'Oh shoot; that's a lot': Cora hits 1,000-game milestone as manager

CLEVELAND -- Alex Cora’s 1,000th game as the Red Sox's manager had a little bit of everything.

It started with a barrage of rain on Friday that forced a doubleheader on Saturday -- and forced Cora to wait 18 hours to achieve his milestone.

And while it came in the form of a 5-4 loss to the Guardians, it still doesn’t take away from the fact that he reached a milestone that only four other managers in Red Sox history have achieved.

“When somebody mentioned I was at 999 games, I was like, ‘Oh shoot; that’s a lot,'" Cora said Friday. “It’s been good. I’ve been through a lot of ups and downs, both with the organization and as a person. There have been a lot of people who have given me a chance.”

• Duran electrifies Sox with THIRD career steal of home

Cora’s journey at the helm of the Red Sox in October 2017, when the team hired him to be the 47th manager in club history. A year later, Cora and the Red Sox were World Series champions.

“The way we took off that year, I was like, ‘Wow, this is easy,'" Cora said.

A year later, Boston went 84-78 and missed out on the postseason, which Cora says was “a good wakeup call.”

“I found out it wasn’t that easy,” he said.

And, for a year, it looked like the 2019 season would mark the end of Cora’s run in Boston. In January 2020, Cora and the Red Sox agreed to mutually part ways after Cora was named in Major League Baseball's findings from its investigation of the Astros' sign-stealing allegations in 2017.

Cora served as Houston’s bench coach at the time.

His suspension ended after the 2020 postseason, and the Red Sox wasted no time bringing him back by signing him to a two-year deal with two options.

In July of last year, Cora re-upped with Boston on a contract extension that covers the 2025-27 seasons.

The Red Sox advanced to the Americal League Championship Series in 2021 before embarking on a quasi rebuild. After two sub-.500 seasons and one season exactly at .500, Boston is in the middle of the race for the AL East crown one month into 2025.

Cora trails Joe Cronin (2,007), Terry Francona (1,296), Pinky Higgins (1,119) and Bill Carrigan (1,003) in games managed with the Red Sox.

It’s a bit fitting that Cora reached the 1,000-game mark in Cleveland, as he spent six years battling Francona when Francona managed Cleveland (2018-23). Francona also played a key part in Cora's managerial journey in 2007, when Francona was the Red Sox's manager and Cora was a player.

“[Francona] mentioned it to me in 2007, but he really talked about it in 2008,” Cora said. “At that point, I was like, ‘You just don’t want me to play anymore.'"

Boston's showing in Game 1 of Saturday’s doubleheader was a tangible example of the work Cora has in front of him.

The Red Sox were staked to an early lead in the first inning, thanks to a three-run home run from Wilyer Abreu, only for the Guardians to score four runs on five hits in the bottom of the inning against Tanner Houck.

“I just kind of attacked a different zone and different lane,” Houck said. “Now, I just need to make the adjustment in the first inning.”

The Red Sox’s undoing came in the sixth inning due to some bad luck and bloops.

After Brennan Bernardino opened the inning by hitting pinch-hitter Will Wilson, he surrendered an infield single to Angel Martinez. It had an expected batting average of .190, but it glanced off Bernardino's glove.

Cleveland moved Wilson and Martinez into scoring position on a sacrifice bunt from Austin Hedges before Steven Kwan drove Wilson in on a bloop single that landed just out of the reach of Trevor Story. The veteran shortstop was playing in and wasn’t able to get back in time, and the ball bounced off his glove and fell for a hit.

With the loss, Cora’s all-time managerial record sits at 535-465 (.536), which is the third-best winning percentage for a manager in Boston history, trailing only Francona (744-552, .574) and Cronin (1,071-916, .539).

After Cora signed his extension with the Red Sox, he said Boston was his home. Saturday’s milestone is just another example of that.

“I’ve had some great days, some bad days and some horrible days, but I show up every day and am transparent and tell you guys like it is,” Cora said. “I think people and the players like that.”