After Major League Baseball suspended Houston Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow and manager AJ Hinch for the 2020 season, Astros owner Jim Crane announced their dismissal from the team. But now that Luhnow and Hinch have received their punishment for the electronic sign-stealing scandal, the focus now turns to Alex Cora. Cora, who currently manages the Boston Red Sox, was the Astros bench coach in the 2017 season. And according to ESPN Insider Jeff Passan, the discipline for Cora’s involvement in the scandal is going to be “harsh.”
No players disciplined by Major League Baseball in the Astros’ investigation.
Discipline for Red Sox manager Alex Cora is coming. It is going to be harsh, per sources.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) January 13, 2020
Alex Cora Expected to Receive ‘Harsh’ Punishment for Role in Sign-Stealing Scandal
According to the nine-page report released by MLB earlier today, Cora was the mastermind involved in setting up the sign-stealing operation.
“Cora was involved in developing both the banging scheme and utilizing the replay review room to decode and transmit signs,” MLB commissioner Rob Manfred wrote. “Cora participated in both schemes, and through his active participation, implicitly condoned the players’ conduct.”
To make matters worse, he took the tactics from Houston to Boston and won another World Series. As a result, the Red Sox are being investigated by MLB for illegal sign-stealing during their World Series-winning 2018 season.
Potential Punishment for Cora
It seems that Cora’s punishment will be far worse than Hinch’s. After all, Manfred noted that Hinch did not approve of or participate in the sign-stealing scheme. Manfred also wrote that he damaged the monitor on two occasions and “expressed much contrition” that he allowed the conduct to continue. Even still, Manfred hit him with a one-year suspension.
Considering Hinch’s suspension, it appears that the minimum punishment for Cora would be a one-year suspension. It’s also entirely possible that he receives a lifetime ban. But, he may lose his job before he receives that punishment.
