Cora's tone shift after Red Sox' latest brutal loss is a troubling sign

Cora's tone shift after Red Sox' latest brutal loss is a troubling sign originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

Tuesday night at Fenway Park featured all the hallmarks of a 2025 Boston Red Sox loss.

Poor fielding? Check.

The Red Sox made three errors, including a botched ground ball by pitcher Zack Kelly in the 10th inning that allowed the Los Angeles Angels to score the winning run. (Boston leads the majors with 53 errors in 63 games.)

Poor situational hitting? Check.

The Red Sox were 1-for-13 with runners in scoring position and left 11 men on base. With a runner on second and no outs in the bottom of the 10th, Carlos Narvaez and Trevor Story both struck out before Ceddanne Rafaela popped out to end the game. (Boston is hitting .234 with runners in scoring position this season with an MLB-leading 171 strikeouts. The next-closest team has 151.)

Failure to win close games? Check.

The Red Sox tallied just one hit from the seventh inning onward with the score tied at 3-3. (They’re now 6-17 in one-run games this season — no other team has lost more than 15 — and 4-7 in extra-inning games. Their .202 batting average in “late/close” situations is fifth-worst in baseball.)

So, why is the same script playing out on a nightly basis? Red Sox manager Alex Cora pointed the finger at himself after Tuesday’s loss.

“We keep making the same mistakes. We’re not getting better,” Cora told reporters. “At one point, it has to be on me, I guess, right? I’m the manager. I’ve got to keep pushing them to get better. They’re not getting better. They’re not. We keep making the same mistakes.

“I’m being very honest about it. Very open about it. You get frustrated, but at one point it’s like, ‘OK, what are we going to do? What’s going to change?’ Because we keep doing the same thing, same thing.

“We can keep talking about one-run losses — we have what, 17? It’s the same thing. Is it effort? Preparation? Attention to detail? I have no idea, man. I watched that game tonight and was like, ‘Wow, this is real.’ It’s frustrating.”

Cora deserves credit for holding himself accountable. But he’s also right — Cora should be responsible for much of what’s plaguing the Red Sox. Effort, preparation and attention to detail all fall under the manager’s purview, especially if his players continue to make the same mistakes.

Boston’s struggles aren’t all on Cora. Injuries to Triston Casas and Alex Bregman have exposed major holes on the roster that chief baseball officer Craig Breslow should have done more to address this offseason. (The Red Sox’ No. 3, No. 4 and No. 5 hitters Tuesday night were Rob Refsnyder, Romy Gonzalez and Abraham Toro, who went a combined 1-for-10.)

But two injuries shouldn’t completely derail a club that entered 2025 with playoff aspirations, and given how the Red Sox have been losing this season, it’s on Cora to start pushing different buttons.

Cora typically has been upbeat in the face of Boston’s struggles in recent years, but Tuesday’s tone shift was notable, and perhaps a sign of his exasperation with a team that continues to underachieve as it aims to end a three-year playoff drought.

If that drought extends to four years? A managerial shakeup may not be out of the question.