Even a week after the Boston Red Sox's shocking firing of their longtime manager Alex Cora, more reports of discord between him and Craig Breslow continue to emerge.
Back in spring training, the Red Sox had multiple position debates to settle. The outfield logjam was one (it remains confusing over a month into the season) and the infield alignment was another. A May 5 report from Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic reveals that Breslow and Cora didn't have the same plan for the infield (subscription required).
"A league source said that Breslow and Cora disagreed in spring training about where to play Caleb Durbin and Marcelo Mayer. Breslow wanted Mayer at third with Durbin at second, but [interim manager Chad] Tracy said there’s no plan to make that switch at this point," McCaffrey wrote.
Ultimately, Cora got his way with the infield alignment — Mayer has been the Sox's second baseman all year while Durbin has manned third. The two infielders have both played great defense in their respective positions. Mayer has logged two outs above average with 90th percentile range and one defensive run saved while Durbin has posted three outs above average for 92nd percentile range and he's tied for the lead among all third basemen with six defensive runs saved.
Craig Breslow and Alex Cora disagreed on where Red Sox should play Caleb Durbin and Marcelo Mayer
Durbin and Mayer fit well in their positions assigned by Cora and the Red Sox's defense has been performing so well as a whole (league leaders in DRS, OAA and fielding run value) that it makes little sense to move them now — at least Breslow recognizes that. There's no telling for certain until more reports come out, but Durbin and Mayer's positions can't be the only things Cora and Breslow disagreed on for the skipper to be fired less than a full month into the season not even two years after the Red Sox awarded him a pricey three-year contract extension.
Durbin and Mayer each had professional experience playing at second base, third base and shortstop, so there were many factors that went into choosing their positions (why Mayer playing shortstop and moving Trevor Story to second base is out of the question, many fans can't explain). It's reassuring to hear that Tracy will be sticking with the infield alignment that has worked so far and not shuffling things around just because Cora is now gone.
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