Talking to Dusty

Dusty Baker did a semi-formal press conference today. A lot of the Sarasota outlets were here, as was Jayson Stark of ESPN.

So Baker was asked a lot questions about coming back to the game after the year off following getting fired in Chicago.

“(Coming back) was something I looked forward to, and something I need for myself. I had a great time at ESPN. I wasn’t quite ready to do that forever.”

Why come back? “I need to satisfy what’s inside of me – a couple championships. I can’t go home after losing.”

How did he get over the postseason disappointment in 2002 and '03: “Just by thinking, studying, being thankful for life . . . How long can you live in pain? You do that it’s not living. You just go forward big time. You can’t live in the past. Live for today.”

His Cincinnati memories: “I remember everybody in town being in red,” he said. “I remember being brainwashed before I ever got to the stadium. I’d see red in windows. Women had red dresses on. Men had red hats on. I remember knowing when you had them down they had a good chance of coming back to beat you.”

Can he bring that back? “I’d like that. I’d love that actually. Winning does that. I’d feel like I did some of my job. I saw that on the caravan – we went to parts of West Virginia, Kentucky and Ohio. People are yearning to come back. They want something to come back to. Winning does that.”