Share: FB Share X Share Reddit Share Reddit Share
Alex Cora

1924

In the American League Division Series, the Red Sox eliminated the New York Yankees, three games to one, and advanced to the American League Championship Series. Cora received his first postseason ejection on October 13, in Game 1 of the ALCS against the Houston Astros. He was ejected by home plate umpire James Hoye between the fifth and sixth innings for arguing balls and strikes. On October 18, Cora's 43rd birthday, the Red Sox defeated the Astros, 4–1, to win the ALCS in five games. The Red Sox then defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers in the World Series in five games to give Cora his first championship as a manager and third overall. Cora became the fifth rookie manager to win a World Series, the others being Bob Brenly in 2001, Ralph Houk in 1961, Eddie Dyer in 1946, Bucky Harris in 1924. In voting for the AL Manager of the Year Award, Cora finished second to Bob Melvin of the Oakland Athletics.

October 18, 1975

Jose Alexander Cora (born October 18, 1975) is a Puerto Rican professional baseball manager and former infielder who is the manager of the Boston Red Sox in Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played in MLB for 14 seasons with the Red Sox, Los Angeles Dodgers, Cleveland Indians, New York Mets, Texas Rangers, and Washington Nationals. After retiring as a player, Cora served as the bench coach for the Houston Astros when they won their first World Series title in 2017. Cora was named Boston's manager the following season, winning a franchise-best 108 games and leading the team to victory in the 2018 World Series. He is the fifth MLB manager to win the World Series in his first season and the first Puerto Rican manager of a World Series-winning team.

1996

Cora was drafted in the 12th round of the 1993 Major League Baseball draft by the Minnesota Twins, but did not sign a contract and decided instead to play collegiate baseball at the University of Miami. While there, Cora was named to the College World Series all-tournament team in both 1995 and 1996. He led the team to the title game in 1996, a game they lost to Louisiana State University.

June 07, 1998

Cora made his major league debut on June 7, 1998, with the Dodgers against the Seattle Mariners; his brother Joey Cora was Seattle's starting second baseman in the game. Cora spent the next seven years in Los Angeles, appearing in a total of 684 games while batting .246 with 27 home runs and 173 RBI. During his time with the Dodgers, he played at second base and shortstop. During the 2000 and 2001 seasons, Cora mostly played shortstop as the Dodgers moved the aging Mark Grudzielanek to second base. With the emergence of César Izturis in 2002, and the trade of Grudzielanek to the Chicago Cubs in December of the same year, Cora spent the rest of his stint with the Dodgers as their primary second baseman.

October 05, 2001

Cora played in the two longest nine-inning games in MLB history. The first was a 4-hour, 27-minute game on October 5, 2001, between the Dodgers and the San Francisco Giants. The second game, and the longest on record, was a 4-hour, 45-minute game on August 18, 2006, the second game of a doubleheader between the Red Sox and the New York Yankees. Cora entered the 2001 game as a defensive replacement in the eighth inning, and was the starting shortstop in the 2006 game.

May 12, 2004

He has the record for longest at-bat for a Dodger, where on May 12, 2004, against pitcher Matt Clement, he fouled off 18 pitches, then hit a home run.

May 12, 2004

With the Dodgers on May 12, 2004, Cora had an 18-pitch at-bat against Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Matt Clement. Facing a 2–1 count, Cora fouled off 14 straight pitches before finally hitting a home run. As of 2024 , it is tied for fifth place among the longest at bats since 1988, when statisticians began tracking pitch counts. Of the longest five at bats (including ties), Cora's is the only one that resulted in a hit. So much time elapsed during the at bat that Cora's brother Joey joked that he and a friend were watching the game at a restaurant, ordering their first beer during the first pitch, and by the time Cora homered they were "so drunk that we had to call a cab to take us home."

January 18, 2005

On January 18, 2005, Cora signed as a free agent with the Cleveland Indians. He appeared in 49 games with the Indians, with 22 starts at shortstop and 14 at second base; he batted .205 with a home run and 8 RBI. On July 7, 2005, Cora was traded to the Boston Red Sox for infielder Ramón Vázquez.

July 07, 2005

Cora made his Red Sox debut on July 7, 2005, and through the end of the regular season appeared in a total of 47 games for Boston, batting .269 with two home runs and 16 RBI. In the 2005 ALDS, which Boston lost to the Chicago White Sox in a three-game sweep, Cora played in one game as a defensive replacement, without a plate appearance.

December 2005

Cora was originally intended to back up shortstop Édgar Rentería. With the trade of Rentería to the Atlanta Braves in December 2005, Cora was being eyed to take the position of starting shortstop, until the Red Sox acquired Álex González in February 2006. For the 2006 season, Cora appeared in 96 games, batting .238 with one home run and 18 RBI.

October 30, 2008

On October 30, 2008, Cora became a free agent. In his four seasons with Boston, he appeared in 301 regular season games, batting .252 with six home runs and 61 RBI.

January 22, 2009

On January 22, 2009, Cora signed a one-year deal with the New York Mets. During the 2009 season, he appeared in 82 games, batting .251 with one home run and 18 RBI. On November 30, 2009, Cora re-signed with the Mets for the 2010 season, with an option for 2011. He was released by the Mets on August 7, 2010 — at the time, he was batting .207 with no home runs and 20 RBI, having played in 62 games of the 2010 season. In his time with the Mets, Cora appeared in a total of 144 games, with a .234 batting average, one home run, and 38 RBI.

August 17, 2010

On August 17, 2010, Cora signed a minor league contract with the Texas Rangers, and was assigned to their Triple-A affiliate Oklahoma City, where he appeared in six games, batting 4-for-22 (.182). He then played four games for the Rangers, batting 2-for-7 (.286). The Rangers released Cora on September 7. Despite his limited time with Texas, the team later rewarded him with an AL Championship ring.

January 2011

In January 2011, the Nationals signed Cora to a minor league contract. During the 2011 season, he appeared in 91 games for Washington, batting .224 with no home runs and 6 RBI. Cora's final MLB appearance was with the Nationals on September 28, when he tripled as a pinch hitter against the Florida Marlins.

February 05, 2012

Following the 2011 season, Cora played winter baseball in Puerto Rico, after which he announced his retirement; shortly thereafter he clarified that he was retiring only from winter baseball. He agreed to a minor league contract with the St. Louis Cardinals on February 5, 2012. After batting .208 with one RBI in 24 plate appearances in spring training, Cora was released by the defending World Series champions on March 25, 2012.

February 2013

From February 2013 to November 2016, Cora was a color analyst for baseball on ESPN and ESPN Deportes.

March 2016

Cora played for the Puerto Rico national baseball team in the World Baseball Classic during 2006 and 2009; he batted 2-for-15 (.133) and 1-for-8 (.125) in those tournaments, respectively. In March 2016, Cora was named as general manager of the team; he served in that position through the 2017 World Baseball Classic.

November 15, 2016

On November 15, 2016, Cora became the bench coach for the Houston Astros. Cora assumed managerial duties on three occasions during the 2017 season, following ejections of Astros manager A. J. Hinch.

2017

Cora was involved in relief help for Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria in 2017.

August 25, 2017

On August 25, 2017, Cora was ejected from a game against the Los Angeles Angels by home plate umpire Laz Díaz. Cora argued that the baseball had too much dirt on it and should be removed from play; it was Cora's first career MLB ejection.

November 02, 2017

Cora formally assumed the role on November 2, 2017, following the World Series. On August 3, 2018, Cora was ejected for the first time as a manager by home plate umpire Adam Hamari for arguing warnings being issued to both benches by first base umpire and crew chief Phil Cuzzi in a game against the Yankees. Cora and the 2018 Red Sox finished with 108 wins and 54 losses.

November 03, 2018

After winning the 2018 World Series, Cora took the World Series trophy to his hometown of Caguas on November 3, 2018.

November 14, 2018

On November 14, 2018, the Red Sox announced that they had renegotiated Cora's contract, including an extension through the 2021 season, with a club option for 2022.

November 13, 2019

On November 13, 2019, it was reported that Cora, along with former Astros player Carlos Beltrán, played a key role in the Houston Astros sign stealing scandal during their time with the team, which included Houston's 2017 championship season. Cora was interviewed during MLB's investigation of the Astros, with the Red Sox offering their "full cooperation". On January 7, 2020, The Athletic published a report alleging that the 2018 Red Sox broke MLB rules by using a video replay room during regular season games to decipher the signs of opposing catchers, according to three unnamed sources who were with the team that year. On January 13, MLB's findings regarding Houston's sign stealing were announced, including that Cora "was the only non-player involved in the subterfuge." However, commissioner Rob Manfred deferred any discipline for Cora until the conclusion of the separate investigation into the 2018 Red Sox. This raised the possibility that Cora could face significant discipline from MLB, possibly as lengthy as the one-year suspension meted out to Astros manager A. J. Hinch.

April 22, 2020

On April 22, 2020, commissioner Rob Manfred issued findings from MLB's investigation about electronic sign-stealing by the 2018 Red Sox. The findings focused on the actions of the team's replay operator, who as a result was suspended for the 2020 season (including postseason) and the team forfeited their second-round selection in the 2020 MLB draft. About Cora, Manfred stated:

November 06, 2020

Cora was re-hired as the Red Sox' manager on November 6, 2020, on a two-year contract for the 2021 and 2022 seasons, with a club option for the 2023 and 2024 seasons. On April 14, 2021, Cora earned the 200th win of his managerial career in the first game of a doubleheader against the Minnesota Twins. The 2021 Red Sox qualified for the postseason as a wild card, and advanced to the ALCS. On November 22, 2021, the Red Sox announced that they exercised their 2023–2024 option to extend Cora's contract as manager of the team.

2022

During the 2022 season, Cora missed six games in the latter half of April after testing positive for COVID-19; bench coach Will Venable led the team in Cora's absence. His 19 challenges in 2022 were the fewest of any full-time major league managers, as were his eight overturns.

July 24, 2024

On July 24, 2024, the Red Sox announced that Cora agreed to a three-year contract extension, through the 2027 season.