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Article: Baker's savior status won't be enough for the Cubs.(Knight Ridder Newspapers)
- Article from:
- Knight Ridder/Tribune News Service
- Article date:
- November 14, 2002
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2002 Knight-Ridder/Tribune News Service. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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SAN JOSE _ Because I worked for the newspaper that owns the Chicago Cubs, I'm bombarded by e-mails from Cubs die-hards dying to know if Dusty Baker is the savior they've been led to believe.
My simple response is an apologetic no. But rating Baker the manager is like peering down a Dusty road. Dusty, or his charm, gets in your eyes, making it difficult to tell his pros from his cons.
In my view he's no better than above average _ pretty good, not great. Baker isn't even quite the overall manager that his friend Don Baylor is _ and Baylor, of course, became yet another ex-Cubs manager last season.
Baker's "greatness" is basically a product of ...