About two months after his retirement from managing the San Francisco Giants, Bruce Bochy has been officially appointed as manager of team France during the World Baseball Classic Qualifier.
Bochy, who was born in Landes de Bussac in the Aquitane region (about 120 kilometers Northeast of Bordeaux), is best known as the manager of the San Diego Padres (1995-2006) and the San Francisco Giants (2007-2019). But he also played parts of nine seasons in the Bigs between 1978 and 1987.
As a player, Bochy never really could impress at the plate as he batted a sub-par .239 lifetime. During his active career, he played three seasons with the Houston Astros, one with the New York Mets and five with the San Diego Padres, the club he would start his managing career with. Bochy guided the Friars to a 1998 World Series berth but in those World Series the Padres were swept by the Yankees. With arguably not the strongest rosters, he managed San Diego to five winning seasons out of the twelve he was at the helm of the team.
After the 2006 season, he moved up to North and joined the San Francisco Giants. He was at the helm of the team for thirteen seasons in which he guided them to three World Series titles (2010, 2012, and 2014). Of the thirteen seasons with the Giants, Bochy guided them to seven winning seasons.
Managing team France is Bochy’s idea of giving something back to the game that has given him so much. According to him, managing France is a perfect example of how he can help to develop the game. Bochy’s son is allowed to play for France and Bochy’s brother will help him with the coaching of team France. “I would like to thank President of the French Baseball Federation, Didier Seminet, for giving me the opportunity to coach team Franch during the WBC Qualifiers.
The Qualifiers for the 2021 World Baseball Classic will be played in 2020. Shortly the dates and the sites will be announced by MLB.
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