CHICAGO (AP) — In the run-up to his debut as a major league manager, Blake Butera imagined how the game would go.
When the day finally arrived, the moment exceeded his expectations.
Butera directed the Washington Nationals to over the Chicago Cubs on Thursday for the franchise’s first victory on opening day since 2021. He became the fifth Nationals manager to win his first opening-day game with the club, joining Davey Johnson (2012), Matt Williams (2014), Dusty Baker (2016) and Dave Martinez (2018).
“You envision yourself over and over winning the first game and what that’s going to look like and feel like and all those things,” Butera said. “But until you’re there and it actually happens and you see just how happy the guys are and how fired up everybody was and how well they played, too, it’s way better than you can imagine.”
The 33-year-old Butera congratulated his team after the win and then tried to sneak into the visiting manager’s office at Wrigley Field.
But his players had other ideas.
“They grabbed me, and the next thing you know, there was a lot of liquid all over me in the shower,” Butera said. “All kinds of stuff. Shaving cream, beer, you name it. … We had fun. They’re awesome. We had a lot of fun with it.”
It also was the first game for Paul Toboni since he took over as Washington’s president of baseball operations . One of Toboni’s first major decisions was bringing on Butera as since moving to Washington.
Butera spent the past two seasons as Tampa Bay’s senior director of player development. His previous managerial experience consisted of two seasons with Class A Charleston (2021-22) and two with Class A Hudson Valley (2018-19).
Butera’s background in player development could come in handy for a Washington team that went 66-96 in 2025 for its sixth straight losing season since winning the 2019 World Series. Martinez was fired in July, and Miguel Cairo finished the year in the interim role.
Calling himself “Blake’s biggest fan,” Toboni said he had really high expectations when he hired Butera. And he feels as if Butera might be even better than he expected going into the partnership.
“His grasp around some of the traditional managerial responsibilities on the field, and his feel for how to get the most out of players, just hearing him today address the team, those are things that you don’t really know what you’re getting until you see it up close, and he’s been great so far,” Toboni said.
Butera, who comes from a baseball family, played at Boston College before he was selected by Tampa Bay in the 35th round of the 2015 amateur draft. The infielder played in 80 games across two seasons in the minors before beginning his coaching career.
Jacob Young, who homered in the Nationals’ opening-day win, praised Butera for being the same guy every day.
“He’s going to compete and he wants the best out of you,” Young said. “But he’s also going to protect you and put you in the best spot possible.”
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