Episode 49: Dusty Baker, the Houston Astros manager, on navigating the Astros through crisis, what impressed him most about Barry Bonds, and his admiration for Mike Trout and Jacob DeGrom.

Dusty Baker is a legend whose trailblazing career transcends baseball, but he’s got unfinished business. The 3x National League Manager of the Year is still chasing a World Series ring to pair with the one he won as a player with the Dodgers. As one of baseball’s most-respected and beloved figures, he was probably the only manager who could’ve successfully taken over the Astros job after the organization came under fire in the wake of a sign-stealing scandal.  Baker’s incredible life journey has been shaped by supportive parents, a stint in the Marines, and a close friendship with former teammate, Hank Aaron, who helped Baker, a California native, adapt to life in the segregated south. In this episode, Baker talks about his life-long love of hoops, what he learned from reading Hank Aaron’s hate mail, how he rates Mike Trout and Jacob DeGrom among baseball's all-time greats, and why America urgently needs to improve its capacity for forgiveness.