After a 17-1 win. Let that — no, wait, that’s banned. After a 17-1 blowout in Baltimore, Craig Breslow flew to the hotel, called a meeting that lasted two minutes, and fired Alex Cora along with five coaches. Zero questions allowed. John Henry stood in the back of the room and said nothing. The Red Sox had just beaten the Orioles by 16 runs.
Jeff Passan reported the entire thing was over before most people realized it had started.
The Boston Red Sox fired manager Alex Cora, hitting coach Peter Fatse, bench coach Rámon Vazquez and game-planning coach Jason Varitek, sources tell ESPN.
While the Red Sox won today, they are 10-17 and in last in the American League East. Massive change is coming in Boston.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) April 25, 2026
Wilyer Abreu was in tears. Carlos Narváez was in tears. Trevor Story went in front of a microphone and said the direction of this team is “up in the air.” That’s a player telling you, as diplomatically as he can, that nobody knows what’s happening. Trevor Story — a guy who has spent the last two years on the injured list and has earned the right to say absolutely nothing controversial — chose to say that.
That’s the tell.
When the players who have the most to lose by making waves start making waves, the building is actually on fire.
Cora told Breslow directly in 2025 — confirmed by Sports Illustrated — “fire me if you want to change coaches.” That’s not a bluff. That’s a man laying out the terms of his own employment clearly, to his boss, in plain language. Breslow waited fourteen months, flew to Baltimore after a win, and held a two-minute meeting with no questions. That’s not a leadership decision. That’s an ambush with a press release.
Five coaches gone: Pete Fatse, Dillon Lawson, Ramón Vázquez, Kyle Hudson, Joe Cronin. All of them walked out of a Baltimore hotel the night their team had its best offensive performance of the season. Chad Tracy, who was managing Triple-A Worcester this morning, is now the interim manager of a major league club with a 10-17 record and a clubhouse full of stunned players.
Garrett Whitlock was described as in shock. Garrett Crochet — who Breslow acquired, who I wrote about back in April when he gave up 11 runs in 1.2 innings and Craig Breslow Wants You to Be Patient — was in shock. The whole thing reads less like a managerial change and more like a controlled demolition of whatever trust remained between the front office and the 40-man roster.
The Red Sox fired Terry Francona after the 2011 collapse. That time, the narrative was beer and chicken in the clubhouse — the players got blamed. The front office walked away clean. This time the players are the ones standing in the rubble saying they don’t know what the plan is, and the front office is the one that flew to Baltimore to drop the hammer.
Alex Bregman spent part of 2025 actively intervening to keep the hitting coaches around. His departure to the Cubs removed the last guy in the room with enough political standing to push back on Breslow. Two months later, those same coaches are carrying boxes out of Camden Yards.
Breslow, for his part, acknowledged that his communication style drew criticism and said he’s “open to feedback.” In the early morning hours after the firing, Cora sent an emotional email to the entire organization. The Phillies reportedly called Cora — he turned them down.
That’s the part that sticks with me. He turned them down.
A man who just got blindsided in a two-minute meeting in a hotel in Baltimore, on the night his team won by 16, still isn’t jumping at the first available exit. That says something about how much Alex Cora actually wanted to be the Red Sox manager. And it makes what Breslow did feel even cheaper.
This isn’t about 10-17. The Yankees were 10-17 once and won a World Series. It’s about how you run a franchise, how you treat people who work for you, and whether your players believe you have a coherent vision for where this is going. Right now, the players are giving you the answer in real time, and it’s not the one Breslow is hoping for.
