Once upon a time, Alex Cora was on TV.

Cora has occasionally leaned on his past life as a broadcaster when things around him get murky. Ahead of last season, with his future in Boston up in the air, he didn’t rule out a return to television. But a few months later, he signed a three-year extension to remain in the dugout.

Now, with the 2025 MLB Trade Deadline approaching, Cora finds himself steering a 26-man clubhouse filled with players who may or may not be around by the end of the month. The Red Sox are expected to be buyers. As of the writing of this article, they sit 6.5 games out of first place in the American League East and would hold the second Wild Card spot if the season ended today.

When asked what he tells the team amid all the noise, Cora leaned on his ESPN background to deliver a bit of perspective.

“Don’t read too much,” Cora said. “I can tell them stories about ESPN in the green room, how people made sh*t up. Trades — I can tell them that. Don’t believe everything that is said. It’s hard because that’s what rules the world, right? You get into any social platform, and if you’re looking for baseball, your feed is going to be filled with baseball stories. There’s a lot of people that are very responsible with their trades, rumors, and their contacts. Others, they’re not.”

Alex Cora says he tells his player not to read too much about the trade deadline, saying ESPN talent used to make up fake trades in the green room before shows while he was working there:

“…People made s*** up, you know? Trades – I can tell them that. Don’t believe everything… pic.twitter.com/nbOIfEUvE9

— Tom Carroll (@yaboiTCfresh) July 27, 2025

“Just block it. Just go out there and play,” he continued. “We’ve got a job to do tonight. We have the Twins, and then we have Thursday off, which I think is perfect. Thursday off, hide if you want to hide, and we’ll see what happens.”

When asked if he actually witnessed people fabricating fake trade rumors during his ESPN days, or if that’s just a tactic to settle the clubhouse, Cora played it coy. But he didn’t exactly deny it either.

“I got stories, man,” he said. “I don’t want to embarrass people.”

Cora, the former ESPN analyst, wasn’t just warning his players about trade rumors. He was also reminding them that not everything they see or scroll past is worth believing

This wasn’t just about trade rumors. It was Cora, the former ESPN analyst, reminding his players that not everything they see — or scroll past — is worth believing. Especially this time of year, when there’s no longer a line between reporting and speculation. Whether his stories from the TV days are exaggerated or not doesn’t really matter. What matters is that his players block out the noise and focus on what’s in front of them.

Easier said than done, though.