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The Red Sox are struggling, and speculation has begun about Alex Cora's job security amid their 9-14 start.

Boston Red Sox starter Brayan Bello has been very underwhelming this season, and it isn’t a good sign when bad body language starts to reveal itself.

On Friday night, the Red Sox lost to the Baltimore Orioles 10-3 and fell to an American League-worst 9-17. You couldn’t draw up a worse start for the Red Sox, who have strong playoff aspirations that may be going by the wayside. When visiting Brayan Bello on the mound, Boston manager Alex Cora did not hold back in his messaging to the young starter.

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Brayan Bello’s Rough Start to Season/ Alex Cora’s Message

(Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images)Brayan Bello #66 of the Boston Red Sox throws a pitch during the second inning against the New York Yankees in game two of the American League Wild Card Series at Yankee Stadium on October 01, 2025 in the Bronx borough of New York City.

Brayan Bello has just not been able to find any rhythm to start this season, and you have to wonder how many more opportunities he will be given as a starter before the Red Sox start having to make tough decisions.

In Friday’s loss, Bello was roughed up. He pitched just 3.1 innings, and gave up eight earned runs on eight hits, 5 of which were home runs. His ERA now sits at 9.00 over 22 innings pitched. Yep, the math is pretty easy there: that’s 22 earned runs over his five starts. Bello, 26, in under control until 2029, but has a bWAR of -1.0 ALREADY this season. It’s April.

Alex Cora revealed his stern messaging to Brayan Bello during a mound visit in Friday’s game against the Orioles:

“The reason I went to the mound was like, ‘We don’t need to put the head down,” Cora said. “We’re here to compete, be prepared. We go out there and do our best. Regardless of the situation, you’ve got to keep competing and he actually did. I’ll give him that. But we’ve got to figure it out.”

Bellow allowed three home runs to the Orioles in the first inning of the game.

Cora also mentions how he issued Bello an apology after, if that’s even worth anything:

“I just wanted to make sure. I told (pitching coach Andrew Bailey), ‘My bad.’ I usually don’t do that unless I’m upset at somebody. In this case, it was more about ‘Hey man, we’ve got to keep going. We need you.’ We need Brayan Bello to be good.”

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Should the Red Sox Trade Brayan Bello?

GettyThe Red Sox are receiving interest in Brayan Bello, but don’t seem too interested in moving the young starter.

Sorry, but the question must be asked at this point. The Red Sox are kinda in a tricky situation here with Bello, given the fact that he is signed to a $55 million contract, and his trade value is diminishing by the start.

One thing the Red Sox could do is demote him to a bullpen role, but what good does that really do?

With the Red Sox struggling so badly, trade speculation is surely to follow, and surely Bello’s name could become the subject of rumors, along with Jarren Duran, Masataka Yoshida, Sonny Gray, and more.

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