Yankees: Alex Cora Says Astros’ Explanation of Scandal Was a Lie

Fired Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora threw Astros ownership under the bus over their cheating scandal.

Of all the great recent villains in the Yankees Universe, Alex Cora’s rapid rise to prominence is unmatched.

After all, he screwed New York out of a shot at the World Series in 2017 when he helped implement a sign-stealing scheme that vaulted the Houston Astros to a near-perfect level of play at home. Then, he took his cheating exploits and smarmy smile to the only place where he could’ve possibly increased his villainy: Boston. As the Red Sox manager, he took a fringe-average playoff team that had lost two straight ALDS to 108 wins and an easy World Series victory. Certainly nothing inauthentic about that! According to Cora, at least.

He’s previously professed that he had no knowledge of Boston’s sign-stealing in 2018, despite leading the charge to steal signs the year prior and there being similar and proven sign-stealing in his first season with the Sox. Now, Cora has opened up further — about the Astros’ side of the scandal only. He admitted wrongdoing in an interview with ESPN’s Marly Rivera, but also claimed that the narrative Houston managed to push that fingered him as the “mastermind” was extremely misleading.

“Out of this whole process, if there is one thing that I completely reject and disagree with is people within the Astros organization singling me out, particularly [former general manager] Jeff Luhnow, as if I were the sole mastermind,” Cora told Rivera this week. “The commissioner’s report sort of explained, in its own way, what happened. But the [Astros players] have spoken up and refuted any allegations that I was solely responsible.”

Above all, Cora wanted to take this opportunity to make one thing clear: yes, he was responsible. No, he wasn’t the black sheep in Houston.

“If there is one thing I am absolutely sure of, it is that it was not a two-man show. We all did it,” Cora continued. “And let me be very clear that I am not denying my responsibility, because we were all responsible.”

Cora’s contrition has impressed many throughout the league, but while it’s a good first step, it’s been nearly impossible to believe his explanation of the events that transpired in Boston in 2018. We’ll need to hear more before we can fully endorse his ever-evolving personality.

As uncomfortable as it’s been to hear the video replay coordinator solely blamed in Beantown, it was savagely depressing to watch Alex Bregman and Jose Altuve trot to the podium with mock contrition, blaming their transgressions entirely on the bad, bad men named Carlos Beltran and Cora. This revealing interview was a big step in setting the narrative back on its course.

Ron Roenicke, the current Red Sox manager, had his interim tag removed earlier this spring, and Boston GM Chaim Bloom has insinuated Cora will not return to the team in 2021, when eligible. But he’ll likely manage again soon, and this PR tour will be the inciting incident in the process.