 4, 2009
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I was surprised when he started the 7th. But the mound visit suggested to me that there was something to it beyond stealing outs.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Alex Cora hit the top step of the dugout intending to take Rick Porcello out of the game. The dreadful Kansas City Royals had runners on second and third with no outs in the seventh inning and were a swing away from getting back in the game.

“I’ve got this,” Porcello shouted as Cora approached.

He repeated that phrase several times until Cora was convinced to leave his starting pitcher in the game.

Cora has heard that before from starters in his nascent managerial career. He has learned to listen more to the tone than the words.
“There was conviction behind it,” Cora said. “All the credit goes to him. He changed my mind.”
https://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/redsox/2018/07/08/rick-porcello-keeps-red-sox-rolling-sweep-royals/q8a5JyTo4GbD4Jv5oF1GOO/story.html
 

BaseballJones

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Oct 1, 2015
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The Sox last year won 93 games with a mediocre offense.

This year they have one of the best offenses in baseball and they're on pace to win 110 games.

How much of this is a credit to Cora? How e handles the players and clubhouse. The launch angle stuff. His tactical moves. All of it. Or would JF be getting similar results?
 

strek1

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Jun 13, 2006
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I was surprised when he started the 7th. But the mound visit suggested to me that there was something to it beyond stealing outs.
It must have meant that Cora had a premonition that KC batters were going to fish for really bad pitches. If he tries that against a better team Porcello probably never gets through the inning.
 

glasspusher

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Jul 20, 2005
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The Sox last year won 93 games with a mediocre offense.

This year they have one of the best offenses in baseball and they're on pace to win 110 games.

How much of this is a credit to Cora? How e handles the players and clubhouse. The launch angle stuff. His tactical moves. All of it. Or would JF be getting similar results?
I might be missing something, but to me, I find a manager's job to be more in handling pitchers than hitters. I don't think any manager would have the effect on the hitting as much as JDM and Mitchy Two Bags have had this year.

Players and clubhouse? Who knows? I could see Cora better in there than Farrell, but I don't know.
 

DeadlySplitter

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Oct 20, 2015
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I didn't like the move but Rick had been handling Moose/Duda all day, which I think helped the decision.

Bonifacio K-ing on a high fastball was the surprise to me, he had hammered a 2-run double earlier in the day.

I also agree he doesn't try any of this shit if it wasn't the worst team in the league