The Red Sox clubhouse looked more like a busy UPS Store on Wednesday.
There were cardboard boxes and rolls of bubble wrap everywhere as the players gathered their belongings to be shipped home. Clubhouse manager Tom McLaughlin and his staff moved efficiently around the room, loading boxes with gloves, cleats, sweatshirts and whatever else the players had accumulated over a long season.
There was even an electric keyboard being wrapped up as the Sox were preparing for their final game at Fenway Park the season.
Many of the players will head for home once Game 162 ends in Baltimore on Sunday and leave all the bad memories of this season behind.
The bigger question now is who will be back in those lockers on April 9 when the Sox are scheduled to play their home opener against the Orioles.
Who can say for sure? The Sox fired Chaim Bloom two weeks ago and there’s been only speculation about who might replace him. That’s no surprise, as standard procedure is to wait until after the season to request formal permission to interview candidates from other teams.
Team president Sam Kennedy offered a little clarity, telling Tom Caron on NESN’s pregame show that the Sox planned to hire two people: a head of baseball operations and a general manager below that person.
Kennedy said internal candidates are being considered, which could open the door to assistant general managers Eddie Romero, Raquel Ferreira, and others on the staff.
But whoever gets the job won’t be picking their own manager.
“I’m good. I’ll be here next year,” Alex Cora said when asked how secure he was about his status.
That required a follow-up. Has Cora been guaranteed he’ll be manager next season?
“I’ll be here next year,” he said again.
Kennedy confirmed that with Caron, saying Cora would indeed be back as manager.
“Nonissue from where I sit,” Kennedy said. “He’s our manager and he’s going to be here.”
That’s a good decision. Cora bears some responsibility for the last two seasons, particularly the fundamental mistakes that have happened far too often this year. But Bloom gave him a flawed roster from the start.
The Sox had too many poor defensive players and not nearly enough reliable pitchers. Those issues showed up on the field day after day.
Through Tuesday, the Sox had the third-fewest defensive runs saved in the American League (minus-24) and the fifth-highest earned run average (4.59). Their starters had a 4.80 ERA. The base-running also has been atrocious at times.
That’s more a product of talent, not coaching. That the Sox were over .500 through mid-September was an achievement.
Look at it this way: Are there any players on the 40-man roster you’re convinced will be an All-Star in the next 2-3 years?
Rafael Devers probably. Maybe Triston Casas. Anybody else?
No staffer in baseball operations, Cora included, should be guaranteed anything at this stage. Wednesday’s 5-0 loss against the Rays left the 76-82 Sox locked into last place for the second consecutive season and the sixth time in 12 years.
They are a whopping 44 games out of first place over the last two seasons.
The next head of baseball operations will inherit a better farm system thanks to the work Bloom did. But the major league roster needs rebuilding.
“We recognize we have a lot of work to do,” Kennedy said.
The Sox, Kennedy said, are planning out how their search will be conducted. He claimed the new baseball ops will have authority to make changes, even among longtime staffers. We’ll see.
Of late, Kennedy has emphasized the Sox being big spenders in baseball operations. By that he means staffing, resources, and technology.
That’s necessary and important. But the MLB payroll dropped significantly this season and we saw the results. There has to be a bigger investment in talent and a collective sense of urgency throughout the organization. Otherwise it’ll be another late September of bubble wrap, mailing labels and early flights home.
Peter Abraham can be reached at peter.abraham@globe.com. Follow him on Bluesky at peteabeglobe.bsky.social.