The Chad Tracy Question Hanging Over Red Sox's Playoff Push

The Boston Red Sox seemingly struck gold when they moved on from former manager Alex Cora in favor of interim manager Chad Tracy.

When the Red Sox fired Cora, and a handful of other coaches, Boston sat at 10-17 on the season and the club was spiraling out of control. Now, of course, that isn't all Cora's fault. He is known around the league as one of the best overall managers in the game. But clearly some sort of change was needed in Boston and he ended up being impacted by those decisions.

Boston turned the reins over to Tracy, who was successful with Triple-A Worcester, and the season eventually turned around. When Cora was fired, it was reported that the front office had become frustrated with the coaching staff when it came to the progression of young prospects making the jump to the majors. For example, Kristian Campbell tore it up down in the minors, but then struggled after a hot start to his rookie year in 2025. Tracy, on the other hand, is known for being great with the young guys in the organization.

Now, the Red Sox are 71-59 on the season and have gone 61-42 specifically with Tracy at the helm. But he is still an interim manager. The Red Sox haven't taken the tag off, despite the club's historic turnaround. So, that begs the question: Will they keep Tracy around beyond the 2026 season?

Chad Tracy Has Been Great

May 28, 2026; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Red Sox interim manager Chad Tracy (17) sits in the dugout before a game against the Atlanta Braves at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Eric Canha-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

On Monday, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reported that other names have been discussed, but Tracy currently has the edge, although he isn't guaranteed to return.

"Since firing Alex Cora, the Red Sox front office has certainly discussed other names. At this time, though, it seems Chad Tracy has the edge, albeit no guarantee," Cotillo wrote.

Tracy's road to the manager job wasn't linear. He stepped into the role amid chaos and helped to pick up the pieces.

No matter what happens with the manager role moving forward, Boston looks like a legit World Series contender in the American League and Tracy has played a big role in that. Early on, there were unsurprisingly some growing pains. But he's pressing all of the right buttons so far and we've seen guys step up under him.

Again, when Cora was fired, a talking point out there was how guys coming up from Triple-A struggled once they hit the big leagues. With Tracy leading the charge, we've seen unexpected guys come up and have a legit impact, like Anthony Seigler, Mickey Gasper, Nick Sogard, and Tyron Guerrero, among others. Boston is getting the best out of its guys right now. That's a testament to Tracy.

As Cotillo reported, it's not guaranteed that Tracy will be Boston's manager beyond the 2026 season. While this is the case, he is worthy of the job.

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