The World According To Baker

Dusty cries on Paul Sullivan's shoulder:

When he first was put on the firing line on the 4th of July in Houston, when Hendry said he would evaluate Baker and his coaching staff over the All-Star break, Baker made reference to what he calls "the black box of blame."
To some, Baker was implying the reason for the wreckage of 2006 eventually would be revealed after his departure, whether it was pilot error or mechanical failure, i.e., the makeup of the team.
Either way, Baker believes Chicago sports fans tend to blame the leaders when things go bad, rather than the athletes.
"They don't criticize the players as much as they criticize management and the manager, from what I've seen," he said. "It has to fall on somebody."

You really have to love how Baker won't ever admit he did anything wrong.

Baker plans to write a book someday about his career in baseball. The Cub years, he said, will merit only a chapter.

"I have a lot of chapters on a lot of stuff," he said. "I've always thought about it. Someday I'll write my memoirs, maybe go up to a mountain someplace.

"There has been some stuff that has happened here, some instances and occurrences where the truth was told but nobody really believed what I was saying on a few things. I've tried to be as honest as I can on every subject that has come up. There have been a few times when you took the fall for it, so you just go on, no problem."

What is his legacy?

In his four years in Chicago, Baker has seen dozens of players come and go. With Wood and Prior on the disabled list, Carlos Zambrano is the only player remaining from his first spring training in 2003.

Baker undeniably changed the Cubs' culture almost overnight, helping the franchise ditch its lovable losers image and ushering in a cocky, confident attitude during the sweet summer of 2003.

But as expectations rose and lofty goals went unmet, criticism grew, turning Baker into a victim of his own success. After watching the postseason collapse from a 3-1 lead over Florida in the 2003 National League Championship Series, Baker presided over the final-week implosion in '04 that one Cubs pitcher simply refers to as "the meltdown," followed by two injury-plagued, underachieving seasons.

If this truly is Baker's last dance here, what will be his legacy on the North Side?

The dreamlike season of '03? Game 6? Soap operas involving Baker vs. Sammy Sosa, Baker vs. Tony La Russa or Baker vs. Steve Stone? The injuries? The walks? Neifi Perez?

Baker isn't saying.

"I'll tell you when that happens," Baker said. "I haven't thought about it, really."

No matter what happens, Baker will go down as the only Cubs manager since 1908 to win a postseason series, and one of only two managers since 1945 to bring the Cubs within one game of a World Series (Jim Frey was the other, in 1984).

"That was soon forgotten, very soon fogotten," Baker said. "That was my goal when I got here, for us to win the World Series. That's always my goal.

"Sometimes things are in your control, and sometimes, as much as you hate to say it, things are out of your control. You learn to deal with the things you can control. It doesn't make it any easier. It doesn't make life very pleasant, actually.

"But on the other hand, life is still good. Life is real good."

Well, Dusty, you were paid $15 million to be here the last 4 years. You got your way on just about everything - from getting rid of Sammy, Farns, and others to being left alone by most of the media. You're just mad about the ones who see you as the fraud you are. Don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way out, and don't count on too many book sales in Chicago, especially if you write like you manage.