Alex Cora Once Again Tells The Phillies To Kick Rocks, And Nobody Can Blame Him For Wanting Nothing To Do With Managing This Team
Maddie Meyer. Getty Images.USA Today -- The Philadelphia Phillies have been spurned again by Alex Cora.
Dave Dombrowski, Phillies president of baseball operations, spoke with Cora about becoming their manager in 2027, but Cora informed Dombrowski he’s taking the season off, a high-ranking Phillies executive with direct knowledge of their talks told USA TODAY Sports.
…Cora, who won a World Series with the Red Sox with Dombrowski in 2018, was offered the Phillies’ job in April and he declined it.
The Philadelphia Phillies are not a destination right now. You could argue it's actually one of the worst places to be at the moment. You are dealing with one of the highest payrolls in all of baseball, and the team is nothing but a waste of talent. A bunch of underachievers who have done nothing to capitalize on the wave of momentum they've been carried by since 2022.
The team has high expectations, and fails to meet them every single year. They are saddled with a $300 million bum in Trea Turner. They have a President of Baseball Operations who is an absolute dunce and can't think anything more than 1 step ahead when it comes to re-signing guys like Aaron Nola, Bryson Stott, and Alec Bohm. You have a bullpen that comes up short every time you need them the most. And you have a fanbase that is extremely on edge. A fanbase that once filled Citizens Bank Park with cheer and positive vibes, now ready to turn on this team at any given moment.
So why on Earth would Alex Cora want to take this job? Why on Earth would Alex Cora have even a shred of interest in being the manager of the Philadelphia Phillies when there are reports like this floating around out there.
Who knows what this team is going to look like next year, but it sure as shit isn't going to look better. Dave Dombrowski has proven that over the last few years. The Phillies are either going to remain completely the same, or they are going to get worse. Those are his only two options. A loss in the wild card is this team's ceiling for next year, so it's hard to blame Alex Cora for wanting absolutely nothing to do with that.
That just shows exactly where this team is at right now. Stagnant at best. There is zero reason why Dave Dombrowski should still be controlling this ball club. There was really no reason he should still be here after he publicly called out Bryce Harper for not being elite anymore last season. There's no reason Kevin Long should still be the hitting coach. There's no reason Bryson Stott should still be using the same walk up song. This team has been so terrified of making changes for so long that it has left them so far behind. I'm sure when they finally hire their 6th or 7th option to be the next manager, that guy will have all the answers.