Alex Cora says 18-inning loss is ‘not crushing at all’
"Not at all."
Red Sox manager Alex Cora does not appear fazed by his team’s loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 3 of the World Series, even if it took 18 innings, seven hours, 20 minutes, and 46 players to reach the unfavorable outcome.
“It’s not crushing at all,” Cora said after Boston’s 3-2 defeat. “I just talked to [the team]. I told them how proud I am. … That was a great baseball game. It’s probably one of the best — if not the best — game I’ve ever been a part of.”
The Sox had a few opportunities to strike against the Dodgers, but the home team ultimately prevailed with a walk-off home run from infielder Max Muncy. Los Angeles avoided a 3-0 series deficit and, now, can tie things up with another win in Game 4 Saturday night — less than 17 hours after Game 3 concluded.
Cora didn’t offer any indication about who might start Saturday. He initially tapped right-hander Nathan Eovaldi to take the mound, but those plans were quickly foiled once Game 3 extended into extras. Eovaldi pitched six innings out of the bullpen Friday and struck out five before giving up Muncy’s solo blast.
“What Nate did [Friday], that was amazing,” Cora said.
Throwing 97 pitches still didn’t stop Eovaldi from volunteering to get back out there Saturday, though back-to-back outings of such length seem rather unlikely. The Red Sox instead will likely turn to newly activated Drew Pomeranz or Eduardo Rodriguez — both of whom have yet to start in October — as their Game 4 starter. Cora did not express any worry surrounding the uncertain situation.
“There are a few guys that are lining up in my office to start the game tomorrow,” Cora said. “We’ll decide what we’ll do, and we’ll be fine.”
