Former Cubs slugger Derrek Lee shares his best Dusty Baker, Lou Piniella stories
Derrek Lee is statistically one of the best Cubs first basemen in history and there’s no doubt he benefitted from having Dusty Baker and Lou Piniella manage him during his time in Chicago.
“I’ve known Dusty since I was a little kid and to get an opportunity to play for him was a dream come true,” Lee said during the Cubs Weekly Podcast when reflecting on his time playing for the legendary manager. “So happy I got a chance to play for him.”
Baker was very unique individual according to Lee. Players loved him because he was always there for them. Whenever anyone calls Baker, he picks up. Lee then referenced the time when Baker was travelling to Montana and he made a point of stopping by Lee’s house to visit him while he was passing by.
Lee even recalled making a point to reach out to Baker and congratulate him after he won his first World Series title as manager with the Houston Astros in 2022.
“People-wise, it doesn’t get better than Dusty Baker,” said Lee. “Guys run through a wall for him.”
Not only was Lee fortunate enough to play under Baker from 2004-2006, but he also had the privilege to play for Lou Piniella from 2007-2010 which included 2 National League Central Division titles in 2007 and 2008.
“It was great to get to play for another legend,” Lee said about his time under Piniella in Chicago. “He brought a totally different style than Dusty. We had more success under Lou, we got to the postseason 2 years at a time.”
Piniella didn’t just bring regular season success to Chicago, he also brought a lot of character according to Lee.
Lee mentioned one of his favorite Lou Piniella stories was when Mike Fontenot had a huge 2-home run game and as everybody was heading back to the clubhouse after the game, Piniella made his way to the showers to congratulate Fontenot by saying, “Hey, son, hell of a game!”
The only problem was that Piniella told this to the Cubs’ bullpen catcher, Corey, not Fontenot.
“The fact that he confused his bullpen catcher for a second baseman who just hit two home runs was pretty funny,” Lee remarked.
While talking about Piniella’s time in Chicago, Lee couldn’t help but reflect on what happened during Lee’s two postseason appearances as a member of the Cubs.
“I feel like the last 2 or 3 weeks of the season we were on cruise control and we didn’t turn in back on when the postseason started,” said Lee specifically referencing the 2008 season. “That would be my only regret of that season is we probably should’ve pushed a little harder through the finish line.”
Though Lee noted that October as a painful one, he still had fond memories of experiencing the postseason at Wrigley Field and expressed gratitude for being able to play for and have wonderful memories under both Baker and Piniella.
Watch Derrek Lee’s full interview on the Marquee Sports Network app