August 9, 2024; Los Angeles, California, United States; Former Los Angeles Dodgers voltiseur, Dusty Baker, speaks to fans after being inducted in the Dodgers Hall of Legends before the match between the Los Angeles dodgers and the Pittsburgh pirates at the Dodger Stadium. Compulsory credit: Jayne Kamin-Ocea-Imagn images The former MLB manager Dusty Baker is expected to manage Nicaragua during the World Baseball 2026 classic.
Baker, 76, retired major leagues two years ago after winning a world series with the Houston Astros in 2022 and was appointed manager of the National League three times. Baker is the eighth most winning manager in the history of major leagues.
Baker also played in the majors for 19 seasons.
“I am excited,” Baker told USA Today, “… I know that baseball is trying to go to Nicaragua, and I want to help.”
Nicaragua finished 19th in 2023 WBC, but obtained a record of 3-0 in qualification for the 2026 tournament and will play in the swimming pool against Venezuela, Israel, the Netherlands and the Dominican Republic.
– field level media
This is actually really cool! Love seeing legends of the game giving back to smaller baseball nations. The exposure alone will be huge for nicaraguan players.
Wow what a generous soul, taking time out of his busy retirement schedule to grace Nicaragua with his presence. I’m sure they’re just thrilled to have someone who can’t even pronounce half their players names correctly
For those who dont know, Baker managed the Astros to their second World Series title in 2022. He’s got over 2000 career wins as a manager. Nicaragua actually has some talented players in their league and this could really help develop their program at the international level.
I disagree with everyone saying this is good for baseball. Its just another American coming in to “save” a smaller country’s program. Why couldn’t they develop their own coaching talent? Nicaragua has plenty of people who understand the game just as well.
Finally MLB managers can pad there stats against countries with populations smaller than most US cities. Revolutionary stuff here guys really groundbreaking
He’s 75 years old and retired for a reason. This just seems like a bad idea all around. Nicaragua deserves better than someones retirement hobby project tbh
Are you serious? Nicaragua? The guy just retired from a World Series winning team and he’s gonna manage a team that has no chance of winning anything. What a waste of talent honestly.
Nicaragua has been participating in the WBC since 2013 and their best finish was losing in the qualifying round. Baker’s experience could definitely help but they’ll be in a tough pool with teams like USA, Japan or Dominican Republic depending on the draw. Still it’s good for growing the game globally which is what the WBC is all about.
Plot twist: Dusty shows up to the first game and realizes he’s actually supposed to be managing the Netherlands. Nobody told him Nicaragua and Netherlands both start with N lmao
Oh sure, because managing Nicaragua at the WBC is exactly the same level of prestige as the MLB. I’m sure this is what Dusty dreamed about his whole career lol
Breaking: Dusty Baker already planning to challenge every call in the tournament because he forgot the WBC has different replay rules than MLB. Also he’s bringing 47 toothpicks just in case lol. In all seriousness tho good for him staying involved in baseball
So your telling me that a country with basically zero MLB talent is suppose to compete because they hired a good manager? That’s not how baseball works. You need players not just coaching. This changes nothing for Nicaragua’s chances
Wow this is great news for Nicaragua!! Dusty Baker is a legend and will bring so much experience to the team. Can’t wait to see what he does with them in 2026.