Dusty Baker
Dusty Baker is at the very center of baseball history. He was on deck when his friend Henry Aaron hit home run No. 715, the one that passed Babe Ruth. He might have invented the high five. Negro Leagues legend Satchel Paige used to call him “Daffy,” and when Dusty tried to correct him, Satchel smiled and said, “I know what your name is Daffy!”
Hall of Fame pitchers like Tom Seaver and Steve Carlton couldn’t get him out.
“I prided myself on figuring out a batter’s weakness,” Seaver once said. “But I never could figure out Dusty’s.”
And after he finished playing, he went on to become one of the most successful managers in baseball history. He has won more than 1,800 games as a manager and at age 71 he is back to manage the Houston Astros for the 2020 season.
Below, Dusty sent in some photos. From left to right:
Photo 1: Dusty Baker with his dear friend, the late Buck O’Neil.
Photo 2: When Dusty was young, he got to spend time with Negro Leagues legend Cool Papa Bell.
Photo 3: This is Dusty’s Negro Leagues corner featuring photographs of some of the greatest Negro Leagues players and teams ever. In the lower left-hand corner, that’s Satchel Paige.
Photo 4: Josh Gibson might have been the greatest hitter, black or white, in baseball history.
