Cora sets team's mindset for offseason
This story was excerpted from Ian Browne's Red Sox Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.
On the heels of the most disappointing season he’s been a part of as a player or a manager, Alex Cora has a clear plan when it comes to setting his team’s mindset for the offseason and into 2023.
“The plan is in place from my end. One of the things I really want is a sense of urgency,” Cora said. “As an organization we’ve done it throughout the years, and we have to push hard in the offseason.
“The message is going to be 'Now.' I love the future. We love the past. We don’t like this past, right? But I think living in the present and pushing hard is something we’re going to talk about a lot. That’s something that ... It pushes you to be great.
“It’s not that we didn’t do it this year, but I think the message should be louder. We know where we’re at. We know where we finished. I think we know where everybody is going to expect us to be next year, too, because of the division. We’ve just got to be ready.”
Cora knows the Red Sox had a lot of injuries, forcing a lot of young players into action. But he doesn’t want to hear about those things as a reason his team isn’t going to the postseason.
“Yeah, we got younger, but we’ve got to push,” said Cora. “It’s not an excuse. It’s not an excuse in the AL East. It’s not an excuse in the big leagues. I heard a lot about the injuries and all that. The Rays have been hurt the whole season and they are in the playoffs. That’s something that, from top to bottom, regardless of who you are, [a] $35 million player or a rookie that is coming here for a spot start.”
In essence, Cora wants his players to seize the day.
“We expect to push. Think about today. Don’t think about tomorrow,” Cora said. “You have to win every day. If you win every day, you have that mentality every day regardless of who you are, good things are going to happen. I’m not saying we lacked that, but the excuses of injuries or being young is over. It’s in the past. We learned a lot this year.
“I learned a lot as a manager, and I’m going to attack the offseason the right way, sending a message like, ‘It really doesn’t matter. If you’re a little banged up, we have to show up and we have to go.’ Because we expect a lot. Everybody expects a lot from this organization, and to be honest with you, we were a big disappointment.
“This feeling? It's not great. I'm going to use it as something to push me forward to be better.”
Supervising Club Reporter Ian Browne has covered the Red Sox for MLB.com since 2002.