Forgotten Cubs infielder thrown into Red Sox chaos that may have started with Alex Bregman

While David Ross is theoretically a fit to be the next manager of the Boston Red Sox after the sudden firing of Alex Cora and his coaching staff on Saturday, the Red Sox have circled another former Chicago Cubs player to right the ship. Continuing the ties between the Red Sox's dysfunction over the past year and the Cubs' organization.

Chad Tracy has been named the interim manager of the Red Sox. While Tracy's playing days are mostly remembered for his time with the Arizona Diamondbacks, the former corner infielder is one of those veterans who had a pit stop in Chicago. Tracy appeared in 28 games with the Cubs during the 2010 season, posting a wRC+ of 71 in 49 plate appearances.

Tracy was serving as Boston's Triple-A manager before getting the immediate call to replace Cora as the skipper of the big-league club. It continues an odd connection between former Cubs and endless drama that has followed the Red Sox since Craig Breslow's arrival.

Breslow was a priority addition to the Cubs' front office ahead of the 2019 season, and largely has been credited for the team's revamped pitching infrastructure. With that success, Breslow was viewed as a logical candidate to lead a baseball organization and was given that opportunity with the Red Sox ahead of the 2024 season.

The Red Sox played to a .500 record during Breslow's first season in charge, but the drama started in earnest last season. As Cubs fans are aware, the Red Sox initially outbid the Cubs for Alex Bregman ahead of the 2025 season. Bregman's arrival in Boston created a divide with the Red Sox's franchise player, Rafael Devers, that resulted in Devers being traded to the San Francisco Giants before the All-Star break.

Cubs have been outsmarting the Boston Red Sox

The trade hasn't aged well for the Red Sox, and making things worse, despite Cora clearly wanting Bregman back, Breslow and Co. low-balled their offer to the All-Star third baseman. The Red Sox's handling of the Bregman negotiations last offseason is what opened the door for the Cubs to come in and sign the veteran to a five-year deal with a full no-trade clause.

That isn't the end of the Cubs' ties to what has gone wrong for the Red Sox this season. With Bregman in Chicago, the Red Sox were in need of an impact hitter. They were connected to Nico Hoerner, but as the extension made clear, the Cubs had no real intention of trading their second baseman. The same may not have been the case for Matt Shaw, but the Red Sox opted to trade for former Milwaukee Brewers third baseman Caleb Durbin instead.

Through his first 96 plate appearances this season, Durbin is slashing .165/.260/.271 with a wRC+ of 48. Meanwhile, despite not having a defined position, Shaw is slashing .300/.338/.483 with a 128 wRC+ through his first 66 plate appearances with the Cubs this season. After a slow start to the season, Bregman is slashing .315/.387/.444 with a wRC+ of 132 over his last 62 plate appearances.

For all the criticism Jed Hoyer takes on as the Cubs' President of Baseball Operations, Cubs fans are waking up today grateful that their team isn't in the position that the Red Sox are in.

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