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    Report: Alex Cora not interested in Phillies job

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    Alex Cora, expected to be the Phillies’ top managerial target this winter, told the team he’s taking 2027 off, according to USA TODAY’s Bob Nightengale.

    Nightengale attributes the info to a high-ranking Phillies executive. Cora is still getting paid by the Red Sox for one more year, so another season with the fam sounds like a good idea. It was reported that Cora previously turned down the Phillies in late April after he was fired by Boston, causing the Phillies to go with Don Mattingly as Rob Thomson’s replacement this year. Cora and Phillies president Dave Dombrowski previously worked together in Boston and won a World Series in 2018.

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    Cora is signed to a three-year, $21.75 million contract with the Red Sox that he will still collect even if he doesn’t manage another game. Taking another managerial position would mean that he has to rip up that contract, so he’s understandably in no rush. Cora will spend time with his family for now, but there’s obviously a chance that he could change his mind in the future. For now, Don Mattingly will manage the Phillies.
  • BOS Manager
    Passan reports that the Red Sox also have fired hitting coach Peter Fatse, third base coach Kyle Hudson, bench coach Rámon Vazquez and game-planning coach Jason Varitek. This comes after the Red Sox picked up a 17-1 win over the Orioles on Saturday, but this was likely in the works for a long time. Even with the win, Cora and Boston had just a 10-17 record, and the Red Sox will turn to a new leader in hopes of salvaging the season. Cora has compiled a 619-541 win-loss record while leading Boston to a championship in 2019 over his eight seasons as skipper. An interim manager will be announced after the decision becomes official.
  • CLE Manager #21
    Vogt received 17 first-place votes to edge John Schneider, who got 10 first-place votes to finish second. Dan Wilson came away with a pair of first-place votes and Alex Cora also received one to finish third and fourth, respectively. The 41-year-old skipper, who helped guide the Guardians to an improbable late-season comeback to wrestle the AL Central division crown from Detroit this past season, earns the honor for the second straight season, joining Bobby Cox, Kevin Cash and Pat Murphy as the only repeat winners since 1983. He’s gone 180-143 (.557) in two seasons at the helm in Cleveland.
  • BOS Manager
    The deal is now official to keep Cora at the helm as Boston’s skipper through 2027. It was widely assumed that Cora would become a free agent at the conclusion of the year after the two sides were unable to hammer out a long-term deal entering the year, but he’s opted to remain with the Red Sox for at least a couple additional years instead of testing the open market in search of something more lucrative.
  • BOS Manager
    ESPN’s Jeff Passan first reported this morning that the two sides were close, and it appears that was indeed true. Some Red Sox beat writers have reported that the two sides have been informally talking since the end of the World Series last year, but there was some question about whether or not Boston would retain Cora after turning the reins over to Craig Breslow as president of baseball operations. When all is said and done, it appears Cora will remain in Boston for three more seasons to guide the team as their young prospects arrive at the big league level.
  • BOS Manager
    Buster Olney reports that the contract “is in the range of three years, $21.75m. It would be the second-highest salary for a manager, behind Craig Counsell’s 5-year, $40m deal.” After months of silence regarding Cora’s lame-duck status, a multiyear contract is a very real possibility.
  • BOS Manager
    Cora is not under contract after the 2024 season but Kennedy has been an avid supporter of Cora’s during his tenure as the Red Sox manager. However, unlike Chaim Bloom, Kennedy will allow newly hired Chief Baseball Officer Craig Breslow to make the decision if Cora will be with the Red Sox after this season. “We made it clear both to Alex and to Craig Breslow that it’s Craig’s decision to make and those guys will talk about it,” Kennedy said. “They do not want it to be a distraction and they’ve had open and honest and direct conversation. So we’ll leave those discussions to Brez and AC when they feel it’s appropriate.” Cora and the Red Sox have finished in last place in the AL East in back-to-back seasons.
  • BOS Pitching Coach #37
    Bailey takes over as Red Sox manager Alex Cora’s new pitching coach after Dave Bush, who held the position for the past three years, was fired last month at the conclusion of the 2023 campaign. He’s one of the first significant hires for new president of baseball operations Craig Breslow, who played a pivotal role in the Cubs’ pitching plans the last few years. The 39-year-old former big leaguer, who spent two seasons as a pitcher in Boston from 2012-2013, has served as the Giants’ pitching coach for the last three seasons.
  • BOS Manager
    Bailey was teammates with new Red Sox’ boss Craig Breslow for five seasons with the Red Sox and Athletics — and the two are very close friends — so this move doesn’t come as a major surprise. Bailey has served as the Giants’ pitching coach for each of the past four seasons under recently-ousted manager Gabe Kapler.
  • BOS Manager
    Third base coach Carlos Febles is also on the way out. It’s not like the Red Sox were going to let a disappointing season pass without some change on the coaching staff. Factoring in the dreadful defense it had to deal with, Boston’s pitching was better than it’s hitting this year. Maybe the Red Sox felt that Brayan Bello, Tanner Houck and Garrett Whitlock didn’t make enough progress, but injuries were a factor with the last two. It’s hard to argue that Bush should have done better with what he was given.

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    MLB.com’s Daniel Kramer reports that the Mariners are hiring Jason Kanzler as their manager.

    Kanzler has spent the past three seasons as the Cubs’ director of player development. The 36-year-old was a 20th-round pick of the Minnesota Twins in the 2013 MLB Draft and played three seasons in the minors, primarily as a center fielder. Kanzler is the 22nd manager in Mariners’ franchise history and will be the second-youngest manager in the Majors behind 34-year-old Nationals manager Blake Butera, who was 33 at the time he was hired.
  • STL Starting Pitcher #38
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    Cardinals RHP prospect Tekoah Roby threw 9 2/3 shutout innings in his three starts in the Arizona Fall League.

    Roby missed the second half of 2025 and all of 2026 after having Tommy John surgery, so the Cardinals made a plan for him to make three starts in the Arizona Fall League. In those starts, he allowed no runs on six hits (all singles) in 9 2/3 innings while striking out 13 and walking one. “I was very pleased with the results, and also my own evaluations...That’s what this was about, pitching against hitters with a pitch clock rolling and guys on base. I was really happy I got to pitch with some traffic,” Roby said. He’s unlikely to begin 2027 in the Cardinals’ rotation given how much time he missed, but he could be an option soon after if he begins the season well at Triple-A.
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    ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel suggests that Teriaki Sato could command a contract with an “upper range...of Kyle Schwarber’s $150 million deal from last winter.”

    This is the upper range of the deal and would also include the $19.125 million that the MLB team that signs Sato needs to send to the Hansin Tigers. McDaniel acknowledges that Schwarber is a proven player, while Sato is now, but Schwarber also signed that contract at 33 years old, while Sato is 28 years old and also won an NPB Gold Glove in 2025, so there is some defensive potential with his elite raw power. He figures to attract a lot of attention from MLB teams, but he has significant swing-and-miss potential too.
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    Pete Crow-Armstrong, Shohei Ohtani and Brice Turang were named finalists for the National League MVP Award.

    Crow-Armstrong took the senior circuit by storm this past season and is the overwhelming favorite to claim MVP honors after authoring a phenomenal 45-homer, 41-steal campaign. The 24-year-old finished as the most impactful hitter in the fantasy landscape while continuing to establish himself as one of the premier defensive center fielders in the game. He’s also just beginning to enter his physical prime, making this season feel more the start of his ascent rather than a metaphorical peak. Ohtani appeared poised to claim MVP honors for the fifth time in his remarkable career, thanks in large part to his extraordinary early-season work on the mound, before knee and biceps issues kept him from pitching in the second half.
  • HOU Designated Hitter #44
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    Yordan Alvarez, Junior Caminero and Bobby Witt Jr. were named finalists for the American League MVP Award.

    The Alvarez versus Caminero debate was a scorching and divisive one for most of the summer, but Houston’s middle-of-the-order force seemingly did enough to hold off Tampa Bay’s rising superstar. Alvarez led the majors in batting average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage, slashing .316/.432/.601 with 105 runs scored, a career-high 42 home runs and 106 RBI across 158 games. Caminero topped the 40 home run mark for the second consecutive season, leading the Rays to a remarkable 98-win season and another AL East division title.
  • MIL Starting Pitcher #32
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    Jacob Misiorowski, Chris Sale and Cristopher Sánchez were named finalists for the National League Cy Young Award.

    Misiorowski is the overwhelming favorite to take home the hardware after establishing himself as the most dominant starter in baseball, forging a microscopic 1.80 ERA (2.12 xERA), 0.80 WHIP and 252/44 K/BB ratio across 174 2/3 innings. The 24-year-old flamethrower recorded 10 double-digit strikeout performances and allowed three earned runs or fewer in all but two of his 30 starts. Sale continued his remarkable late-career renaissance in Atlanta, delivering another stellar campaign with a 2.16 ERA (2.97 xERA), 0.98 WHIP and 200/31 K/BB ratio across 162 2/3 innings over 27 starts. He would have been the choice in just about any other season, but Misiorowski made the leap from hard-throwing phenom to an outright force of nature.
  • NYY Starting Pitcher #31
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    Cam Schlittler, Dylan Cease and Parker Messick were named finalists for the American League Cy Young Award.

    This one won’t be particularly close. Schlittler seems like a near-lock to take home his first Cy Young Award after posting a pristine 1.95 ERA, 0.92 WHIP and 239/49 K/BB ratio across 193 2/3 innings over 33 starts. The 25-year-old rising star will be at the front of New York’s rotation for years to come. Messick put together one of the more impressive rookie campaigns in recent years, but he’s going to finish a distant third in balloting. Cease was the only real challenger to Schlittler in this race, posting an impressive 2.40 ERA, 1.10 WHIP and 239/78 K/BB ratio across 169 innings over 29 starts in his Blue Jays debut.
  • CIN 1st Baseman #27
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    Sal Stewart, Carson Benge and JJ Wetherholt were named finalists for the National League Rookie of the Year Award.

    Stewart is the clear favorite to take home the hardware after hitting .263/.330/.457 with 32 homers, 112 RBI and 15 steals across 162 games. That shouldn’t diminish what the other two finalists accomplished, as both put together remarkable rookie campaigns of their own. Benge made a compelling late-season push to turn the race into a legitimate debate, finishing with a .282/.346/.430 slash line, 20 homers and 22 steals across 156 contests. Wetherholt also enjoyed an impressive debut, batting .242/.339/.365 with 89 runs scored, 17 homers, 51 RBI and 14 steals in 139 games.
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    Kevin McGonigle, Parker Messick and Payton Tolle were named finalists for the American League Rookie of the Year Award.

    McGonigle is the overwhelming favorite to claim the hardware in a year that featured one of the most impressive rookie classes in recent memory. The 22-year-old hitting machine delivered a four-hit performance on Opening Day and never looked back, finishing with a sublime .278/.376/.430 slash line with 97 runs scored, 18 homers, 72 RBI and 12 steals in 707 plate appearances over 156 games. Messick was the best rookie pitcher in baseball this past season, posting a remarkable 2.56 ERA (3.13 xERA), 1.06 WHIP and 193/49 K/BB ratio across 186 1/3 innings over 32 starts. Tolle flashed top-of-the-rotation upside while finishing with an impressive 3.03 ERA (2.69 xERA), 1.10 WHIP and 171/40 K/BB ratio across 148 2/3 innings over 26 starts.
  • SD Relief Pitcher #22
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    Mason Miller, Jhoan Duran and Trevor Megill were named finalists for the National League Reliever of the Year Award.

    There’s a chance they’re re-naming this trophy after Miller when his career is over. The hard-throwing 28-year-old posted a career-best 1.67 ERA and 129/26 K/BB ratio over 70 innings of work while converting 38 saves this past season. Duran turned in arguably the best performance of his career last year with a pristine 1.82 ERA across 59 1/3 innings. He also picked up 33 saves in the process. Megill tossed a career-high 61 2/3 innings and topped 30 saves for the second straight season.