A path out of this mess that has left so many in the Red Sox front office red in the face with shame is available. In order to take it, the organization must act decisively, swiftly and dig deeply into the pockets to beat the two other teams looking for a manager during a time of year nobody ever does that.

No time for focus groups. No time for giving the candidates an open-book baseball analytics test. It’s time to find a leader in no way tainted by an electronic spying scandal that could surface later.

The right path is clear: Hire Dusty Baker and do it ASAP before someone beats you to it.

The Astros were the first ones to find themselves in the January manager market after firing A.J. Hinch, then the Sox “mutually parted ways,” (stop, you’re killing me with that line, suits) with Alex Cora, and now the Mets have canned Carlos Beltran.

Baseball should look into seizing the 2017 World Series rings from all three guys and put them on display in Cooperstown.

And the Red Sox should get to work on putting themselves in contention to compete for another ring. Step 1: Hire Baker before somebody else does.

Baker, 70, has the right steady demeanor and strong presence the Red Sox need to move on from the scandal, as the team is still under investigation by Major League Baseball. He became a grandfather for the first time over the weekend and had no shortage of wisdom before adding that thrill to his life.

Every time I’ve mentioned Baker as the perfect choice, it’s been greeted with the same reaction: “Chaim Bloom will never do that. He’ll want an analytics guy. Dusty’s too much his own man. The Red Sox will want a puppet.”

Bloom puts a great deal of faith in analytics, so many take what is an unfair leap from that starting point. They assume that means he doesn’t have deep respect for good baseball men. That assumption doesn’t square with what those who know Bloom say about the man. He’s smart, smart enough to know that numbers can only go so far and that it’s what humans do or choose not to do with those numbers that counts.

Cora’s dexterity with analytics was only small part of why he succeeded. His ability to relate to the many players whose first language and in some cases only language they felt conversational in is Spanish was a bigger part. Bloom is not blind to the advantage of having a bilingual manager.

“It is certainly a huge asset,” Bloom said. “Obviously, it’s a factor, should be a factor. It’s a plus for Alex. It’s a plus for those folks who have it I think in any job. While there are many factors we’re going to consider, it’s certainly a major asset.”

Baker, by the way, speaks Spanish.

Baker posted a .532 winning percentage in 20 seasons managing the Giants, Cubs, Reds, and Nationals and had a winning record with each team. He knows how to teach the game to young players, knows how to instill confidence in them. He’s especially good with young hitters, not surprising considering he drove in more than 1,000 runs during his playing career.

Above all, he’s a winner. He ranks 15th all-time in wins and averaged 95 of them in his past four seasons.

One of the better questions asked Wednesday of Bloom: Might you have to choose between somebody with a steady hand in handling tough issues such as the one the Sox are dealing with in trying to emerge from the scandal and a younger manager more driven by analytics?

“I don’t like to categorize things that the age or the experience level of a person is an indication of some kind of philosophical agreement or philosophical difference with me,” Bloom said. “Obviously, in my past with the Rays I worked with someone (Joe Maddon) who would probably roll his eyes to hear me say this, but over time especially as he got some tenure on the job became one of the older managers in baseball, and then worked with one of the youngest (Kevin Cash).”

Baker’s most recent employer, the Washington Nationals, relies on old-fashioned scouting and does as little with analytics as any organization, which didn’t prevent them from winning the 2019 World Series without any asterisks attached to their title.

“Everybody brings different things to the table. I don’t like to categorize people, to typecast people, I think it’s unfair to them and in doing that would be unfair to us,” Bloom said. “I think it’s really about the sum total of all the characteristics that someone brings to the table. There are a lot of different ways to get the most out of players. We’re doing ourselves a disservice if we’re not taking everything into account.”

Getting the most out of players always has been what Dusty does best. Using the analytics that he deems useful will give him more tools to do so. Bloom and Baker are two smart guys who could accomplish a lot together provided each man stayed in his lane: The lineup card and clubhouse belong to the manager. Bloom can help him find better players and let him decide which ones to use when.

Cora was a terrific spokesman for the organization and Baker would be as well.

Also, this isn’t a reason to hire a manager, but Johnnie B. Baker might be the only player in big-league history with an even cooler name than nickname. He’s a cool man in every sense of the word.