On the field, his eyes could hide behind his sunglasses. His voice did not quake much when issuing a speech he apparently had memorized.
It was on the last question when Bruce Bochy was asked what message he would have for his successor that he cracked.
“I’d probably tell him he got the best job in baseball,” the 13-year Giants manager, three-time World champion and 2003-game winner said after the Giants lost in his career finale. “And … I mean that. I talked about the owner, front office, the city, surrounding areas, the ballpark, the fans. He’s getting the best job in baseball.”
Beyond the human moment, Bochy was — outwardly at least — composed Sunday for his farewell. His on-field, several-minute speech was brilliant, given without notes and from the heart, thanking everyone in not just his baseball life but his life.
He finished by referencing Lou Gehrig: “I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the Earth.”
Twenty-five years of managing are over — right? Bochy was asked if he could definitely say he would never manage again. As he has all season, he left the door slightly ajar.
“I’m good right now,” Bochy said.