Breslow, Red Sox committing to Alex Cora as manager – for now

Now entering June, the Red Sox continue to see their season slipping away with no resolution in sight. After Tuesday's 4-3 loss to the Angels, Boston has a 2-8 record in its last 10 games, and at 29-34 are now 10 games back in the American League East.

"We're going to have to play clean baseball," said Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow, via Chris Cotillo of MassLive. "We're gonna have to start getting big hits and making big pitches if we want to rattle off the wins that we need. It's too late in the season and I think the evidence is too strong to just say, 'We're gonna be OK tomorrow when we wake up.'"

Yet, the Red Sox show up to the ball park on a daily basis with the same subpar system and underperforming roster. It seems like nothing has changed.

The first order of business for Boston should be to bring top prospect Roman Anthony in to the big-league clubhouse, but the Sox still resist making that move. Aside from Anthony to Boston they have very little to look forward to about pieces coming in, so their only other solution is addition by subtraction, namely the dismissal of Alex Cora.

"We have a lot of confidence in Alex’s ability to lead this group," Breslow said, via Cotillo. "That doesn't mean that we don't have conversations every day about what we might be missing or what more we can do.

"We obviously made a commitment to Alex. We’re gonna see that through. Right now, it's about making sure that we're doing everything we can to enable the 26 guys on our roster to help us win as many games as possible."

The Red Sox just signed Cora to a contract extension in July that will pay him $7 million per year through 2027, so of course, they will back him as much as they possibly can. However, this 2025 team has grossly underachieved and Cora has shown a reluctance or inability to handle internal turmoil. As things continue to spiral, it's becoming increasingly difficult to defend his job security.

To that, Breslow said they are considering their options and that conversations are being had. Also, he said they would see the Cora commitment through "right now," but not necessarily for the entirety of the deal.

"I try to be rooted in doing what's best for the team in every decision that I make," Breslow said. "Whether that is a personnel decision, a transaction, a conversation. That’s what will continue to guide us.

"If we get to a place where we feel like shaking something up is the right thing for the team, obviously I need to be prepared to do that. But also, I am not one to scapegoat any individual. We've got 26 guys, we've got a coaching staff that all care deeply about trying to turn this around and making sure we're winning games. My job is to help support that and push that in any way that I can."

Scapegoat or not, something needs to change. The first two months of 2025 may actually be highlighting flaws with Cora that have been there since the start.

Cora is on his third general manager of his tenure. He's managed the Red Sox for seven seasons, but has only reached the postseason twice. He has a 550-485 overall record that is skewed dramatically by a 108-54 season in 2018.

Is it imminent that the Red Sox will fire their manager? No, but if the losses continue, the conversations about his job will as well. In the end, Breslow says he wants change, and barring a miraculous turn around, he may have to create the change himself.

Luke Graham is a digital sports content co-op for 98.5 the Sports Hub. He is currently a sophomore at Northeastern University studying communications and media studies. Read all his articles here, and follow him on X @LukeGraham05.