To Truly Move On, the Astros Needed Dusty Baker

The Astros needed an outsider to change the story, and Baker has spent a lifetime bringing people together. He is a magnetic personality who commands respect, gives respect and produces wins. All four of the teams he has managed — the San Francisco Giants, the Chicago Cubs, the Cincinnati Reds and the Washington Nationals — won their divisions during his tenure, and only eight managers have won more games with a better winning percentage.

“He has an ability to relate to each and every one of these guys, where they’re from, what they’ve been through, their parents’ situation, their likes and dislikes. He’s a pretty eclectic guy in regards to everything,” Chris Speier, a longtime coach under Baker, said in the Nationals’ clubhouse a few years ago.

“He understands it, because he’s lived every one of those scenarios in his own life. He’s walked a lot of the roads the players have walked before, so I think from that standpoint there’s an immediate almost kinship that he develops with his guys. There’s a trust. He’s that uncle they can talk to, that they feel comfortable with.”

The Astros have the talent to get Baker the championship he has never won as a manager, the one accomplishment he needs to validate his case for the Hall of Fame. Whether or not they acknowledge it, the Astros need validation, too.

Ten players remain from the Astros’ 2017 team. Few people outside Houston regard them as legitimate champions anymore, but the players avoided discipline from Manfred. Soon they will get another chance to prove themselves, with a leader wise enough to emphasize the missing component in their success: integrity.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/29/sports/baseball/astros-manager-cheating.html?emc=rss&partner=rss