Alex Cora's balancing acts begin on Opening Day

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Right out of the gate, there are challenges for Alex Cora. Situations for the new Red Sox skipper to dance through. Trade-offs for him to balance. Delicate matters for him to tactfully address and otherwise, well, manage.

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Spring-training records do not matter because they are not predictive of what happens in the regular season. But the Red Sox’ major-league best 22-9-1 mark did create some small gains for Cora and the team.

There’s more confidence amongst the group than if they had gone 9-22, we assure you. The greater impact, however, has been noise reduction. Had the Sox struggled in spring, particularly with a first-time manager in place, some media and fans would be wondering: What’s wrong with them? What does it mean? Why aren’t they playing well? (Heck, people are wondering whether J.D. Martinez’s lack of spring home runs means anything. Nope.)

In all, it’s been smooth sailing for Cora. The position players are in good health. There are back-of-the-rotation questions, but Cora has most of the projected team at his disposal.

Now, as the games become real, so too do the hurdles for Cora. Here is a look at some of the matters at the forefront as the Red Sox kick off 2018.

Keeping Hanley Ramirez locked in

Cora said on Wednesday that Ramirez is going to be batting third on Opening Day. From a production standpoint alone, it makes sense. But Cora may also be playing a long game here: make Ramirez feel as valued and important as possible. All spring, when Cora has been asked about Ramirez’s engagement level, he’s referred back to how good Ramirez looked in the American League Division Series. He did so again on Wednesday. But a proactive approach with Ramirez, who had health problems in 2017 but also didn’t appear enamored with the idea of playing first base, is an encouraging start. The trick will be not to become too deferential to Ramirez, to show tough love — and Cora’s capable of that.

Making Mitch Moreland a contributor

Tying into Ramirez is Mitch Moreland’s happiness off the bench. Moreland’s a valuable piece, and keeping him fresh enough to feel ready while also keeping Ramirez engaged may not be easy. But a meritocracy is hard to argue with. Moreland doesn’t appear the type who would stew, but Cora can’t just assume Moreland will love being a part-timer as the season unfolds. Competitive players and talented players want to play. Moreland is both. As much as can be, Cora will need Moreland to buy in.

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Ensuring Eduardo Nunez’s health

Eduardo Nunez isn’t coming off knee surgery as Dustin Pedroia is, but he still has a knee injury he’s coming back from. Will there be moments when Cora pulls Nunez after seven innings? Deven Marrero is gone from the organization, Tzu-Wei Lin is available in the minors, Marco Hernandez is looking at the 60-day disabled list. There’s help behind Brock Holt if something happens to Nunez, but using Nunez judiciously will be key.

“We’ll decide what we do with the game [substitutions in late innings], but he’s going to rest, he’s the guy we have to take care of,” Cora said.

Placating competitive pitchers

Some pitcher is always going to be mad at a manager on any given day. That’s the way it is. A starter feels like he should have stayed in, a reliever is mad he warmed up and didn’t get in. Any of it. It always happens. 

But this is a first-time manager who’s going to be encountering this unhappiness. Cora on Wednesday lightheartedly recalled filling in as manager for most of a game against the Rays last season at Tropicana Field, as Astros bench coach. “I took out [Collin] McHugh after 4 2/3 [innings],” Cora said. “He wanted to kill me.”

Just for example: Chris Sale’s an intense competitor. If Cora comes out to get Sale in the seventh inning when Sale is dealing, and Sale appears ticked afterward, does Cora know what he’ll do?

"If it were up to me I'd start the game and finish it,” Sale said Wednesday. “Obviously that's probably a little unrealistic, but that's not for me to worry about. Like I said, I go out there and I give everything I've got until they tell me I'm done. Anything other than that gets in the way.”

Craig Kimbrel’s saves

Craig Kimbrel missed a chunk of spring training to be in Boston with his wife and their young daughter, Lydia, who has undergone heart procedures. Family matters far beyond any game conversation, any issue of usage, any baseball matter at all. 

Kimbrel is with the team now, and looked good in his final spring outing Tuesday. At the beginning of spring, he and Cora appeared headed toward the same page when it comes to use in non-save situations. Will they get there? Will Kimbrel embrace being used for three outs in the eighth inning, and at what point in the season does Cora first attempt such a usage? Wins in April count the same as those in August.

Getting J.D. Martinez his outfield time

Clearly, playing the outfield matters to J.D. Martinez. But it matters to Andrew Benintendi and Jackie Bradley Jr. and Mookie Betts too. There’s nothing in Martinez’s contract that assures him playing time in left field, yet, he came to Boston with the understanding he would see some time there. If there’s no health situation that allows for Martinez to easily slide in, will it be easy to get Martinez enough reps out there such that Martinez feels satisfied?

Publicly addressing bad plays

The unknown at this point is how blunt Cora will be when speaking to the media. Accountability and protecting his players add up to a very fine line. How will Cora explain a clear mistake? Will it be in such a way that amounts to reality for the listener, viewer or reader, but also keeps his clubhouse happy? Accountability was a theme in 2017, and John Farrell didn’t always grab that bull by the horns.