Red Sox Notes: Alex Cora Fallout, Marcelo Mayer Breakout, How to Fix Roman Anthony?

The first full month of the 2026 Major League Baseball season is now over and it certainly wasn't great for the Boston Red Sox.

The calendar has now turned to May and the Red Sox currently sit in last place in the American League East at 12-19. The Houston Astros and Los Angeles Angels are the only teams in the American League with worse records right now at 12-20. The Kansas City Royals are tied with the Red Sox right now at 12-19.

While there is a lot of season left, Boston already is eight games out of first place in the American League East and needs to turn things around. Right now, the Red Sox are two games behind fourth place. All in all, things aren't going perfectly, to say the least.

With May now here, let's take a quick look at a few of the bigger stories around the club right now.

Alex Cora Fallout

Apr 20, 2026; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora signs a baseball for a fan prior to a game against the Detroit Tigers at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images | Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images

For the foreseeable future, the firing of Alex Cora will remain the biggest story around the Red Sox. When you fire a World Series-winning coach roughly one month into a season — along with a handful of other coaches — it's going to get people's attention. Cora was let go and the Red Sox are 2-2 since. Since his firing, Cora has been offered the Philadelphia Phillies' manager job, but turned it down.

Jon Heyman of The New York Post also ruled out the floundering New York Mets as well. Boston cut ties with Cora and now he's spending time with his family. So far, the Red Sox haven't shown anything considerably different from what they were before Cora was fired. It's just a four-game sample size, but there is cause for concern for the fanbase.

Marcelo Mayer's Trending Up

Apr 27, 2026; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Boston Red Sox second baseman Marcelo Mayer (11) celebrates in the dugout with team mates after scoring a run against the Toronto Blue Jays in the sixth inning at Rogers Centre. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images | Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images

Let's take a brief pause from the negative. There are a lot of stories around the Red Sox right now. One that should be getting more attention is the fact that Mayer is turning things around after a slow start to the season. A lot of the offense struggled to open the season, including Mayer. On April 19, Mayer was batting .173 on the season. Over his last nine games, Mayer is slashing .435/.480/.565 with a 1.045 OPS. Over that span, Mayer logged three doubles and four RBIs and didn't strike out once. Now, Mayer is slashing .253/.321/.373 on the season in 27 games played. Interim manager Chad Tracy also has made it clear that he wants to give Mayer more chances against left-handed hurlers. Things are looking up for the slick-fielding infielder.

What's Up With Roman Anthony?

Apr 1, 2026; Houston, Texas, USA; Boston Red Sox pinch hitter Roman Anthony (19) crosses home plate after hitting a home run against the Houston Astros during the ninth inning at Daikin Park. Mandatory Credit: Erik Williams-Imagn Images | Erik Williams-Imagn Images

Now, back to the negative. What's going on with Roman Anthony? Last season, he started off slowly after making his big league debut. After a few weeks, he got hot and looked like one of the best offensive players in the game, despite the fact that he was 20 years old. He was good in Spring Training and then was one of the best overall hitters on Team USA in the World Baseball Classic. Now, he's slashing .208/.339/.292 with one homer and five RBIs in 26 games played. Last season, he played in 71 games for Boston and slashed .292/.396/.463 with eight homers and 32 RBIs.

His advanced metrics paint a picture of someone who has been unlucky so far this season. His expected batting average is .248, which is 40 points lower than his actual mark. His bat speed is in the 92nd percentile and he's hitting the ball hard. He's in the 85th percentile in average exit velocity and 74th percentile in hard-hit rate. Right now, he's in the 23rd and 24th percentiles in whiff rate and strikeout rate, though. That's arguably what's holding him back.

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