RJM posted:The rumors are the penalties on the Sox will be light. It’s turning out Cora wasn’t the brains behind the Astro’s cheating. So ...
1) Hiring Roenicke maintains some sense of continuity heading into the season. He’s only the interim manager. It allows ...
2) Bloom to take his time finding a manager that fits for his direction, or ...
3) Cora is back next year after a suspension.
Unless it turns out the Sox did very little cheating (which is possible), then Roenicke seems like damaged goods to me. He may not have participated in the cheating, but he presumably would have known it was happening--and did nothing. That might not warrant discipline in a world where players who actively participate get zero punishment; but Roenicke wouldn't be kicked upstairs in the wake of a cheating scandal? That would be hard to stomach.
The more I think about it, the more I think Manfred has let the Sox know they are at least mostly in the clear. I can't imagine Boston would want to run the risk that a few weeks after naming Roenicke they would have to fire him. (And if the team faces any kind of serious sanctions, then I still say promoting Roenicke to manager would be a terrible symbol for MLB.)