Dusty Baker Signs Three-Year Deal through 2010 MLB Season with Cincinnati Reds

Cincinnati Reds name manager

10/14/2007, CINCINNATI -- At a press conference at noon on Monday at Great American Ball Park, Cincinnati Reds president and chief executive officer Bob Castellini and executive vice president and general manager Wayne Krivsky will introduce Dusty Baker as field manager.

Baker, 58, has agreed to a three-year contract through the 2010 season. He becomes the 60th field manager in club history, the 50th skipper since 1900 and the first hired outside the organization since Lou Piniella in 1990.

In 2007, the fifth-place Reds went 72-90 under managers Jerry Narron (31-51) and Pete Mackanin (41-39). Mackanin replaced Narron on July 1.

Baker has been named National League Manager of the Year three times by the Baseball Writers' Association of America (1993, 1997, 2000), twice by The Sporting News (1997, 2000) and once by The Associated Press (1993). His teams have finished first or second nine times and have won at least 90 games in a season five times.

In 14 seasons as a Major League manager, Baker has produced a 1,162-1,041 record (.527), including 840-715 (.540) in 10 years with the San Francisco Giants (1993-2002) and 322-326 (.497) in four campaigns with the Chicago Cubs (2003-06). His 1,162 career victories tie Lou Boudreau for 38th on the all-time list, and his .527 career winning percentage also ranks 38th all-time.

Baker skippered his team into the playoffs four times, into the National League Championship Series twice and in 2002 guided the Giants to the NL pennant. In 2003 and 2004, he led the Cubs to consecutive winning seasons for the first time since 1971-72. His 1998 Giants club lost to the Cubs in a tiebreaker, and in 1993, the Giants won 103 games, but finished second in the West Division to the Atlanta Braves, who won 104.

Baker has been to the playoffs nine times overall during his baseball career, including four times as a manager, four times as a player and once as a coach. As an outfielder, he helped the Los Angeles Dodgers win the 1981 World Series title. He has participated in five World Series overall, including three as a player (1977, 1978, 1981), as manager in 2002 and as a coach in 1989.

In 19 seasons and 2,039 games as a player (1968-86) Baker hit .278 with 242 HRs and 1,013 RBIs for the Braves, Dodgers, Giants and Oakland Athletics. He was an All-Star twice (1981, 1982), won a pair of Silver Slugger Awards (1980, 1981) and earned a Rawlings Gold Glove Award (1981).

Source: MLB

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