Sunday, July 31, 2005 |
F___ D____ B____
Dusty Baker would like to return to Los Angeles to manage the Dodgers, according to a person close to the Chicago Cub manager.Unfortunately, Steve, it looks like somebody's already beaten you to the punch on the name...Baker, who played eight seasons for the Dodgers, is unhappy in Chicago, where he has managed the Cubs for 2 1/2 years, the source said. Baker has 1 1/2 years left on a contract that coincides with current Dodger manager Jim Tracy's, though Tracy could opt out of his contract after this season.
According to the source, "Dusty wants desperately to manage the Dodgers … and [supporters] would love to get a buzz going about Dusty in case the Dodgers were thinking of letting Tracy go at the end of the season.
"He would love the Dodgers to come calling and then hope the Cubs would let him go."
That would be a departure from Baker's previous feelings about the Dodgers.
When he left the organization for San Francisco after the 1983 season, Baker believed he had been betrayed by rumors of drug involvement and once vowed to never work for the Dodgers again.
Presumably, Tracy will manage the Dodgers for at least another season.
While there are signs that Tracy and General Manager Paul DePodesta don't always share common baseball philosophies (Hee-Seop Choi's participation, for one), DePodesta appears satisfied with Tracy's work.
The body of evidence, so far, says Tracy stays through 2006, the end of his two-year extension.
Baker managed the San Francisco Giants for 10 seasons that included three postseason appearances and one World Series.
After the 2002 season, he signed a four-year, $15-million contract to manage the Cubs, and came within a win of the World Series in his first season in Chicago.
Those who know Baker often have put his final job in Arizona, where he would work for Jeff Moorad, his longtime friend and agent who now is a general partner there.
Update: More reaction at Bleed Cubbie Blue.
Update 2: Steve weeps.
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