At long last, Dusty Baker has finally slain his playoff demons.
Baker and the Houston Astros won the World Series on Saturday night with a 4-1 win over the Philadelphia Phillies. The game was a grind-it-out affair until Houston blew it open in the sixth inning with an offensive barrage.
The moment was especially incredible for Baker, who clinched the very first World Series title of his illustrious managing career. After the final out was recorded, Baker was mobbed by Astros players and coaches in the dugout.
Later on, more members of the Houston team congregated around Baker to celebrate, chanting, “Dusty! Dusty! Dusty!”
Baker had managed in Major League Baseball for 25 seasons (making stops in San Francisco, Chicago, Cincinnati, Washington, and Houston) before finally getting his taste of World Series glory. While Baker had over 2,000 career regular season wins, he also endured some bitter disappointments, including near-misses in the 2002 World Series (losing with the Giants in seven games to the then-Anaheim Angels) and in last year’s World Series (losing with the Astros in six games to the Atlanta Braves).
But none of that matters anymore now that Baker has finally gotten to the mountaintop. At 73 years old, Baker dethrones ex-Florida Marlins skipper Jack McKeon as the oldest manager in MLB history to win a World Series. For Baker, it is also the perfect cherry on top for a career in which he has seen just about all that there is to see.
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