John Henry and the Red Sox just settled all family business – 98.5 The Sports Hub

Well, there is really only way to describe this: Red Sox owner John Henry, like Michael Corleone in the final moments of “The Godfather,” just settled all family business in one massive bloodletting, leaving no doubt about the future direction of your once-beloved baseball team.

Alex Cora? Gone. Hitting coach coach Pete Fatse? Toast. Gone too are assistant hitting coach Dillon Lawson, third base coach Kyle Hudson, bench coach Ramon Vazquez and major league hitting strategy coach Joe Cronin. Even Jason Varitek was “reassigned” to a new position in the organization.

Hit the bricks, fellas. Don’t let the door hit you in the ass on the way out.

Before we go any further, let’s make it clear that the Red Sox announced the firings in a statement that included comments from only Henry. Neither team president Sam Kennedy nor chief baseball officer Craig Breslow were mentioned in the announcement. When it comes to all things Red Sox, John is The Don. Prior to Saturday, Cora survived Dave Dombrowski, a one-year suspension for the Houston Astros cheating scandal, and Chaim Bloom. Cutting ties with Cora now signals, and no uncertain terms, that Henry has anointed Breslow as his front man.

Is this a good thing? Probably not, at least if you are still holding out hope that the Red Sox will someday enter the market again for marquee players who require megacontracts. The Red Sox are now fully invested in their small-to-mid-market approach to team building, something Cora never seemed suited for and often pushed back against.

Following Friday night’s embarrassing loss to the Orioles, Cora curiously commented that his job was to teach young players how to play in the major leagues. While he said it with a straight face, one can’t help but wonder if it was the final straw that triggered his dismissal.

You can listen to the full comment here:

So what happens now? Good question. Cora was only part of the problem, if only because he doesn’t fit the team’s new approach (and never did). Breslow has kept pitching coach Andrew Bailey, whom he hired, which should tell you something. Going forward, there are now Craig’s guys and then there is everyone else.

Are the Red Sox a better team today? It doesn’t feel like it. Roman Anthony still doesn’t have the kind of established premium talent he needs to protect him in the clubhouse and lineup. The Red Sox still have a batting order bursting with strikeouts and no real difference-makers, and that isn’t likely to change without a major move – unless Don Henry wants to put some wind at Breslow’s back.

For Breslow, the danger now is obvious: he has no one else to blame anymore. If the Red Sox continue to fail, he’ll get whacked next. Since Theo Epstein left, the Red Sox have gone through managers and baseball executives (not necessarily in that order) like paper towels. Ben Cherington, Dombrowski, Bloom, Bobby Valentine, John Farrell, Ron Roenicke and now Cora.

It’s quite a lineup, of course.

It might be better than the group Breslow has put on the field.