Bochy an all-timer by taking third club to World Series
Sarah Langs
@SlangsOnSportsWe are so lucky to witness Bruce Bochy¡¯s baseball life. From nine seasons as a backup catcher, including a sparkling 1.000 batting average in the World Series (1-for-1 in 1984), to a storied managerial career that¡¯s now in its 26th season, he has been a calm, steadying force.
Bochy came out of retirement to manage the Rangers, and his first year back is living up to the expectations that accompany a three-time World Series-winning manager.
Bochy has a chance to become a four-time World Series champion after the Rangers¡¯ 11-4 victory over the Astros on Monday night in Game 7 of the ALCS. Here¡¯s a look at seven facts and stats on Bochy¡¯s return to the Fall Classic and how his Rangers got there.
1. Bochy has six wins in winner-take-all postseason games as manager, the most in postseason history -- and he hasn¡¯t lost one yet. That means that, in addition to the most total such wins, he has both the longest streak of winner-take-all wins overall and the longest streak to start a managerial career.
2. It was Bochy¡¯s 13th managerial win in a postseason game when facing elimination, after he notched his 12th such win in Game 6. He now has two more than any other manager in history, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
3. Bochy was the seventh manager to reach the LCS with at least three franchises, but he¡¯s the first to win an LCS with three franchises. Expanding prior to when LCS play began in 1969, only two other managers have reached the World Series with three franchises: Bill McKechnie (1925 Pirates, 1928 Cardinals, 1939-40 Reds) and Dick Williams (1967 Red Sox, 1972-73 A¡¯s, 1984 Padres). Bochy is the third -- and first to do so by winning an LCS with each club.
4. Bochy has a 5-0 all-time series record in League Championship Series. He¡¯s the only manager to win the pennant in each of his first five LCS visits. His five pennants are tied with Sparky Anderson and Bobby Cox for third-most since 1969, behind only Joe Torre and Tony La Russa, with six each.
5. This was the 16th round Bochy has won in the postseason. That ties La Russa for the second-most postseason rounds won among managers, behind only Torre¡¯s 19.
6. Bochy has won three World Series titles. He¡¯s bidding to join an exclusive list, as only five managers have won more: Casey Stengel (seven), Joe McCarthy (seven), Connie Mack (five), Walter Alston (four) and Torre (four) -- some impressive company to be chasing.
7. Bochy was 43 years old when he reached the World Series with the Padres in 1998. He¡¯s 68 now. Per Elias, he¡¯s the second manager to reach a World Series at age 43 or younger and at age 68 or older, joining Mack, who was 42 in 1905 and 68 in 1931.