BALTIMORE — Sometimes, an incomplete grade is just that.
Red ink can fill the margins, pointing out the pupil’s many failings, yet it’s possible to understand that this is a rough draft and not, hopefully, the final product.
That concept has been increasingly harder to grasp across Major League Baseball in the past 72 hours.
Alex Cora is out in Boston, the Red Sox deeming a 10-17 start cracking open a window to fire their highly respected manager, who indeed needed less than 24 hours to find another job offer.
That came from Philadelphia, as club president Dave Dombrowski flirted with Cora even as his own manager, Rob Thomson, skippered the club Sunday in Atlanta. Nothing personal, Thomson said after he, too, was fired. Just an underachieving $283 million club needing a scapegoat.
That brings us to Houston, where a once-perennial playoff club has sputtered to an 11-19 start, with both a manager, Joe Espada, and a general manager, Dana Brown, working without contracts this season.
It is natural to wonder if the Astros will be the next to issue a pink slip to their manager. Yet as Brown noted to USA TODAY Sports: It is very early.
And there is an alternate reality the Astros imagine themselves experiencing this season.
“I know there’s a lot of talent in this room. There’s a hundred wins in this clubhouse right now,” says first baseman Christian Walker.
Yet as the managerial death watch spreads from coast to coast, assigning culpability to the Astros’ last-place showing illustrates how complicated that can be.
The Athletics Lawrence Butler is tagged out by Chicago White Sox third baseman Miguel Vargas as he tires to extend his double into a triple during the eighth inning at Sutter Health Park on April 18, 2026.Cleveland Guardians mascot Slider interacts with fans during game against the Baltimore Orioles at Progressive Field on April 17, 2026.Washington Nationals right fielder Daylen Lile attempts to catch a ball hit for a single by the Pittsburgh Pirates' Jake Mangum during the first inning at PNC Park on April 16, 2026. The Nationals won the game, 8-7.Milwaukee Brewers catcher Gary Sanchez wears a special chest protector to commemorate Jackie Robinson Day during the game against the Toronto Blue Jays at American Family Field on April 15, 2026.
The Pittsburgh Pirates' Konnor Griffin celebrates with a traffic cone after making his major-league debut in a 5-4 defeat of the Baltimore Orioles at PNC Park on April 3, 2026.
Cleveland Guardians players warm up as the launch of NASA's Artemis II is shown on the center-field video board at Dodger Stadium on April 1, 2026.
Two F-35C planes from Air Test and Evaluation Squadron NINE Detachment Edwards Air Force Base perform a flyover before the Opening Day game between the Arizona Diamondbacks and Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium on March 26, 2026.
1 / 21Ballpark vibes, big plays and wild celebrations during 2026 MLB seasonThe Athletics Lawrence Butler is tagged out by Chicago White Sox third baseman Miguel Vargas as he tires to extend his double into a triple during the eighth inning at Sutter Health Park on April 18, 2026.1 / 21Ballpark vibes, big plays and wild celebrations during 2026 MLB seasonThe Athletics Lawrence Butler is tagged out by Chicago White Sox third baseman Miguel Vargas as he tires to extend his double into a triple during the eighth inning at Sutter Health Park on April 18, 2026.2 / 21Ballpark vibes, big plays and wild celebrations during 2026 MLB seasonCleveland Guardians mascot Slider interacts with fans during game against the Baltimore Orioles at Progressive Field on April 17, 2026.3 / 21Ballpark vibes, big plays and wild celebrations during 2026 MLB seasonWashington Nationals right fielder Daylen Lile attempts to catch a ball hit for a single by the Pittsburgh Pirates' Jake Mangum during the first inning at PNC Park on April 16, 2026. The Nationals won the game, 8-7.4 / 21Ballpark vibes, big plays and wild celebrations during 2026 MLB seasonMilwaukee Brewers catcher Gary Sanchez wears a special chest protector to commemorate Jackie Robinson Day during the game against the Toronto Blue Jays at American Family Field on April 15, 2026.
The Pittsburgh Pirates' Konnor Griffin celebrates with a traffic cone after making his major-league debut in a 5-4 defeat of the Baltimore Orioles at PNC Park on April 3, 2026.
Cleveland Guardians players warm up as the launch of NASA's Artemis II is shown on the center-field video board at Dodger Stadium on April 1, 2026.
Two F-35C planes from Air Test and Evaluation Squadron NINE Detachment Edwards Air Force Base perform a flyover before the Opening Day game between the Arizona Diamondbacks and Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium on March 26, 2026.
Cora and Thomson’s dismissals hit home particularly for Espada, who counts both of them as good friends. Cora is a fellow Puerto Rican, and Espada was on the New York Yankees staff with Thomson from 2015-2017.
Both Cora and Thomson did not deal with the litany of injuries Espada’s faced: Fifteen Astros are on the injured list. Espada’s pregame comments as the Astros began a six-game road trip included the detail that closer Josh Hader faced shortstop Jeremy Peña in live batting practice back in Houston.