Plus: Baker a leader among old-guard managers
For many, the chance to represent your country in the World Baseball Classic is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. For Astros coach Michael Collins, it's become routine. Collins, whose main responsibility is working with Houston's catchers, will be heading to Japan later this week to join the Australian national team's preparations for the World Baseball Classic. Collins, an Aussie, will be coaching first base -- the third time he's been on the coaching staff for the WBC. He also played in the tournament twice for Australia. "The group is already together in Japan," he said. "A lot of those guys have been working on some stuff together once the Australian season finished, kind of getting ready for this. Myself and some of the other coaches who are in professional baseball will join the team on the fourth of March and try to hit the ground running." Collins will be the first of a large contingent of Astros coaches and players who will leave camp to train with their countries. And none of them will travel as far as Collins, who's used to long international flights. He routinely travels to Australia each offseason to see his family, though last year's short winter on the heels of a World Series title prevented him from going down under. "I think for anyone, any time you get to put on your country's uniform, you get this sense of pride," he said. "Being a part of the Australian teams in the past, it's always felt like it's team-first, where regardless of who you are, where you've played, where you've coached, what you've done in the game, as soon as you put on that Australian uniform you're in it together for that tournament. The team really does come first." |
Collins, 37, is from Canberra, Australia, and is in his fifth season with the Astros -- his third as a Major League coach (he was a bullpen catcher for two years). He joined the Astros after seven years (2011-17) in the Padres system, including six years as a Minor League manager. Collins also managed his hometown Canberra Cavalry team to a championship in Australian Baseball League. Collins originally signed with the Angels as a 16-year-old and played 10 years as a catcher and first baseman in the Minor Leagues before retiring as a player after the 2010 season. He reached Triple-A Portland that season, getting eight at-bats at the highest level of the Minors. "I managed in the Minor Leagues and that's definitely something I really, really enjoyed and something in the future, I'd like to continue that," he said. "I love the dugout and being involved in the game." |
Australia, which is managed by Dave Nilsson, is competing in Pool B with Japan, Korea, China and the Czech Republic from March 9-13 in Tokyo. The top two teams advance to the quarterfinals, with Japan and Korea residing as the heavy favorites in the group to move on. Australia's best WBC finish is ninth place in 2017. "The expectations are always to go out there and compete and try to play a quality ballgame," Collins said. "It's such a short tournament so it really does come down to who performs on the day. Anyone can win any game. The odds may not be in your favor, so I think ultimately our goal is to go out there for each game and try to complete and let it all hang out and see what happens at the end of nine innings." |
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"He is in great shape. Great shape. For him, age means nothing. I think he's in better shape now than ever. I saw him without a shirt on and I asked him, 'Where did you buy that six pack? At 7-11?'" – Dusty Baker on 35-year-old Michael Brantley, who's rehabbing from a shoulder injury. |
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Last year, the 73-year-old Baker became the oldest manager to win a World Series when he led the Astros to the championship in his 25th year on the bench. Not bad for a man who figured he was retired for good and put his baseball stuff away in his attic at his California home when the Nationals let him go following the 2017 season. Baker is showing no signs of slowing down, returning to the Astros for a fourth season in 2023. He's proud that his generation of managers -- a group that includes 66-year-old Buck Showalter with the Mets, 67-year-old Brian Snitker with the Braves and the return of 67-year-old Bruce Bochy as manager of the Rangers this year -- continues to succeed in an era where younger managers are more commonplace. "You pull for guys like Showalter and Boch and some veteran guys, but it shouldn't have to be like that," Baker said. "The veteran guys tend to stand up more for what they believe in than younger managers are able to [because] they're a little more fearful of their jobs." Baker's success with a team that's been at the forefront of analytics in recent years is proof there's a place for experienced scouts, coaches and managers in the game. "Experience was discounted for a number of years," Baker said. "I think they're starting to combine experience with the new [way of thinking]. If you can do that and listen to each other, it puts you way ahead of everybody else." |
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