Alex Cora played 1,273 games in the big leagues, 616 of which were as a shortstop. He defended that position more than any other, but back then, he didn’t have a reference at the position in his hometown.
«We had catchers,» he said. His father seemed to have some kind of admiration for the Venezuelan-born shortstop Dave Concepción. Cora didn’t give too many details, but he remembers that his dad put a poster of the former Cincinnati Reds infielder in his room—and there is something he remembers clearly.
«My dad put it out there,» manager Alex Cora said on Wednesday ahead of the series finale against the Cincinnati Reds, which was Concepción’s team during his 19 years in the big leagues. «And I thought, oh shoot, that’s cool. The bounce throw to first base on turf — that was sick.»
The Boston Red Sox and the Cincinnati Reds are facing each other this week, and Alex Cora’s team decided to commemorate the 1975 World Series between the two clubs.
That was the series remembered for Johnny Pesky’s famous home run, but in the end, the Red Sox fell short.
That Fall Classic was one for the ages. In fact, six current members of the Baseball Hall of Fame played in that series, and Pete Rose—recently removed from the Ineligible List—could potentially join them in Cooperstown in 2028.
NESN did something special to honor that World Series by using a graphic design inspired by the era.
«If you go back and watch some of those games, it was fantastic,» Cora added. «We can all talk about the Fisk homer, but the whole series was back and forth. It was really, really good. That playoff series was amazing.»
But more than Dave Concepción, there is another Venezuelan-born shortstop who is closer to Alex Cora — and that is Ozzie Guillén.
«13 is for Ozzie.»
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«Alex Cora and Ozzie Guillén have had a connection for a long time,» said a person close to the Guillén family. «They’ve been friends since high school.» Alex Cora already spoke about that relationship during a visit to Chicago a year ago.
Photo: @Reds
