Zolak & Bertrand: “Alex Cora is a flat-out cheater”
Red Sox manager Alex Cora is once again in hot water after anecdotes have surfaced from Evan Drellich’s up-and-coming book, “Winning Fixes Everything: How Baseball’s Brightest Minds Created Sports’ Biggest…
Alex Cora (Photo by Eric Espada/Getty Images)
(Photo by Eric Espada/Getty Images)Red Sox manager Alex Cora is once again in hot water after anecdotes have surfaced from Evan Drellich's up-and-coming book, "Winning Fixes Everything: How Baseball's Brightest Minds Created Sports' Biggest Mess," on the Houston Astros’ 2017 cheating scandal.
According to unnamed sources, Cora had apparently boasted about knowing what opposing pitchers were going to throw when he was bench coach of the Astros. Cora allegedly bragged to Red Sox colleagues that the Astros "stole that [expletive] World Series" in 2017.
On Monday's Zolak & Bertrand radio program—Zolak, Bertrand and Hardy react to the recent reports surrounding Cora.
Book Passage
Apr 20, 2022; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora (13) watches batting practice before a game against the Toronto Blue Jays at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Brian Fluharty-USA TODAY Sports
Show Reaction
Bertrand: I don't want to say the Red Sox were just as involved [in cheating] as the Astros, but they were damn near close. I think it's a reminder that privately Cora is out there telling guys how awesome it was to cheat and how smart he was for doing it.
Then he has to publicly put on a sad face and talk about how much of a tough lesson it was to learn and how wrong it was. I think he was trying to save his own ass and his job, which he succeeded in doing. He is STILL the Red Sox manager.
A.J. Hinch was back quickly too. Those managers haven't even suffered as much as a guy like Carlos Beltran. Beltran was the guy who got hosed in this. There are Hall of Fame voters that don't want to vote for him. He's getting absolutely destroyed in this.
Hardy: There's gamesmanship, there's sportsmanship and there's trying to gain an edge. Then there's flat-out cheating, and you can't have it.
Bertrand: Alex Cora is a flat-out cheater. There is no way around that.
Hardy: This type of thing is right next door to gambling on your own games. It's just the one thing you can't do. These games have to be on the up and up. I don't feel bad for him in that sense. I feel bad that it seems like he's gotten the brunt of the blame.
Milliken's Take
ST PETERSBURG, FLORIDA - OCTOBER 07: Manager Alex Cora #13 of the Boston Red Sox looks on during batting practice prior to Game 1 of the American League Division Series against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field on October 07, 2021 in St Petersburg, Florida. (Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images)
Full Segment
Ryan Beaton is a Producer and Contributor for 985thesportshub.com. You can follow Ryan at @ry_beaton on Twitter.
Listen to Zolak & Bertrand from 10-2 every Monday-Friday on 98.5 The Sports Hub, with hosts Marc “Beetle” Bertrand, Scott Zolak, and Rob “Hardy” Poole. You can listen live in the Sports Hub App and subscribe to their podcasts here. Follow @ZoAndBertrand on Twitter and Instagram to keep up with the show!
