Red Sox manager Alex Cora dodges potential punishment for comments about targeting Aaron Judge

Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora won't be punished in the wake of his questionable comments following Saturday's 7-1 win against the New York Yankees about his team possibly throwing at Aaron Judge.

MassLive.com's Chris Cotillo first reported the news on Tuesday afternoon.

Mark W. Sanchez of the New York Post wrote on Monday that MLB was investigating the matter.

Yankees ace Gerrit Cole hit Red Sox star Rafael Devers in the first inning of Saturday's contest and later intentionally walked the third baseman in the fourth inning. Per Sanchez's report, Cora was "irate, feeling that the intentional walk proved intent on the hit-by-pitch because the Yankees ace did not want to face Devers."

Boston's sixth-year leader said on Sunday that the back-and-forth between the longtime rivals was closed "around the sixth inning" on Saturday because his team "had (their) chance" and "it didn't happen."

Though Cora is largely beloved in Beantown (thanks in part to leading the team to its most recent World Series in 2018), he's a controversial figure to some.

Cora was implicated in the Houston Astros sign-stealing scandal and the 48-year-old and the Red Sox mutually agreed to part ways before the 2020 season.

He served a one-year suspension in 2020 and then signed a two-year deal with a two-year option to return to Boston in 2021. The Red Sox went 92-70 in the regular season and eventually lost to the Astros in that season's ALCS.

The last two-plus seasons have been rough for Cora's squad, as they've posted back-to-back 78-84 marks to finish last in the AL East. Boston (75-75) just needs to go 4-8 over its final dozen games to surpass the 2022 and 2023 win totals, but the club is running out of time to make a playoff push.

Cora signed a three-year contract extension in July and the Red Sox enter Tuesday four games behind the Minnesota Twins (79-71) for the third and final AL wild-card spot.