Dusty Baker won’t return as Cincinnati Reds manager, report says

Dusty Baker might have been getting the Cincinnati Reds ready to play St. Louis in Game 2 of a National League division series game Friday afternoon, had he been able to guide them to a victory over Pittsburgh in a wild card game on Tuesday.

Instead, the Reds lost that game, 6-2. And now it looks like Baker has lost his job as well.

The Associated Press first reported that Baker will not be back as Cincinnati’s manager despite guiding the team into the playoffs three of the last four seasons, including this year’s 90-72 effort.

The Reds have not made any kind of announcement on Baker’s status, but other media outlets have confirmed the report through unnamed sources.

Baker, 64, was hired by the Reds in 2008 and had them in the playoffs for the first time in 15 years after winning the National League Central Division in 2010. They returned as division champs in 2012 and again this year as the league’s second wild-card team.

But despite that regular-season success, none of Baker’s Reds teams won a playoff series. And the team ended this season on a five-game losing streak, including four straight to the Pirates.

Baker had signed a two-year extension with Cincinnati last October. His 20-year stint as a MLB manager also includes stints with the San Francisco Giants and Chicago Cubs. He is a three-time NL manager of the year and has helped teams win five division titles.

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