Alex Cora throws shade at Yankees in gleeful statements about playing in the Bronx

Things certainly didn't go the New York Yankees' way this weekend against the Boston Red Sox, even if the four-game set ended on a high note. Dropping three out of four, the Yankees wasted a golden opportunity to make a statement and take control of their season on the heels of consecutive sweeps of the St. Louis Cardinals and Tampa Bay Rays.

Boston Red Sox manager and longtime Yankee antagonist, Alex Cora, couldn't help himself amid what was mostly a disaster for New York, taking some very specific shots at the team and the iconic stadium they call home.

In speaking about playing in Yankee Stadium, the trash can banging enthusiast had this to say about playing in the House that Ruth built (er, well, the replica across the street), "It’s fun to come here and play well, I’ll tell you that. We play well here, we’ve been playing well here for a while. It’s a great stage, we love it.”

It certainly looked as if Boston enjoyed their stay in the Bronx, but is Cora actually right in his claim that the Red Sox have been playing well here for a while? Well, not quite.

Alex Cora's dig at the Yankees isn't completely founded in reality, but they won't stop coming until the team takes care of business

Cora became the Red Sox manager following the 2017 season, in which he won the now-tainted 2017 World Series as the bench coach of the Houston Astros. He was relieved of his duties as Red Sox manager after being handed a year-long suspension for his role in the sign-stealing scandal, only to be re-hired ahead of the 2021 campaign as soon as his suspension was over.

So, when taking his claim that the Red Sox have played well against the Yankees in the Bronx for "a while," it is important to determine what actually constitutes that time frame.

In totality, the Red Sox are 21-34 at Yankee Stadium with Cora as their manager. That includes both stints and excludes Boston's disastrous 0-7 record against the Bombers in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. It doesn't seem like Cora's got a grasp on reality here, but maybe he's simply referring to more recent times.

Since 2021, Boston is 19-20 at Yankee Stadium, which is certainly an improvement, though still below .500. Overall, the Red Sox are 39-35 against the Yankees in total over that span, so clearly they're (unsurprisingly) more comfortable at home.

Of course, if Cora is simply talking about this season, then he is correct. With only three games remaining between these two teams, which will take place at Fenway Park, the book has been closed on the 2025 matchups in the Bronx, with Boston posting a 5-2 record, an improvement from last year's 3-4 mark when visiting the Yankees.

It's likely that Cora wasn't exactly tracking the validity of his claim, and instead was taking the Red Sox recent success as a reason to take a jab at the Yankees. Whatever his true motivation, there's only one way for the Bombers to shut him up. Start rising to the occasion and suddenly there will be a lot less chirping coming from Cora's direction.