Red Sox Fire Alex Cora — And Now Phillies Fans Want Him in Philadelphia

Alex Cora is available. The Phillies are 9-19. The timing could not be more obvious.

Boston fired Cora on Saturday after a dreadful start to the season, ending a tenure that brought two division titles but no championships in his second stint. Within hours, the conversation shifted to Philadelphia — where president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski knows Cora better than almost anyone. They won a World Series together in Boston in 2018.

The Phillies are in last place with their worst 28-game record since 2002. Manager Rob Thomson has been on the hot seat for weeks. USA Today’s Bob Nightengale went public: Cora could be hired “almost immediately.” Thomson himself said he’s “never worried about that” — the kind of answer managers give when they know the question is real.

Cora signed a three-year extension last summer that makes any mid-season move complicated. But Dombrowski finds a way when he wants someone.