I'd have take Cora in a heartbeat. The Nats might not have had a chance at him, but we will never know because he was hired before the Nats even had an opening. Letting Dusty twist had the double benefit of leaving bad tastes in people's mouths which might poison the well and delaying this whole process. If the Lerners had fired Dusty right after the NLDS then they could have had someone locked in before anyone even knew the Yankees had an opening.
But we don't actually know that Cora is better than Martinez or Long. And if the Nats get Girardi, I think they'll have made out as well as anyone in this coaching carousel.
