The Houston Astros’ 4-0 win against the Seattle Mariners on May 3 was a historic one for Astros manager, Dusty Baker.

The win marked the 2,000th of Baker’s managerial career, making him the first Black manager to reach the 2,000-win milestone.

Baker is the 12th manager overall to reach the milestone in MLB history. Of the 11 other managers to accomplish the feat, 10 of which are currently in the Hall of Fame. The only exception is Bruce Bochy, who retired from managing in 2019 and is still a few years away from becoming eligible for the Hall of Fame.

Baker is just three wins shy of tying Bochy for 11th, and eight away from the 10th spot. He is also likely to move past that later this season, as the 9th winningest manager totaled 2,040 wins. 

When he reflected on what the accomplishment means to him, Baker couldn’t help but think about those who made it possible to get to the position he is in.

“My dad, Jackie Robinson, Frank Robinson, Cito Gaston — the guys who were minority managers ahead of me,” he said.

Baker is especially grateful for the players he works with on a daily basis. 

This is just the latest milestone he has reached throughout his career as a major league baseball manager. 

In 2021, Baker became the first manager to win a division title with five different teams, after leading the Astros to the AL West title with a 95-67 record. 

Baker began his managerial career in 1992, when he was hired to lead the San Francisco Giants, becoming just the seventh Black manager in MLB history. He won the NL Manager of the Year award during his first year with the club — the first of three NL Manager of the Year awards he would win during his tenure with the team, until 2002.

He has also managed the Chicago Cubs, Cincinnati Reds, Washington Nationals, and currently, the Astros — leading each of those teams to the postseason at least once, the only MLB manager in history to do it.  

Despite leading the 2002 Giants and the 2021 Astros to the World Series, a World Series title win is among the one accomplishment that Baker has yet to achieve throughout his managerial career. 

On becoming the first Black manager to win 2,000 games, Baker referred to the milestone as meaning “extra.”

“It means extra to the culture. It means extra to society. It means extra to my race, and it means extra hopefully for others to get an opportunity [so] I’m not the last,” he said. 

While he is honored and grateful to reach the elusive milestone, Baker made it clear that he has bigger goals in mind, noting “I’ve got work to do.”