Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora on if he is ejected from game against Philadelphia Phillies: "If I get thrown out, I’m going to the [Celtics] game"
Alex Cora's main attention might have been on the Boston Red Sox, however, he kept a close eye on Boston's other team that was playing in their playoffs. With the Boston Celtics playing right next door in Philadelphia itself, Cora said he'd go watch the basketball game had he been ejected from the dugout.
The Red Sox, riding high off a big series sweep against the Toronto Blue Jays, traveled on the road to Philadelphia. Coincidentally the Celtics too drew the Philadelphia 76ers in the NBA Eastern Conference playoff semi-finals.
The NBA games in Philly were scheduled for Friday and Sunday night, whereas the Red Sox play the Phillies all three days of the weekend.
Alex Cora, manager of the Boston Red Sox, who has slowly acquired the taste of being in the Celtics fanbase during his time in Boston, acknowledged that had he been thrown out of the first game against the Phillies he would rather go and watch the basketball action. Both arenas, the Citizens Bank Park and the Wells Fargo Center are separated by a ten-minute walk, located on either side of Pattison Avenue.
“If I get thrown out, I’m going to the (Celtics) game,” Cora said jokingly in the pre game press conference. “I’ve gotta get thrown out early, too.”
Alex Cora sitting court side at #Celtics vs #Jazz with Steve Pagliuca. David Ortiz is also at the TD Garden tonight, receiving a huge ovation 🍀https://t.co/a4FHyIw1h3
Alex Cora also talked about how he eventually became a Celtics fan as he started living in Boston.
“I love it. I’ve gotta be honest with you, when I started playing with the Dodgers, I used to get tickets for the Lakers back in the day,” Cora said. “And then you get here (Boston) and you get caught up with the fever and the atmosphere and the city. ... You get caught up on the whole thing and you start pulling for them."
Alex Cora hopes the Celtics can come back from Finals loss last season
As a loyal fan of the Boston Celtics, Alex Cora would definitely be hoping that his favorite basketball team can go one step further than last season, in their quest for an NBA championship.
“And then these guys last year, they fell short and they’re on a mission,” Cora added about the C’s. “When they’re playing at that high level and intensity, it’s hard to beat them. But it’s the playoffs. It should be fun. Too bad we’re playing at the same time. And Sunday obviously we’re hopping on a plane to Atlanta but it should be an intense weekend over here.”
The Celtics triumphed over the 76ers in Game 3 of their series on Friday and are currently leading 2-1. To Cora's satisfaction, even the Red Sox picked up the win over the reigning National League champions as they won the game 5-3.