As February is Black History Month, there’s no better time to celebrate both a great player and manager, Cito Gaston . Gaston was the first black manager to win a World Series, doing it twice with the Toronto Blue Jays. His dedication, loyalty, and hard work with MLB showcased his skill set as both a player and manager. Gaston’s MLB career as a player from 1967 to 1978 consisted of him playing with the San Diego Padres, the Atlanta Braves, and one season with the Pittsburgh Pirates. His dedication to the Blue Jays organization was also noted as he spent his whole managerial career with them. His time spent as a Blue Jays manager was without question a highlight of his career.
Cito Gaston: First Black Manager to Win a World Series
Cito Gaston
Gaston was successful in guiding Toronto to four American League East division titles and he was able to achieve this in five years. He also recorded an impressive .575 winning percentage. Under Gaston, the Blue Jays won back-to-back World Series championships in 1992 and 1993. Cito Gaston’s hard work has been recognized through the Blue Jays Level of Excellence and the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame.
Gaston, along with Ron Washington, Dave Roberts, and Dusty Baker, are the only African American men to manage in a World Series. He was a great player who had a magnificent career. He was an outstanding player of his time. His record as a player and manager should get him a spot in Cooperstown eventually. After winning two World Series, Gaston came back to the Blue Jays years later, as a first base coach from 2000-2001, and then as manager again from 2008-2010. Cito deserves to go to Cooperstown along with the Canadian Hall.
Blue Jays History
Notable Blue Jays were a part of the AL team in the 1993 All-Star Game at Camden Yards in Baltimore. Roberto Alomar, John Olerud, Paul Molitor, Devon White, Pat Hentgen, and Duane Ward were all on the roster, and Cito Gaston was the manager. Cito Gaston always has a place in history for being the first black manager to win a World Series and doing it for the Toronto Blue Jays. Gaston’s best season as a player was in 1970 with the Padres as he hit 29 homers, and recorded 93 RBI. In his career, he recorded 314 runs, 799 hits, 387 RBI, 185 walks, and 91 home runs.
Gaston took over for Jimy Williams as manager of the Blue Jays in 1989. At the time, the Blue Jays had been underperforming at a bad level. They were in last with a 12-24 record. But Gaston was successful in turning things around and bringing the team to an impressive resurgence. Eventually, they clinched the American League East title, pushing the division-leading Baltimore Orioles off the top spot.
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