NEW YORK – The Bronx still has a Boston Red Sox problem. And it is not going away, at least so long as Alex Cora presides over Boston’s dugout.
Sure, it’s been two decades since the Red Sox completed the greatest playoff comeback in baseball history – or perhaps the New York Yankees staged the biggest collapse? – which is time enough for reunions, documentaries and enough chatter that it still seems like yesterday.
But forget the Idiots. This is about Cora and his managerial counterpart, Aaron Boone, and three playoff meetings over eight years that have all gone decisively in Boston’s favor.
In Game 1 of the American League wild-card series Sept. 30, Cora and Boone tried to solve the same problem: A dominant lefty on the other mound.
They loaded their lineup with right-handed hitters. Prepared to stretch their aces, Garrett Crochet and Max Fried, maybe a little bit longer than they were comfortable, while calling on only their best relievers.
