WORCESTER — About a month removed from one of the most tumultuous days in Boston Red Sox history, Chad Tracy is finding his footing as the club’s interim manager. Now, the question is, will he shed the interim tag?
On April 25, Tracy was named Alex Cora’s replacement after Boston fired the longtime skipper and several members of his coaching staff, including beloved ex-Red Sox captain Jason Varitek. The stunning news broke during Triple-A Worcester’s game vs. the Syracuse Mets. Tracy left the WooSox dugout upon hearing of his promotion and joined the Red Sox in Baltimore, taking the helm just 16 hours after Cora’s departure.
Iggy Suarez, Worcester’s third base coach at the time, took over Tracy’s managerial duties.
“It’s a shock, just how everything went down,” Suarez told NBC Sports Boston. “I’m not surprised that it’s Chad Tracy getting the opportunity. I’m happy for him. I’ve kind of been on his hip for the last year and a half, seeing how he goes about his process and what he does. It’s good to see how he works. There’s no better guy right now to be in that position.
“But when that all initially happened in that Saturday game, mid-game, it was a surprise, because you obviously never think something like that is gonna happen. It was a shock, and it took us a little bit to realize what was going down, but when the dust settled a little bit, we were happy for Trace. I’m glad he’s having the opportunity.”
WooSox manager Iggy Suarez talks about wild Saturday game when they found out Alex Cora was being fired, and Chad Tracy would replace him.
Since then, Tracy’s Red Sox have posted a 12-10 record. They were 10-17 at the time of Cora’s firing, so they’ve taken a small step forward since their abysmal start.
As the season continues, there surely will be questions about who should assume the official Red Sox manager position. Tracy is expected to be a leading candidate, but there presumably will be several other interesting names — some with plenty of MLB managerial experience — considered for the role.
“The only way you gain experience is by someone giving you the opportunity to get it,” WooSox hitting instructor and former Red Sox catcher Rich Gedman told NBC Sports Boston. “I think if Chad just continues to be Chad and doesn’t change because it’s the big leagues, he’ll do just fine.
“He’s a solid baseball guy, he’s a solid man. He’s as good a guy as you’re gonna get. Hopefully, the players can play for him, and he reaps the benefits of the opportunity that he has.”
A ‘genuine’ approach
One player who has spent time with both Tracy and Cora is former top prospect Kristian Campbell. The 23-year-old made Boston’s 2025 Opening Day roster after soaring through the minor league ranks, but was sent back down to Triple-A — where he remains — after experiencing growing pains in the majors.
“They’re very similar. They’re both really good managers, in my opinion,” Campbell told NBC Sports Boston. “They both know how to manage the game, they both know how to relate to the players, and they’ve both played professional baseball, so they have a lot in common. From my point of view, I had a good time with both of them, and I think they did a really good job at their job.”
Tracy, the son of former manager Jim Tracy, played eight minor-league seasons but never reached the majors. He hit .265/.336/.453 with 127 homers over 857 games in the Texas Rangers, Colorado Rockies, and Kansas City Royals organizations.
So, what makes Tracy good at his job? We’ve seen enough of his in-game management to know he looks the part, but his clubhouse presence is perhaps even more important. Leadership is in short supply in this Red Sox clubhouse, so what does Tracy bring in that department?
“He’s just a genuine person,” Suarez said. “Baseball guy, gets it, been through the grind. Kind of knows how it is to be a player through those ups and downs, and being able to communicate is for him. He’s very up front, very honest, but again, it’s genuine. It’s nothing where it’s harsh and in your face, it’s just very honest.
“I think especially at this level and at the big-league level, that’s important. Especially now, going into the situation he’s in. I think the genuineness of establishing a relationship is what makes him a great manager.
Patience paying off?
Asked to share one quality of Tracy’s that he tries to implement in his job as a manager, Suarez didn’t hesitate.
“His patience, for sure,” he answered. “I’ve managed for quite some time in A-ball, and having patience is something as a manager that you grow to learn. You never stop learning how to be patient. So, seeing him kind of handle situations in-game and still be cool, calm, and collected — to see his patience and how he’s able to kind of think through it very calmly, is something that I admire from afar.”
Campbell seconded Suarez’s assessment of Tracy’s ability to communicate effectively with players.
“He does a good job communicating every day of what he wants from us,” Campbell said. “Everybody’s different, especially when it comes to baseball. There’s different roles and different tasks that we all need to get better at, and from a development standpoint in Triple-A, there’s a lot of stuff for us to work on. I feel like he let us know what it was from the get-go.”
When Campbell was demoted to Triple-A last year, Tracy helped him get back into the right headspace.
“He was just there for me, there to back me up. Anything I needed, I could go to him and talk to him about it,” Campbell said. “But from a communication standpoint, he did a good job of telling me what he needed me to do and what he wanted me to work on and improve on when it came to offense and defense.”
Gedman, who had worked alongside Tracy since 2022, raved about his leadership ability.
“I think he’s a wonderful leader. He leads by example, he’s a straight shooter, there’s no BS with him,” the two-time All-Star said. “He’s baseball through and through, but there’s a great person in there. He’s a seasoned vet, if you will.
“He’s a hard worker, he’s a good dad. I mean, all those things when you talk about the character of a good person, I’m not sure I have enough adjectives to do the justice he deserves, but he’s a special person and if anybody has a chance to settle this down, I think he’s the type of guy.”
NBC Sports Boston
NBC Sports Boston Chad Tracy managed several key Red Sox players, including Roman Anthony, Marcelo Mayer, Ceddanne Rafaela, and Wilyer Abreu, in Worcester.
Relationship with the young core
When Tracy is evaluated for the managerial role alongside more experienced candidates, he’ll have one significant advantage. During his time in Worcester, he had already built relationships with several key Red Sox players on their roads to the majors, such as Campbell, Roman Anthony, Marcelo Mayer, Ceddanne Rafaela, and Wilyer Abreu, among others. Players might prefer that familiarity over starting from scratch with a new hire.
“Just being in this organization a couple of years, having some familiarity with the players already during spring training, that’s one thing that kind of made the transition a little easier for him and gives him kind of a leg up on other candidates,” Suarez said. “There’s relationships already established. Then it’s almost like, ‘OK, let’s just play the game. Let’s do what we’ve done our whole lives.’
“Still, the big-league level is very difficult, but I think that’s the one thing he has a leg up on. The experience with the young players coming up that we’ve had here in Triple-A, and just being able to have that relationship. That’s one thing that’s gonna help him hopefully get into a situation where he’s able to get the spot up there.”
With this year’s club, Tracy has his hands full. The Red Sox offense has been among MLB’s worst, ranking 29th in runs scored (181), 29th in home runs (36), and 26th in OPS (.680). Pitching has been a strength, but that only gets you so far when you can’t score.
Optimism around the club has been hard to come by, but you can find it in Worcester. Gedman, who experienced his fair share of ups and downs during his playing career in Boston from 1980 to 1990, believes Tracy & Co. can still right the ship.
“We have not seen the best of the Boston Red Sox yet,” Gedman said. “That could happen if Alex is there or not there. But the nice part is we get to talk about Trace, who gets the opportunity. Hopefully, he can steer the ship in the right direction. You get enough guys rowing in the right direction with him, they could become who they think they’re capable of being.”
Fresh off a three-game series sweep of the Kansas City Royals, the Red Sox (22-27) will look to stay hot when they begin a three-game set against the Minnesota Twins on Friday at Fenway Park.
