one RBI in 24 plate appearances in spring training, Cora was released by the defending World Series champions on March 25, 2012. Notable games With the Dodgers on May 12, 2004, Cora had an 18-pitch at-bat against Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Matt Clement. Facing a 2–1 count, Cora fouled off 14 straight pitches before finally hitting a home run. , it is tied for fifth place among the longest at bats since 1988, when statisticians began tracking pitch counts. Of the longest five at bats (including ties), Cora's is the only one that resulted in a hit. So much time elapsed during the at bat that Cora's brother Joey joked that he and a friend were watching the game at a restaurant, ordering their first beer during the first pitch, and by the time Cora homered they were "so drunk that we had to call a cab to take us home." Cora played in the two longest nine-inning games in MLB history. The first was a 4-hour, 27-minute game on October 5, 2001, between the Dodgers and the San Francisco Giants. The second game, and the longest on record, was a 4-hour, 45-minute game on August 18, 2006, the second game of a doubleheader between the Red Sox and the New York Yankees. Cora entered the 2001 game as a defensive replacement in the eighth inning, and was the starting shortstop in the 2006 game. In the third game of the 2018 World Series, Cora managed the Red Sox in the longest game in World Series history both by time (7 hours and 20 minutes) and innings (18). The Los Angeles Dodgers, being down two games to none, won 3–2 on a walk-off home run by Max Muncy. International career Cora played for the Puerto Rico national baseball team in the World Baseball Classic during 2006 and 2009; he batted 2-for-15 (.133) and 1-for-8 (.125) in those tournaments, respectively. In March 2016, Cora was named as general manager of the team; he served in that position through the 2017 World Baseball Classic. Prior to coaching and managing in MLB, Cora was general manager of Criollos de Caguas, a team in the Puerto Rican Winter League, for five seasons, also serving as the team's manager for two of those seasons. Coaching and managing career Houston Astros bench coach On November 15, 2016, Cora became the bench coach for the Houston Astros.