Alex Cora Reveals Pep Talk For 'Passive' Red Sox 25-Year-Old Star Before Big Home Run

The manager of the Sox doesn't like to mince words...

Apr 2, 2025; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Boston Red Sox first baseman Triston Casas (36) looks on before a game against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images / Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images

Being a manager in Major League Baseball is about far more than just writing the lineup card.

The baseball season is so long, and the nature of the sport is so volatile, that every player is going to go through struggles. Part of the job of a great skipper is to know exactly what to say (or not say) to help pull a player out of a funk.

The Boston Red Sox had a handful of players in deep funks to begin the season. Among them was first baseman Triston Casas, who went 2-for-21 to open the season without an extra-base hit, batting out of the cleanup spot in the lineup.

Casas showed his first signs of life on Thursday, when he hit a towering opposite-field home run to left center field against the Baltimore Orioles' Keegan Akin. And manager Alex Cora's pep talk in Casas' second language may have contributed to the long ball.

“He knows when I talk to him in Spanish, it means something,” Cora said before Thursday's game, per Christopher Smith of MassLive. “And he felt like he was actually being aggressive. And I was like, ‘You look passive at the plate.’ So just let it eat.”

After the game, Casas acknowledged the advice from his manager, describing some of the challenges he faces as a power hitter who's unlikely to get a lot of meatballs.

 “Being aggressive and being passive is a two-way street,” Casas said. “It’s a push and a pull. You’re too much of one and they’ll take advantage of it. And too much of the other, it’s not productive. So it’s gonna be something I balance throughout the year.

"Coming into the season I wasn’t sure which direction I was gonna start. Got a lot of fastballs in Texas, as well as here. So I’ve been getting attacked. And I think that’s just his message to me as if they’re gonna attack me in the zone to go right back at it and swing hard.”

The 25-year-old Casas is one of the most important hitters to the Red Sox lineup, and Thursday could wind up becoming the start of a hot streak. He'll look to carry the momentum into Boston's home opener Friday afternoon against the St. Louis Cardinals.

More MLB: Alex Bregman Sounds Off On Fenway Park Debut After Hitting 1st Red Sox Home Run