“The impact in the clubhouse, it was amazing.” Those were the words of Alex Cora when asked about the Phillies slugger. He knows all about the Phillies’ power threat. How? Well, he was a former Boston bat. Now, he has been in the news for everything from All-Star heroics to contract drama. When the subject came up, Cora didn’t hold back his thoughts.

He is currently under a four-year, $79 million contract that ends after this season. His free-agent situation has been the talk of the town. The Phillies are interested in re-signing him, but there’s no official news yet. Everyone is watching when it will happen, and so is Cora.

That threat is Kyle Schwarber. Just before the Phillies-Red Sox game, Cora was asked how interested he was in the outcome of Schwarber’s possible free agency. His answer was short and to the point: “Very. Very intrigued.”

Schwarber’s history with Boston adds intrigue to the current situation. In 2021, he was traded from Washington and played 41 games for the Red Sox, hitting seven home runs and posting a .957 OPS. His performance energized Fenway Park and earned him the nickname “Kyle from Waltham.” He continued to shine in the playoffs, adding three more home runs in eleven games.

But that’s not all. Cora said that he has been talking to Dave Dombrowski, the president of baseball operations for the Phillies. He said, “I talked to Dave about him when it was happening… We have talked a little bit the last few days. They’re very happy with him. We’ll see what the future holds.” And he further said, “I hate to say it, but Philly is a perfect place for him. He can handle all this and more. Very proud of him.”

Schwarber has been a key player for Philadelphia this season. In 101 games, he has hit 33 home runs and driven in 75 runs with a .248/.376/.558 slash line. This puts him seventh in the majors in home runs and eighth in both RBIs and OPS (0.934). He has hit seven home runs and driven in more than ten runs in July alone. This was evident in the game against the Red Sox, when he hit a homer in the second inning.

The final score was Phillies 4, Red Sox 1. Cristopher Sánchez, a left-handed pitcher for the Phillies, stole the show with a complete-game gem that included 12 Ks and only four hits. Boston’s lineup struggled, leaving runners on base and managing just one home run from Rob Refsnyder, highlighting a decline in offensive production. The skipper is clearly not happy with this decline.

Alex Cora voices concerns over the Red Sox’s struggle

The Red Sox offense has been bad for a long time, not just on Tuesday. Alex Cora called out struggling rookies after a 6-0 loss in Chicago on July 18. He said that roster slots aren’t guaranteed and that Connor Wong is still 0-for-30 with runners in scoring position. “We need [Wong] to contribute… We’re not going to play [Narváez] every day.”

That harsh-nosed attitude stayed with them on the drive to Philadelphia, too. Cora admitted that Monday’s 3-2 loss, which was due to catcher’s interference, was unusual, but he stressed the true problem: their bats went missing, and they only scored three runs and collected 12 hits in two games.

Cora’s message hit home following Sánchez’s 12-strikeout complete game on Tuesday, when they lost 4-1: “If we want to play in October, we have to find a way to hit those guys.” Boston was outmatched at the plate against top pitchers like Sánchez and Wheeler.

In these three July games, 6-0, 3-2, and 4-1, Boston has only scored an average of 2.1 runs per game over their last seven. Cora’s tone is strong: this slump can’t last. They need to start hitting home runs right away if they want to reach October.