Age Is No Worry To Dusty Baker As He Seeks Consecutive World Titles

At age 74, Dusty Baker is the oldest manager in the major leagues. But his personality hasn’t changed much over the years.

Before Houston’s game at Yankee Stadium Saturday, he fielded a phone call from Billye Aaron, widow of Baker’s former teammate Hank Aaron; complained that he wasn’t getting enough information to study opposing player reports on his Kindle; and talked about his son Darren’s play for Triple-A Rochester.

He also found time to share stories with visiting writers Claire Smith and Jon Pessah of ESPN between mouthfuls of his pre-game meal and to tell them he hardly had time to breathe – especially in the media capital of New York.

Although he held a media scrum before the game, a 3-1 victory for the home team over returning ace Justin Verlander, Baker referred all requests for exclusive interviews to affable Astros publicist Gene Dias.

An Old School manager who still relies heavily on gut instincts, Baker is doing his best to keep his injury-riddled ballclub near the top of the American League West.

He noted that Yordan Álvarez, the team’s most prolific power producer, missed large chunks of the season – including the All-Star Game – with injuries.

The pitching staff has also operated on fumes at times, although Framber Valdez pitched a rare complete-game no-hitter last week, throwing only 93 pitches.

Jose Urquidy (shoulder) returns to action Sunday but Lance McCullers, Jr. (forearm) and Luis Garcia (Tommy John elbow surgery) are out indefinitely.

The team also misses Michael Brantley, a lefty-hitting outfielder who took live batting practice Saturday but has spent most of the season on the Injured List.

Because Verlander was making his first start since the team reacquired him from the Mets, the media turnout Saturday was heftier than normal for an early-August afternoon game.

But Baker appeared relaxed, sharing stories about Aaron and giving insights from his 26 years as a major-league manager.

Included in his advice was a suggestion that his coaches play the roles of uncles for players with problems while his role as manager is to serve as the father who makes the difficult decisions.

So far, most of those decisions have turned out well.

After all, the Astros are the defending world champions and have a chance to become the first back-to-back World Series winners since the 2000 Yankees won their third in a row.

Baker’s world brightened when the club brought back the 40-year-old Verlander, who won Cy Young Awards in 2019 and 2022 and World Series rings in 2017 and 2022. He also threw his third no-hitter as an Astros in 2019.

“It felt great to be back here,” said Verlander, who yielded two runs while pitching seven strong innings Saturday.

Baker’s main concern at the moment is satisfying the constant barrage of media requests, including several from writers asking to ghost-write his autobiography or even have him write the foreword of a forthcoming Hank Aaron book.

Always popular with the media, the toothpick-chewing pilot took his coaching staff to dinner in New York Saturday night. He’ll follow up by taking the whole team to the White House Monday at the invitation of President Biden.

The manager refuses to say whether he’ll retire, although he’s the only active manager who has passed his 70th birthday. After Baker, the only pilots over age 65 are Brian Snitker (Braves), Bruce Bochy (Rangers), and Buck Showalter (Mets).

Whether he stays or leaves, a spot in the Baseball Hall of Fame is virtually certain for Baker, who has taken five different teams to the playoffs.

At a reported $1.5 million, Baker earns less than many of his players. His contract also expires after the 2023 campaign. According to Cot’s Baseball Contracts, Houston ranks 10th in the majors with a $228.4 million payroll that includes the Competitive Balance Tax.

The team’s ability to add Verlander’s two-year, $86.6 million deal was enabled by a $35 million stipend from the Mets. New York will add another $17.5 million if the pitcher’s 2025 option vests.