Dusty Baker becomes first Black MLB manager to win 2,000 games

By Ben Morse, CNN

Updated 1037 GMT (1837 HKT) May 4, 2022

Dusty Baker celebrates after the Houston Astros beat the Seattle Mariners, becoming the first Black manager in MLB history to win 2,000 career games.

(CNN)Dusty Baker became the first Black manager in MLB history to win 2,000 career games on Tuesday night after the Houston Astros defeated the Seattle Mariners 4-0 at Minute Maid Park in Texas.

Baker is the 12th manager to reach 2,000 career wins. Of the previous 11 to accomplish the feat, 10 are in the National Baseball Hall of Fame. The other, Bruce Bochy, is not yet eligible.«It feels great whenever you reach a goal,» said Baker, sitting in his postgame press conference next to a bottle of champagne, «I didn't really have this goal until, I don't know, four or five years ago, when I realized I had a chance.»Baker's managerial career has spanned 25 seasons with the San Francisco Giants, Chicago Cubs, Cincinnati Reds, Washington Nationals and the Astros. He is the only manager in MLB history to lead five different teams to the postseason and to win division titles with five different clubs. His teams have reached the postseason 11 times, and he has twice managed in the World Series (2002 with the Giants and 2021 with the Astros).Read MoreBaker's first win was on April 6, 1993, when the Giants won in St. Louis against the Cardinals. All five teams that he has managed advanced to the postseason. «I think about Hank Aaron and Jackie Robinson and Frank Robinson, who helped me a lot, Bill Walsh, all the general managers and owners I've had, whether they fired me eventually or not,» Baker said. «It just sort of added to my perseverance and determination and faith. I've also got to thank my detractors for giving me the