Bruce Bochy’s Winning Ways
Despite the poor play of the San Francisco Giants in 2017, there’s no questioning that the club has one of the best managers in the game in Bruce Bochy. The 62-year-old manager deserves a lot of credit for the Giants winning three World Series since 2010.
Bochy himself played in the MLB for nine seasons. The former catcher retired after the 1987 season and by 1995 he became the manager of the San Diego Padres. Bochy took over as the Giants’ manager in 2007.
In his 11 seasons as Giants’ manager, the team has finished over .500 seven times, made the playoffs four times and three of those four resulted in winning the World Series. But even more impressive, Bochy’s yet to see his team suffer back-to-back losing seasons since his first two seasons as manager.
Bochy ranks in the top-20 all-time in managerial wins. With 1,853 wins, Bochy ranks 15th all-time. Among all active managers, Bochy ranks first in managerial wins. And with his contract not expiring until 2019, expect the Giants’ manager to sneak into the top-10 before then.
Many speculate that Bochy might retire after the 2019 season. Having some health issues over the past couple seasons, including a few heart procedures, Bochy might call it quits after the next two seasons. If that’s the case, expect the manager to go out with a bang before he retires.
Bochy’s club may not always make the playoffs but history shows us that his team most likely won’t finish below .500 twice in a row. So with the Giants finishing below .500 in 2017, that means 2018 will result in an above .500 season, giving them a good shot at the playoffs.