NEW YORK (AP) — Zohran Mamdani can claim multiple firsts when he becomes New York's mayor Jan. 1.
Besides being the first Muslim and first person of South Asian heritage elected to the office, the Democrat also is poised to shape city history by being the 112th mayor — rather than 111th, as he was expecting. That’s due to a longstanding oversight in record-keeping that recently gained new attention.
“I’m excited to be whichever mayor,” Mamdani told reporters Wednesday after learning about the counting contretemps. It shows how tricky history's arithmetic can be.
Paul Hortenstine, an independent historian exploring early New York mayors' participation in slavery, recently noticed that the city government's widely used list of mayors undercounted Matthias Nicolls, a figure from the beginning years of English colonial rule in New York.
Nicolls was listed as the sixth mayor, from 1671 to 1672, but there was no mention of his return to office two years later. In the interim, successor John Lawrence took office, then was ousted by a Dutch invasion that briefly implemented a different form of colonial government. The Netherlands eventually gave up the area in exchange for other concessions, and the new English governor reappointed Nicolls in late 1674.
Other mayors were counted multiple times if they served nonconsecutive terms, so Hortenstine suggested Nicolls get the same treatment. The correction would entail renumbering 350 years of subsequent mayors, from William Dervall (who would become No. 9) to incumbent Eric Adams (who'd be No. 111).
“The numbering of mayors is a fascinating issue that is much more difficult than it appears at first glance,” Hortenstine said by phone.
A Washington, D.C.-area researcher, Hortenstine has his own history with New York mayors: He worked for Michael Bloomberg's 2009 reelection campaign. (The three-consecutive-term Bloomberg would be 109th if the list is renumbered.)
He hopes the debate will stir interest in early mayors and their personal and political involvement with slavery.
As Hortenstine noted, a former New York State Library official, the late Peter Christoph, pointed out the Nicholls numbering flub in 1989. This time, after local news site Gothamist broached the apparent mayoral miscount, the city Department of Records and Information Services looked into it.
In a Dec. 11 blog post, agency archivist Michael Lorenzini painstakingly traced a trail of complexities and gaps in centuries-old records. When the city began printing lists of past mayors in the mid-1800s, Nicolls' second term didn't make it.
“It does appear that on January 1, 2026, Mayor Mamdani should be mayor number 112,” Lorenzini wrote, while noting “the numbering of New York City ‘mayors’ has been somewhat arbitrary and inconsistent.”
The list doesn't enumerate the “burgomasters,” mayor-like officials who served in pairs during some periods of Dutch governance. There's no accounting for any leaders among the Native Americans who lived in the area for thousands of years before colonization. Some acting mayors are mentioned but not awarded numbers — except in a more obscure version of the list, nestled in a 2015 document in the city archives.
Moreover, even equating “mayors” is, to some extent, Big Apples and oranges. The mayor initially led a New York City that comprised only Manhattan, before the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island were added in the late 1800s.
So how much does the numerical list ultimately count?
“In some ways, it is a sort of academic exercise,” Lorenzini said by phone this week. “But I think what’s interesting to me is that we still have these records, and people can still dive into them and still find something new or something to argue about. History is still alive.”
FILE - New York Mayor John P. O'Brien pins an honor medal on Capt. Giles Stedman, on the steps of New York City Hall, Jan. 27, 1933, in New York. (AP File Photo)
FILE - Mayor Joseph V. McKee, center, stands with Sioux chieftains, in full tribal regalia, who met with him at New York City Hall, Nov. 18, 1932, in New York. (AP File Photo)
FILE - New York Mayor Jimmy Walker, right, rides with Romania's Queen Marie upon her arrival in New York, Oct. 18, 1926, as she started her extended journey across America. (AP File Photo)
BALTIMORE (AP) — Less than 24 hours after the Boston Red Sox shockingly fired manager Alex Cora and five members of his coaching staff, infielder Trevor Story said the club’s path forward feels unclear.
“I mean obviously, it’s kind of up in the air what the true direction is,” the two-time All-Star said on Sunday morning before a series finale against the Baltimore Orioles. “Those are conversations that need to be had. They’ll be had today and onward going forward, too.”
The Red Sox officially dismissed Cora on Saturday evening after a 10-17 start to his eighth season guiding the club, including an embarrassing three-game sweep at home to the New York Yankees earlier this week.
Chief baseball officer Craig Breslow explained the first in-season firing of a Boston manager since 2001 by suggesting it showed commitment to the current season.
“It really comes down to the belief we have in the players, and the belief we have in the group to accomplish what we set out to accomplish,” Breslow said Sunday. “By acting today, it gives us 135 games ahead of us, almost a full season’s worth of run, to take advantage of this fresh start.”
But Story, in the fifth season of a six-year, $140-million deal, is an exception on a young roster that has traded away stars like Mookie Betts, Chris Sale, Xander Bogaerts and Rafael Devers in the years since Cora guided Boston to a 2018 World Series title in his first season.
The Red Sox have reached only two postseasons since, and only one since Story’s arrival when they made a wild-card appearance in 2025.
“I came here to win and I came here to be successful,” said the 33-year-old Story, who is among the Boston batters struggling with a .198 average, two homers and 17 RBIs. “And we had a flash of that last year. We’re looking to build on that. Obviously not off to a great start. But yeah, some of the direction needs to be cleared up, in my opinion.”
Breslow and interim manager Chad Tracy spoke with the team for roughly eight minutes in a Sunday morning gathering that also included owner John Henry and team president Sam Kennedy, according to reliever Garrett Whitlock. Players did not talk during the meeting.
“They spoke. Yeah, they spoke,” Story said. “There just has to be more conversations had. I wouldn’t say it was satisfactory.”
To reporters, Breslow and Kennedy indicated this was a decision driven by baseball operations after the club had performed particularly poorly on offense.
Despite a 17-1 win over Baltimore Saturday that halted a four-game slide, the Red Sox batters entered Sunday slashing .233/.312/.354 collectively and ranked in the bottom quarter of MLB in most key metrics.
“Ultimately, responsibility for the performance on the field, it falls on me as the leader of baseball operations,” Breslow said. “But so, too, does the responsibility for doing everything I can and the organization can to find solutions. And right now we feel like this change, these changes were warranted.”
Kennedy said Breslow has “made several bold decisions and recommendations.”
"And this was one of them and we fully support it.," he said.
Henry remained in Baltimore Sunday but did not address the media.
“I think it’s evident by his presence here that this was a collaborative decision (with Henry),” Kennedy said.
Tracy makes his MLB managerial debut after six seasons guiding Triple-A Worcester. The son of longtime manager Jim Tracy, he recognized the delicate dynamics of his opportunity.
“I’m toeing that line of sitting here with all of you in this moment, but also acknowledge the relationship with some of the people that are no longer here was strong,” Tracy said. “And you also know that that’s, in a lot of ways, that’s how some of the players feel as well. So, excited, right? But also honoring the people that were before me that were mentors to me.”
Story praised Tracy’s “baseball mind,” but was clearly still emotional about Cora’s firing.
“He had our backs every single day,” Story said. “He was very truthful with players and took bullets for us and did everything you can ask for and more as a manager. I just can’t express how thankful I am to have played for him. Yeah, I’ve got a love for that guy.”
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Boston Red Sox Chief Baseball Officer Craig Breslow speaks during a press conference with President & CEO Sam Kennedy, Sunday, April 26, 2026, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
Boston Red Sox interim manager Chad Tracy speaks during a press conference, Sunday, April 26, 2026, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
Boston Red Sox's Trevor Story runs to the dug out after scoring during the second inning of a baseball game against the New York Yankees, Thursday, April 23, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Mark Stockwell)
