Nationals show Baker the door
Dusty Baker is done as manager of the Washington Nationals after two seasons, two NL East titles and zero playoff series victories.
Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo said he told Baker the news via telephone Friday morning. Baker’s two-year deal with the club is expiring.
“Our expectations have grown,” Rizzo said during a conference call with reporters. “Winning a lot of regular-season games and winning divisions are not enough. Our goal is to win a world championship and, to that end, we made the decision late last night.”
Rizzo declined to say why he believes Baker can’t help reach that goal.
The GM also wouldn’t offer any specifics about what sort of manager he will be looking for as a replacement. The Nationals will be hiring their sixth manager in a 10-season span.
Rizzo called the split from Baker “a pure baseball decision” and said it was not about an inability to reach a new deal with the skipper.
“This had absolutely nothing to do with negotiations, dollars,” Rizzo said. “It was not a negotiation with Dusty.”
The contracts for the members of Baker’s coaching staff also are finished. The team said it will work with its new manager to fill those positions.
“I think Dusty’s great. The whole coaching staff. ... They do such a good job of making sure they relate to us. That’s a great group of guys in there. They’re just as much deserving of the success we’ve had as we are. They probably work harder than us, to be honest with you,” first baseman Ryan Zimmerman said last week. “I think everyone in this room would love to have them back.”
The moves come the week after Washington was eliminated from its NL Division Series against the Chicago Cubs with a 9-8 loss at home in Game 5 and Baker was front and center during a PR debacle involving whether Stephen Strasburg would pitch in Game 4 of that series. The Nationals were bounced from the postseason in the NLDS round in 2016 against the Los Angeles Dodgers; that one also ended with a Game 5 loss at home by one run.
Baker’s teams have now lost 10 consecutive games with a chance to advance in the postseason. His career postseason record as a manager is 23-32.
In all, Baker has spent 22 seasons as a big league manager, accumulating more than 1,800 regularseason wins with the San Francisco Giants, Cubs, Cincinnati Reds and Nationals.
TIGERS HIRE MANAGER >>
Detroit was certainly familiar with Ron Gardenhire’s managerial resume.
Some of his most significant accomplishments came at their expense.
“It’s going to be nice to have him on our side of the dugout,” said Al Avila, Detroit’s general manager.
The Tigers hired Gardenhire as their manager, bringing the longtime Minnesota Twins skipper back to the AL Central to take over a team in the middle of a significant rebuilding process.
Detroit announced the move Friday, saying Gardenhire agreed to a threeyear contract, and he was introduced at Comerica Park.
Gardenhire takes over for Brad Ausmus, who was let go after four seasons as Detroit’s manager. The Tigers went 64-98 this season, finishing tied for the worst record in the majors, but Gardenhire sounded undaunted by the difficult task ahead.
“I don’t want to lose, and who’s to say we have to lose next year? Who’s to say?” Gardenhire said. “Baseball’s a great game. A lot of things can happen.”
World Series
SEAGER EXPECTED TO RETURN >>
Corey Seager is expected to be in the Los Angeles Dodgers’ lineup for the opener of the World Series after missing the NL Championship Series because of back pain.
Seager, an All-Star shortstop, watched from home as the Dodgers eliminated the defending World Series champion Chicago Cubs in Game 5 on Thursday night.
Manager Dave Roberts says Seager is “doing everything he can to get healthy” and the Dodgers “expect him back for Game 1.”
As anticipated, Clayton Kershaw will pitch the opener against the Houston Astros or New York Yankees on Tuesday night. The three-time NL Cy Young Award winner held Chicago to a run over six innings on Thursday night and will pitch Game 1 on regular rest.