Red Sox and manager Alex Cora part ways amid MLB cheating scandal
The Boston Red Sox announced Tuesday that they have parted ways with manager Alex Cora. Cora, the former bench coach for the Houston Astros, was implicated in the recent cheating scandal that led to the firings of Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow and manager A.J. Hinch on Monday.
In addition to the concluded investigation into the Astros, Major League Baseball is also investigating sign-stealing allegations against the Red Sox, who allegedly used video replay to steal signs between pitchers and catchers during their 2018 World Series-winning season. Using electronic devices to decode signs is prohibited by MLB rules.
"Today we met to discuss the Commissioner's report related to the Houston Astros investigation. Given the findings and the Commissioner's ruling, we collectively decided that it would not be possible for Alex to effectively lead the club going forward and we mutually agreed to part ways," Red Sox owner John Henry, chairman Tom Werner, CEO Sam Kennedy and Cora said in a joint statement.
"This is a sad day for us. Alex is a special person and a beloved member of the Red Sox. We are grateful for his impact on our franchise," Henry, Werner and Kennedy added.
In a statement of his own, Cora said he didn't want to be "a distraction to the Red Sox as they move forward."
"My two years as manager have been the best of my life. It was an honor to manage these teams and bring a World Series Championship back to Boston," Cora continued.
In 2017, the year before Cora became manager, the Red Sox were fined an undisclosed amount by MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred after the league determined the team illegally relayed information using an Apple Watch during games against rival New York Yankees that season. That investigation prompted Manfred to send a memo to all teams warning them future violations would bring much harsher penalties.
After the league determined the Astros illegally stole signs during the their 2017 World Series-winning season, Hinch and Luhnow were suspended for the entire 2020 season. After Luhnow was fired, he released a statement implicating Cora in the sign-stealing scheme.
"The video decoding of signs originated and was executed by lower-level employees working with the bench coach," he said. Cora was the bench coach for Houston that year.
MLB's investigation into the Red Sox's alleged cheating during the 2018 season is still ongoing.