Oldest manager to win first World Series: Where Pat Murphy ranks among elder statesmen in MLB history

Oldest manager to win first World Series: Where Pat Murphy ranks among elder statesmen in MLB history originally appeared on The Sporting News.
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Pat Murphy waited a long time to get his first managerial job, but it was worth the wait. Now, he is a World Series champion.

In his third season as the Milwaukee Brewers manager, Murphy has led the team to its first championship in franchise history. Murphy was promoted from bench coach to manager in 2024, a decade after he was the San Diego Padres‘ interim manager to end the 2015 season, but this time he earned a permanent fixture.

As the sport has begun to skew younger with its managers, Murphy represented a rare instance of a manager getting his first full-time job over the age of 60. With this win, Murphy puts his name among the managers who won it all late in their careers.

Most managers who won the World Series later in their lives did so after getting their first titles early on. Murphy, however, is part of a rare group who won their first World Series years into their baseball coaching careers.

Here’s a look at where Murphy ranks among the oldest World Series managers.

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Oldest manager to win first World Series

Dusty Baker holds the record for the oldest manager to win his first World Series, doing so at the age of 73 when he led the Houston Astros to the 2022 World Series title. Baker had been managing for three decades at that point, as he got his start as a manager in 1993, but after making the World Series in 2002, he didn’t return to the Fall Classic for another 20 years.

Baker broke the record that was once set by Jack McKeon, who led the Florida Marlins to a World Series title in 2003. McKeon was 72 years old at the time and was managing the team on an interim basis after taking over midseason.

When the Brewers won the NLCS, Murphy trailed just McKeon as the second-oldest manager to make his World Series debut.

At 67 years and 329 days, Pat Murphy is the second-oldest manager in World Series history at the time of his WS debut, younger than only: 2003 Jack McKeon 73y 329d

— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) October 23, 2026

With the Brewers’ win, though, Pat Murphy is now third on the list for oldest managers to win their first World Series. He surpasses Brian Snitker, who was 66 when he led the Atlanta Braves to the World Series in 2021.

This year’s Brewers win also marks the fourth time in six years that an older manager won the World Series. Snitker won in 2021, Baker in 2022, and Bruce Bochy won his fourth World Series in 2023 at the age of 68. After Dave Roberts won two straight titles at 52 and 53, Murphy got his title at 67.

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