It's not surprising to Red Sox manager Alex Cora his team is off to a blistering 9-1 start.
In his weekly interview Wednesday with "Dale & Keefe," the new skipper said the Red Sox' strong finish to Spring Training was an indication they would win games right away.
"Spring Training doesn't count, but the way you play in Spring Training counts. We were playing clean baseball, we were playing fast baseball and we were pitching. The at-bats were getting better," Cora said. "I was very impressed with the way we played defense at the end. We were making the routine plays. When you do that at the end of Spring Training, regardless of the group –– the starters early in the game, the minor leaguers late in the game –– it means you're doing something right."
One of the signature differences between this year's Red Sox and last year's version has been the emphasis on swinging earlier in the court. Mookie Betts, who went 4-for-4 and smashed a grand slam in Tuesday's 14-1 shellacking over the Yankees, has been vocal about his change in approach.
Cora says he thinks it's important to be aggressive, because middle relievers are much better than they once were.
"The middle relievers now throw 98 or 99 (mph)," he said. "Back in the day, the starter was probably the best pitcher that day, besides the closer. Then you would get the righty situational pitchers who were throwing 87, 88. The sidearm lefty to get the lefty out. He was throwing 87 or 88. You were able to battle at-bats against the bullpen. But now, the starter throws 94. The first reliever throws 98. Kenley (Jansen) throws 97 with a changeup. It is hard to grind out at-bats when guys are 0-1 and throwing 97, 98. I'd rather them hunt for pitches in the zone, and go out and swing it. If we run into outs, we do, but if we don't, we're going to put pressure on them. With the way the game is going, guys are going to go five or six innings, less than 100 pitches. So take advantage of the good pitches and put pressure on the starter."
In addition to the new offensive approach, Cora has been less curt with the media than his predecessor, John Farrell. On Tuesday, for example, Cora admitted he erred in not pulling J.D. Martinez for a defensive replacement late in Sunday's comeback win against the Rays.
Cora emphasizes the importance of candor.
"There are three things I want from my players: be genuine, accountable and responsible," he explained. "If I'm asking that from my players, I better do the same thing. So we actually did (make a mistake). It was kind of uncomfortable in the dugout. I was looking around like, 'Uh-oh … we've got (Craig) Kimbrel.' It's not that J.D. can't make the plays, but we can go elite –– with Jackie in center field, Benintendi in left field and Mookie in right field. Can we begin the inning with J.D. in the outfield? Of course we can. He was leading off the next inning. But when you go from that defense to elite defense, you have to make a decision. And that day I didn't."
