Nationals won’t bring Baker back next year
WASHINGTON — Dusty Baker is done as manager of the Washington Nationals after two seasons, two division titles and zero playoff series victories.
General manager Mike Rizzo said he called Baker to tell him the news Friday morning. Baker’s two-year deal with the club is expiring, and now the Nationals will be hiring their sixth manager in a 10-season span.
“Our expectations have grown,” Rizzo said during a conference call with reporters. “Winning a lot of regular-season games and winning divisions are not enough. Our goal is to win a world championship and, to that end, we made the decision late last night.”
The contracts for the members of Baker’s coaching staff also are finished. The team said it will work with its new manager to fill those positions.
The moves came the week after Washington was eliminated from its National League Division Series against the Chicago Cubs with a 9-8 loss at home in Game 5. The Nationals were bounced from the postseason by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the division round in 2016 via another one-run home loss in Game 5.
Baker’s teams have now lost 10 consecutive games with a chance to advance in the postseason, and his career postseason record as a manager is 23-32. With Rizzo as GM, the Nationals have won four division titles since 2012 but have yet to win a playoff series.
Gardenhire headed back to AL Central
DETROIT — The Detroit Tigers were certainly familiar with Ron Gardenhire’s managerial résumé. Some of his most significant accomplishments came at their expense.
“It’s going to be nice to have him on our side of the dugout,” Tigers GM Al Avila said.
The Tigers have hired Gardenhire as their manager, bringing the longtime Minnesota Twins skipper back to the AL Central to take over a team in the middle of a significant rebuilding process. Detroit announced the move Friday, saying Gardenhire agreed to a three-year contract.
Gardenhire takes over for Brad Ausmus, who was let go after four seasons. The Tigers went 64-98 this year, finishing tied for the worst record in the majors, but Gardenhire sounded undaunted by the difficult task ahead.
“I don’t want to lose, and who’s to say we have to lose next year? Who’s to say?” Gardenhire said. “Baseball’s a great game. A lot of things can happen.”
Gardenhire, 59, was the bench coach for the Arizona Diamondbacks this season. He managed the Twins from 2002 to ‘14, going 1,068-1,039, and is one of 10 managers in baseball history to win at least 1,000 games with one team.
Jackie Robinson’s jersey for sale
NEW YORK — A rare jersey from Jackie Robinson’s historic rookie season with the Brooklyn Dodgers 70 years ago could be available for someone with a few spare millions.
The jersey, part of a Heroes of Sports offering by Heritage Auctions, has been certified by Mears, one of the top memorabilia authentication companies. It is accompanied by a letter from Robinson’s widow, Rachel, saying it is the one brought home by the Hall of Famer at the end of the 1947 season, when he became the first black player in the majors and earned the Rookie of the Year honor the first time it was awarded.
“This is the only one known from the ‘47 season, the only one that survived,” Chris Ivy, Heritage’s director of sports auctions, told The Associated Press in a phone interview. “It stayed in his closet for five decadesplus until it was eventually sold to a private collector in the early 2000s.”
The online auction opened Friday and closes at 11 p.m. on Nov. 19. Ivy said the Robinson jersey has been valued at more than $3 million, though he wouldn’t be surprised to see it exceed that.