Yahoo Sports Giants manager Bruce Bochy to retire after 2019 season
San Francisco Giants manager Bruce Bochy will retire at the end of the season, he told reporters Monday afternoon from spring training. The team later confirmed the news on its social media pages.
Bochy, 63, will manage his 13th season with the Giants this year. It’s the final year of his contract. Per Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area, he used his final season-opening speech to tell players it will be his final season.
“It’s time to do something different,” Bochy told reporters Monday.
Bruce Bochy announces this season will be his last managing Giants before retirement. “In my mind it’s time. It’s been an unbelievable ride. … I’ve had a great run.” Plans to stay in baseball. Told team today. pic.twitter.com/849ZZlINdR
— Janie McCauley (@JanieMcCAP) February 18, 2019
He managed the San Diego Padres for 12 years, beginning in 1995. Bochy was drafted by the Houston Astros in 1975 and played for nine years with the New York Mets and Padres.
Hall of Fame worthy career
Bochy led the Padres to the NL pennant in 1998, his fourth with the team and two years removed from his only Manager of the Year title in 1996.
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It’s his run with the Giants that places him in esteemed company. San Francisco won World Series titles in 2010, 2012 and 2014, making Bochy one of 10 managers to win at least three titles. He’s one of five managers to win three in five years.
Bruce Bochy is one of 10 @MLB managers to win at least three World Series titles.
Nine are in the Hall of Fame. One day soon, Bochy will join them.@MLBNetwork @SFGiants https://t.co/W5AtddbXSf
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) February 18, 2019
Bochy has a career .498 winning percentage (1,926-1,944) over 24 years at the helm. He’s currently 11th all-time in wins behind Leo Durocher, who managed from 1939 to 1973. Bochy is 82 wins away from tying his mark of 2,008.
He’s also top five in most postseason wins. His 44 are tied with Jim Leyland at fourth.
Within the Giants organization, his 975 wins are second behind Hall of Famer John McGraw’s seemingly untouchable 2,583.
Bochy will ‘stay around’
Bochy told reporters he will still be around baseball after his retirement and has discussed possibilities with Giants CEO Larry Baer.
He and the team had reportedly been planning the announcement for months and Bochy’s decision was a part of Farhan Zaidi’s hiring process. Zaidi is in his first season as president of baseball operations.
Bochy said he’ll stay around the game, already has talked to Larry Baer about his future. Said, “I’m a Giant.”
— Alex Pavlovic (@PavlovicNBCS) February 18, 2019
Bochy has faced the retirement question for a while. San Francisco Chronicle columnist Scott Ostler even opined about the notion last week. The manager, who turns 64 next month, had hip-replacement surgery over the summer and attended his son’s wedding in Hawaii, where he paddle-boarded.
He’s dealt with heart issues in recent years. He missed games in spring 2017 as well as a game in 2016 due to an irregular heartbeat. He had angioplasty surgery in 2015.
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