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Alex Cora becoming popular candidate for managerial openings

By Tim Haberin

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He has become a familiar sight in ESPN’s Baseball Tonight studio, but Alex Cora might soon return to a major league dugout. According to reports from FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal and CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman, the former infielder has drawn interest from several clubs seeking to fill their managerial vacancies:

With the San Diego Padres, Miami Marlins and Washington Nationals already lining up to talk to him, Cora has quickly turned into one of the more popular names on the market. This isn’t the first time he’s been on the managerial radar either. He interviewed last year with the Texas Rangers before they eventually settled on Jeff Banister.

Cora played 14 seasons in the big leagues, debuting in 1998 with the Los Angeles Dodgers and retiring after spending 2011 with the Nationals. He also suited up for the Cleveland Indians, Boston Red Sox and New York Mets, winning a World Series with Boston in 2007.

Though never a particularly strong hitter (he finished with a .243/.310/.338 career slash line), Cora was known for his versatility with the glove. He spent time at each infield position and made a handful of appearances in the outfield as well.

The 39-year-old Cora has no previous coaching experience, but teams have not hesitated to hire similar candidates over the past several years. Current skippers such as Mike Matheny, Robin Ventura, Brad Ausmus and Kevin Cash all made relatively swift jumps from player to manager in recent memory.

Franchises often see recent retirees as more vibrant, better able to relate to current players and more actively engaged with the modern game. It’s hard to predict just how successful Cora would be as a manager, but he was renowned throughout his playing career for his intelligence, leadership and the level of respect he commanded in the clubhouse, traits that would serve him well in the role.

Fans interested in learning more about Cora’s perspectives on baseball need only tune into ESPN’s MLB postseason coverage. He recently offered his opinion concerning Chase Utley‘s controversial slide into Ruben Tejada during the NLDS clash between the Dodgers and Mets.

Cora doesn’t lack for competition, though. Former 12-year veteran Phil Nevin has already interviewed with the Nationals and Marlins, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today. Meetings with the Padres and Seattle Mariners are still to come. More seasoned names like longtime Minnesota Twins skipper Ron Gardenhire are also generating interest.

Next: MLB will hear Utley appeal on 10/19

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