From Jayson Stark of the Athletic:
Tony La Russa now has won 13 division titles — second-most all-time behind Bobby Cox (15). It’s hard to even comprehend that Tony La Russa just won his 13th division title 38 years after he won his first, with the 1983 White Sox. No other manager in history has even come close to that.
Connie Mack (naturally) set the previous record, finishing first 29 years apart (1902-31). In division-play times, Joe Torre did it 27 years apart (1982-2009). But they’re not even in La Russa’s area code.
So here’s to Dusty Baker and Tony La Russa. The first time they managed against each other was so long ago (May 7, 1996) that five of the players who will start for them Thursday (Yordan Alvarez, Kyle Tucker, Luis Robert, Eloy Jiménez, Andrew Vaughn) weren’t even born yet. Now here they are again — to let the kids play and let the legends manage.
Tony La Russa now has won 13 division titles — second-most all-time behind Bobby Cox (15). It’s hard to even comprehend that Tony La Russa just won his 13th division title 38 years after he won his first, with the 1983 White Sox. No other manager in history has even come close to that.
Connie Mack (naturally) set the previous record, finishing first 29 years apart (1902-31). In division-play times, Joe Torre did it 27 years apart (1982-2009). But they’re not even in La Russa’s area code.
So here’s to Dusty Baker and Tony La Russa. The first time they managed against each other was so long ago (May 7, 1996) that five of the players who will start for them Thursday (Yordan Alvarez, Kyle Tucker, Luis Robert, Eloy Jiménez, Andrew Vaughn) weren’t even born yet. Now here they are again — to let the kids play and let the legends manage.
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