Dusty Baker moves to Nicaragua as Astros face leadership vacuum

Dusty Baker retired last month. The 76-year-old manager leads Nicaragua in the 2026 World Baseball Classic against the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, the Netherlands, and Israel. The tournament begins on March 6 in Miami. Nicaragua expects modest results because the roster lacks current MLB position players and relies on players from the domestic summer league. Baker previously led five different franchises to division titles, including the San Francisco Giants, Chicago Cubs, Cincinnati Reds, Washington Nationals, and Houston Astros. He became the 12th manager to reach 2,000 wins and the first African-American manager to reach that mark in 2022. His 19-year playing career included 2,039 games, a .278/.347/.432 slash line, and 242 home runs. He won a World Series with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1981. He also led the Astros to a championship against the Philadelphia Phillies in 2022. I think the Astros face a leadership vacuum after his departure.

Espada faces a transition

Joe Espada ranks 9th in MLB for bullpen decisions when runners sit in scoring position with two outs, yet his expected win probability added rating sits at a negative 0.43 after managing an injury-depleted roster. He ranks 11th in the league for pinch hitting success, hitting 7 for 16 in those situations. He previously served as the Houston bench coach since 2018 and worked as a third base coach for the Marlins and Yankees. He was born in Puerto Rico and spent nine seasons in the minors after being drafted by the Athletics in 1996. The Astros will not pursue a contract extension for Espada as he interviews for the Seattle position. You know the difficulty of managing a roster that requires constant use of Triple-A talent.

Espada made a solo decision to pinch hit Yainer Diaz and Jon Singleton for Jeremy Pena and Martin Maldonado in Game 5 of the ALCS. The team faces massive roster instability because outfielders George Springer, Josh Reddick, and Michael Brantley, along with infielder Yuli Gurriel, are eligible for free agency. The bullpen also struggles because Josh Hader remains an injury risk and cannot return after his mandatory 15 days. This instability follows a season where the bullpen held the MLB-worst ERA through the first two months. Espada stranded runners 15 out of 20 times in his bullpen situations. He worked as a special assistant to Brian Cashman in 2015. Can the next manager find a way to stabilize this pitching staff?

Replay rules and the pace of play

The 2026 season introduces a challenge system for balls and strikes. Pitchers, catchers, or batters call for reviews. A successful challenge allows the team to keep the credit, but an incorrect challenge costs one. Joe Torre wants to end the "Dance of the Manager" where skippers meander to the top step of the dugout to delay the decision. The 1,275 reviews during the first year of expanded replay averaged 1 minute and 46 seconds. Managers used to engage in banter with umpires to buy time, but the new rules aim to speed up the game. Rob Thomson and Aaron Boone tested the system during spring training. The system uses computerized replay to show if a pitch was a strike or a ball. Players can trigger the review immediately.