As the Phillies mull over their management decision, it appears one of the top speculative targets is off the table. Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports that Alex Cora has informed Philadelphia president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski that he plans to end the 2027 season.
Cora has no immediate financial incentive to return to the shelter. He was under contract with the Red Sox for a salary of $7.25 million through the 2027 season. Boston fired him in April, but remains responsible for that money. If Cora were to take a management position with another team next year, his salary at the new club would be subtracted from what the Red Sox owe.
Dombrowski, who worked with Cora in Boston, acknowledged in April that he was ready to immediately offer him the Phillies job once the Red Sox left. Cora declined, citing a desire to spend more time with her family in her native Puerto Rico. Philadelphia still decided to fire Rob Thomson and put Don Mattingly on interim basis for the remainder of 2026.
Mattingly signed a two-year contract with Philadelphia as a bench coach and is under contract through next year, but the Phillies have not committed to their management decision. Mattingly, whose son Preston is Philadelphia’s general manager, oversaw a significant regular-season turnaround that helped the franchise clinch a fifth straight playoff berth. However, they bowed out early again, losing a three-game Wild Card series to Atlanta. This is the third year in a row that they have lost their first series. The previous two were in the NLDS after receiving first-round byes.
Boston also orchestrated a huge turnaround after its change of direction to secure a Wild Card berth. Unlike the Phillies, they removed the interim tag of their skipper (Chad Tracy) to a three-year extension in September. The Red Sox also lost in the Wild Card Series.
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