Hinch and Cora Back in the Spotlight. But Is It Worth It?

      

  

        

        Managers AJ Hinch and Alex Cora are back to baseball after serving their one-year long suspensions for being involved in the Houston Astros cheating scandal of 2017. Hinch has agreed on a multi-year deal with the Detroit Tigers, who he played for in 2003, while Cora is returning to the Boston Red Sox. Both of these hires a little surprising to many, but at least make sense. 

Hinch was implicated in the scandal because of his position within the organization. Being the manager, a lot of responsibility falls on him. Even after several attempts to stop the use of electronics to help cheat according to himself, Hinch was fired and suspended.

Alex Cora, on the other hand, was the bench coach of the Houston Astros in 2017. He knew what was happening, and apparently wasn't doing enough to put a stop to it either. He was hired in 2018 by Boston to be their new manager. After the investigation, Cora stepped down as the manager of Boston and took his punishment.

Both managers were suspended for one season. 

Two young managers, with their careers already tainted. But statistics show they are effective in their job. Hinch led Houston to a couple postseason wins and the World Series title, that is now obviously tainted.

Alex Cora led the Red Sox to the playoffs in the two seasons he was the manager, while also winning the AL East.

Regardless of what these two men were found guilty of, they know how to win. They know how to lead. They connect well with the players. The only real question is now, are some of those players willing to learn and play under those men, especially in Detroit. 

Granted, these managers are not at the forefront of the game, going out there and playing like the actual players for Houston. However, managers are supposed to be the leader of the leaders of the clubhouse, and when one doesn't have the respect of his players, it can turn ugly very quickly.

Hopefully Hinch and Cora can get their careers back on track, and try to at least prove that they didn't need to cheat in order to win. Hopefully they can come back and gain the respect of their players in spring training, and during the duration of the 2021 MLB season. 

We'll find out if these hires really were worth it. It may take a bit for the two franchises to get back to playoff form, but under these two men, it's possible they could be ahead of schedule.