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HOUSTON — For years, as Dusty Baker chased his first World Series title as a manager, the former big league outfielder would always say if he won one he’d like to win two.

Baker will get a chance to do just that after he signed a one-year contract with the Houston Astros for the 2023 season.

“How many times in your life do you say something and then have the opportunity to fulfill it?” Baker said Wednesday. “I wasn’t just talking. I meant what I said. I love keeping my word. So, hey man we’ve got a chance to win back-to-back and this is what I’d like to do.”

Baker, 73, earned his first World Series championship as a manager in his 25th season as a skipper when the Astros beat the Philadelphia Phillies in six games Saturday. The days since then have been a “whirlwind” for Baker, who has been packing to head home to California and said he has about 1,500 texts and countless emails he hasn’t had a chance to read.

With everything he has going on, it was good that it didn’t take long for Baker and team owner Jim Crane to agree to a new contract. Crane said the discussion was a quick one, lasting only about 15 minutes.

“He wanted another year so that’s what we gave him,” Crane said. “He’s a legend and he’s really done a lot for the team.”

Things aren’t so straightforward for general manager James Click, whose contract also expired at the end of the season. Click said Tuesday night at the general managers’ meetings in Las Vegas that he was having discussions about his future with Crane.

“We’re in discussions and when he gets back, we’ll complete those discussions,” Crane said.

Baker also won the World Series as a player on the 1981 Los Angeles Dodgers. Although he always said he wanted to win more than one title as a manager once he won one, he did take a little time to reflect after Saturday’s win and make sure he wanted to return for another season.

“I’d be going against what I was destined to do if I did anything else at this point in time,” he said. “I prayed on it and my answer was: ‘Hey man, get your butt back out there and manage again.'”

Click and Baker both joined the team in 2020 to replace general manager Jeff Luhnow and manager AJ Hinch, who were fired in the aftermath of Houston’s sign-stealing scandal.

Crane raved about Baker’s strong presence in leading the team and trying to rebuild the image of the franchise after the cheating scandal.

“The day he walked in the door, he was very calm and certainly has a ton of experience,” Crane said. “And he did a great job in kind of settling things down, getting everybody focused on playing baseball and winning games.”

Baker took over for the COVID-19-shortened season. The Astros squeaked into the postseason as an AL wild card before heating up in the playoffs and coming one win shy of reaching the World Series.

The Astros won 95 games in 2021 and Baker made his first trip to the Series since 2002 with the San Francisco Giants, but came up short again as Houston fell to the Atlanta Braves in six games.

This season, Houston won 106 games for the second-best record in franchise history. It captured its second World Series title and first since the scandal-tainted 2017 championship.

Along with the contracts of Click and Baker, the Astros also are dealing with several player contracts. They declined a $10 million option on first baseman Trey Mancini in favor of a $250,000 buyout and declined a $13 million option on reliever Will Smith in favor of a $1 million buyout.

Ace Justin Verlander is expected to decline his $25 million player option for next season and become a free agent Thursday.

“We’ve been talking to him and we’re working on it,” Crane said. “We’re going to do our best to try to keep him.”

Baker is 230-154 in his three regular seasons in Houston. He is 28-14 in the postseason with the Astros, tying Hinch (28-20) for most playoff wins in franchise history.

Baker, who turns 74 in June, is the oldest manager to win a World Series. Despite his age, he’s not ready to say next season will be his last.

“I’ve got work to do,” he said. “You can’t be satisfied with where you are or else you’ll never get past where you are right now. My thing is to win this pennant again next year and then I’ll tell you where I am next year at this point in time.”

Whenever he does hang it up, he has a strong case for the Hall of Fame. Baker is the 12th manager in major league history to reach 2,000 wins and the first Black man to do it. Ten of the 11 other managers who have accumulated at least 2,000 wins are in the Hall of Fame. Bruce Bochy (2,003), who isn’t yet eligible, is the only exception.

Baker said he isn’t thinking about that possibility yet with so much work to be done.

“I love winning,” he said. “I’m just telling you, I love winning probably more than anything else. I’m spoiled by winning. And so that’s what I plan on doing — doing some more winning.”

He was, however, tickled to learn that some of his toothpicks are already headed to the Hall of Fame along with his Game 2 jersey and Game 6 wristbands as artifacts from the World Series.

But he joked that the fact that his affinity for chewing toothpicks during games had become so well-known that the Hall of Fame wanted some didn’t take away the sting from another incident with his toothpicks.

“My agent, a few years ago contacted them to see if I get a toothpick endorsement,” he said. “And they told me they don’t need me to sell toothpicks because they’re going to sell them anyway. So that was very humbling.”

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2025 MLB Home Run Derby: The field is set! Who is the slugger to beat?

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2025 MLB Home Run Derby: The field is set! Who is the slugger to beat?

The 2025 MLB All-Star Home Run Derby is fast approaching — and the field is set.

Braves hometown hero Ronald Acuna Jr. became the first player to commit to the event, which will be held at Truist Park in Atlanta on July 14 (8 p.m. ET on ESPN). He was followed by MLB home run leader Cal Raleigh of the Seattle Mariners, James Wood of the Washington Nationals, Byron Buxton of the Minnesota Twins, Oneil Cruz of the Pittsburgh Pirates, Junior Caminero of the Tampa Bay Rays, Brent Rooker of the Athletics and Jazz Chisholm Jr. of the New York Yankees.

On Friday, however, Acuna was replaced by teammate Matt Olson.

With all the entrants announced, let’s break down their chances at taking home this year’s Derby prize.

Full All-Star Game coverage: How to watch, schedule, rosters, more


2025 home runs: 17 | Longest: 434 feet

Why he could win: Olson is a late replacement for Acuna as the home team’s representative at this year’s Derby. Apart from being the Braves’ first baseman, however, Olson also was born in Atlanta and grew up a Braves fan, giving him some extra motivation. The left-handed slugger led the majors in home runs in 2023 — his 54 round-trippers that season also set a franchise record — and he remains among the best in the game when it comes to exit velo and hard-hit rate.

Why he might not: The home-field advantage can also be a detriment if a player gets too hyped up in the first round. See Julio Rodriguez in Seattle in 2023, when he had a monster first round, with 41 home runs, but then tired out in the second round.


2025 home runs: 36 | Longest: 440 feet

Why he could win: It’s the season of Cal! The Mariners’ catcher is having one of the greatest slugging first halves in MLB history, as he’s been crushing mistakes all season . His easy raw power might be tailor-made for the Derby — he ranks in the 87th percentile in average exit velocity and delivers the ball, on average, at the optimal home run launch angle of 23 degrees. His calm demeanor might also be perfect for the contest as he won’t get too amped up.

Why he might not: He’s a catcher — and one who has carried a heavy workload, playing in all but one game this season. This contest is as much about stamina as anything, and whether Raleigh can carry his power through three rounds would be a concern. No catcher has ever won the Derby, with only Ivan Rodriguez back in 2005 even reaching the finals.


2025 home runs: 24 | Longest: 451 feet

Why he could win: He’s big, he’s strong, he’s young, he’s awesome, he might or might not be able to leap tall buildings in a single bound. This is the perfect opportunity for Wood to show his talent on the national stage, and he wouldn’t be the first young player to star in the Derby. He ranks in the 97th percentile in average exit velocity and 99th percentile in hard-hit rate, so he can still muscle the ball out in BP even if he slightly mishits it. His long arms might be viewed as a detriment, but remember the similarly tall Aaron Judge won in 2017.

Why he might not: His natural swing isn’t a pure uppercut — he has a pretty low average launch angle of just 6.2 degrees — so we’ll see how that plays in a rapid-fire session. In real games, his power is primarily to the opposite field, but in a Home Run Derby you can get more cheapies pulling the ball down the line.


2025 home runs: 20 | Longest: 479 feet

Why he could win: Buxton’s raw power remains as impressive as nearly any hitter in the game. He crushed a 479-foot home run earlier this season and has four others of at least 425 feet. Indeed, his “no doubter” percentage — home runs that would be out of all 30 parks based on distance — is 75%, the highest in the majors among players with more than a dozen home runs. His bat speed ranks in the 89th percentile. In other words, two tools that could translate to a BP lightning show.

Why he might not: Buxton is 31 and the Home Run Derby feels a little more like a younger man’s competition. Teoscar Hernandez did win last year at age 31, but before that, the last winner older than 29 was David Ortiz in 2010, and that was under much different rules than are used now.


2025 home runs: 16 | Longest: 463 feet

Why he could win: If you drew up a short list of players everyone wants to see in the Home Run Derby, Cruz would be near the top. He has the hardest-hit ball of the 2025 season, and the hardest ever tracked by Statcast, a 432-foot missile of a home run with an exit velocity of 122.9 mph. He also crushed a 463-foot home run in Anaheim that soared way beyond the trees in center field. With his elite bat speed — 100th percentile — Cruz has the ability to awe the crowd with a potentially all-time performance.

Why he might not: Like all first-time contestants, can he stay within himself and not get too caught up in the moment? He has a long swing, which will result in some huge blasts, but might not be the most efficient for a contest like this one, where the more swings a hitter can get in before the clock expires, the better.


2025 home runs: 23 | Longest: 425 feet

Why he could win: Although Caminero was one of the most hyped prospects entering 2024, everyone kind of forgot about him heading into this season since he didn’t immediately rip apart the majors as a rookie. In his first full season, however, he has showed off his big-time raw power — giving him a chance to become just the third player to reach 40 home runs in his age-21 season. He has perhaps the quickest bat in the majors, ranking in the 100th percentile in bat speed, and his top exit velocity ranks in the top 15. That could translate to a barrage of home runs.

Why he might not: In game action, Caminero does hit the ball on the ground quite often — in fact, he’s on pace to break Jim Rice’s record for double plays grounded into in a season. If he gets out of rhythm, that could lead to a lot of low line drives during the Derby instead of fly balls that clear the fences.


2025 home runs: 19 | Longest: 440 feet

Why he could win: The Athletics slugger has been one of the top power hitters in the majors for three seasons now and is on his way to a third straight 30-homer season. Rooker has plus bat speed and raw power, but his biggest strength is an optimal average launch angle (19 degrees in 2024, 15 degrees this season) that translates to home runs in game action. That natural swing could be picture perfect for the Home Run Derby. He also wasn’t shy about saying he wanted to participate — and maybe that bodes well for his chances.

Why he might not: Rooker might not have quite the same raw power as some of the other competitors, as he has just one home run longer than 425 feet in 2025. But that’s a little nitpicky, as 11 of his home runs have still gone 400-plus feet. He competed in the college home run derby in Omaha while at Mississippi State in 2016 and finished fourth.


2025 home runs: 17 | Longest: 442 feet

Why he could win: Chisholm might not be the most obvious name to participate, given his career high of 24 home runs, but he has belted 17 already in 2025 in his first 61 games after missing some time with an injury. He ranks among the MLB leaders in a couple of home run-related categories, ranking in the 96th percentile in expected slugging percentage and 98th percentile in barrel rate. His raw power might not match that of the other participants, but he’s a dead-pull hitter who has increased his launch angle this season, which might translate well to the Derby, even if he won’t be the guy hitting the longest home runs.

Why he might not: Most of the guys who have won this have been big, powerful sluggers. Chisholm is listed at 5-foot-11, 184 pounds, and you have to go back to Miguel Tejada in 2004 to find the last player under 6 foot to win.

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Reds’ Fraley to play through partially torn labrum

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Reds' Fraley to play through partially torn labrum

CINCINNATI — Cincinnati Reds right fielder Jake Fraley was activated from the 10-day injured list on Saturday.

He had injured his right shoulder while trying to make a diving catch June 23 against the New York Yankees.

An MRI revealed a partially torn labrum that will eventually require surgery. Fraley received a cortisone shot and will try to play through it for the rest of the season.

The Reds were 7-4 in his absence.

Christian Encarnacion-Strand, who hasn’t played since Noelvi Marte returned from the IL on July 4, was optioned to Triple-A Louisville.

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Royals P Lorenzen (illness) scratched from start

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Royals P Lorenzen (illness) scratched from start

Kansas City Royals right-hander Michael Lorenzen was scratched from Saturday’s start due to an illness.

Left-hander Angel Zerpa replaced Lorenzen for the game against the visiting New York Mets.

Lorenzen, 33, is 5-8 with a 4.61 ERA through 18 starts this season.

Zerpa, 25, is 3-1 with a 3.89 ERA in 40 appearances out of the bullpen this season. His last start was in August 2023.

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