Less than 20% of the way into the MLB season, two high-profile teams have fired their managers. The Boston Red Sox, in last place in the American League East, let go of Alex Cora, and then the Philadelphia Phillies axed Rob Thomson. The Phillies are tied with the New York Mets for last in the National League East. Will this be the wake-up call these teams need? <\/p>\n
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In the NBA playoffs last night, Joel Embiid had a vintage performance to extend the Philadelphia 76ers\u2019 season. Also, a sports league might have figured out how to curtail tanking.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s lots to get to in today\u2019s newsletter. For more coverage, check out the NBC News website<\/a>.<\/p>\n Firing Season<\/p>\n Baseball, famously, is described as a game of failure. But too much failure in the season\u2019s first month has already cost two managers their jobs.<\/p>\n After starting the season with the sixth-best odds to win the World Series, the Red Sox had stumbled out of the gate to a 10-17 record. Following Saturday\u2019s 17-1 win in Baltimore, Red Sox coaches were reportedly about to go to dinner when Cora and five other coaches learned they had been fired.<\/p>\n Since the Red Sox won the 2018 World Series title under Cora, they have gone to the playoffs just twice. Making matters more awkward, they were driven out of Baltimore by the unfortunately named van service<\/a> Coaches4Hire, as many pointed out online.<\/p>\n Yet one team\u2019s scapegoat can be another\u2019s preferred candidate. Only a day after Cora was fired, Philadelphia fired its manager, Thomson, and offered Cora the job to lead the Phillies. Cora declined, however.<\/p>\n It was only four years ago that Thomson had been the beneficiary of a midseason manager change, leading Philadelphia to a World Series berth in 2022 after taking over for Joe Girardi early that season. Now, he was the victim of a floundering start that had seen the Phillies go 9-19, their worst start since 2002, despite a payroll in the neighborhood of $300 million.<\/p>\n Nine teams changed managers entering this season, which means more firings are likely. For now, all eyes turn to the skidding Mets, who own one of baseball\u2019s most expensive payrolls and worst records.<\/p>\n Vintage Embiid<\/p>\n Perhaps no modern superstar has been as snakebitten as Embiid.<\/p>\n The Philadelphia 76ers center has dealt with a shocking amount of bad luck during his playoff career in particular, suffering injuries ranging from illnesses to an orbital fracture to Bell\u2019s palsy. The common thread, no matter the severity of the injury, is that Embiid almost always tries to play through the pain.<\/p>\n That\u2019s what made his performance last night so inspiring. Only 19 days removed from an emergency surgery for appendicitis, with his team on the brink of elimination, Embiid scored 33 points and dished eight assists and led the No. 7 Philadelphia 76ers to a 113-97 win over the No. 2 Boston Celtics. Embiid also played through a knee injury he suffered during the game. The series will now move back to Philly with the Sixers trailing 3-2.<\/p>\n After starting the game shooting 1-for-6 from the field, Embiid made 11 of his last 17 shots. He didn\u2019t attempt a single 3-pointer in the second half, choosing instead to dominate inside. His gutsy (no pun intended) performance not only kept Philadelphia\u2019s season alive, it was a statement of the lengths Embiid is still willing to go to taste playoff success.<\/p>\n \u201cObviously you don\u2019t want to go home, so you do whatever it takes,\u201d Embiid said after.<\/p>\n His running mate, guard Tyrese Maxey, said: \u201cHe was dominant. Especially the second half, he was extremely dominant. He did a really good job of just inserting himself. I was proud of him tonight, man. That\u2019s the dominance that you go into a playoff game with. He did that.\u201d<\/p>\n The series will resume tomorrow, with another chance for Embiid to add to his playoff legend.<\/p>\n Tanking Solution?<\/p>\n How do you keep a team from tanking to get a good draft selection? The NBA is discussing ways<\/a> to prevent teams from sabotaging themselves once it\u2019s clear their season is a wash, in order to secure a higher draft pick.<\/p>\n The Professional Women\u2019s Hockey League may have a solution. The league uses a system called the Gold Plan, as a way to keep fans and players invested even after their teams have lost any chance at the playoffs.<\/p>\n A team enters the Gold Plan phase as soon as they are mathematically eliminated from the playoffs. Once that happens, they have to keep winning to accumulate points to determine the draft order, with the No.1 draft pick going to the team with the most points.<\/p>\n The Vancouver Goldeneyes, one of this season\u2019s two expansion teams, secured the first pick with a nail-biter overtime win against the Minnesota Frost on Saturday. Olympic gold medalist and NCAA champion Caroline Harvey is expected to be the No. 1 pick, after being named Team USA\u2019s MVP at the Milan Cortina Games.<\/p>\n In the still relatively young league, this year\u2019s draft class is one of the most anticipated yet. College seniors Laila Edwards, Lacey Eden and Kirsten Simms are coming into the draft fresh off Wisconsin\u2019s Frozen Four championship this spring. All three have had Team USA experience like Harvey.<\/p>\n The PWHL playoffs start tomorrow, with the Ottawa Charge taking on the Boston Fleet, then continue Saturday with top-seeded Montreal Victoire facing off against the Minnesota Frost, who have won back-to-back Walter Cups. <\/p>\n Newsletter Feedback<\/p>\n The Sports Desk newsletter has been going for a while now and we want to hear from you, gentle reader. How\u2019re we doing? What do you like about the newsletter? What can we do better? Send your comments to SportsDesk@nbcuni.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n What We’re Reading<\/p>\n At the World Cup this summer, players will get red cards for covering their mouths<\/a> during disputes.<\/p>\n The NCAA is on track to expand to a 76-team March Madness<\/a> bracket for next season.<\/p>\n Tyran Stokes, the expected top pick in next year\u2019s NBA draft, is going to Kansas<\/a>.<\/p>\n World champion sprinter Abby Steiner is suing<\/a> Puma and the Mercedes Formula 1 team over \u201cdefective\u201d shoes.<\/p>\n![\"Image:](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/260429-Rob-Thomson-gk-bae2d9.jpg\")
Philadelphia manager Rob Thomson in the dugout during the MLB game between the Philadelphia Phillies and the Atlanta Braves.Rich von Biberstein \/ Icon Sportswire via Getty Images<\/p>\n![\"Joel](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/260429-Joel-Embiid-gk-d86c26.jpg\")
Joel Embiid of the Philadelphia 76ers attempts a free throw against the Boston Celtics last night.Maddie Meyer \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n![\"Caroline](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/260216-hockey-womens-ch-1119-cec2c4.jpg\")
Team USA’s Caroline Harvey at the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics.Bruce Bennett \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n