News | My Sports

Cora might not visit the White House due to concern for his native Puerto Rico.

Alex Cora isn’t firm on White House visit: ‘Right now I can say yes’

The Red Sox are set to visit the White House next month, but Alex Cora might not make the trip.

The 43-year-old manager, who is a native of Puerto Rico, indicated he is reconsidering celebrating his team's World Series championship at the White House amid reports that the government attempted to block disaster-recovery funds for Puerto Rico from the effects of Hurricane Maria in 2017 to help finance a wall along the Mexican border.

Cora said (via USA Today) of visiting the White House: “Right now I can say yes. ... It might change tomorrow.”

The Red Sox accepted the invitation from Trump's administration in December, and Cora initially said he would attend and use the opportunity to represent Puerto Rico, promising to use the platform in the “right way."

“In the offseason I was like ‘whoa.’ It’s different right now back home,” Cora said (via the Boston Globe). “Not only for me but for my family. So we’ll see. We’ll see. I’ll represent them the right way. We’ll have to wait.”

Cora explained that his final decision will be based on whether he will accomplish more by attending or staying home.

"I don't know what kind of platform I'm going to have if I go," he said. "Sometimes, if you walk the other way and you get your back to whatever is going on, is it positive? I don't know. Sometimes you've got to show your face."

The team, which finished 2018 with a 108-54 record and topped the Dodgers in five games in the World Series, will make the trip to Washington D.C. on Feb. 15.

Top Headlines