The Tigers wasted no time at all in hiring Alan Trammell’s replacement. They went with veteran Jim Leyland. There is the ARTICLE on the Detroit Free Press site. Then there is the ARTICLE on ESPN’s web site.
Leyland was the manager of the Florida Marlins 1997 World Championship team. He also is noted for turning around a floundering Pittsburgh Pirates club in the late 80′s and making them three time NL East champs (1990 through 1992).
Leyland is a bit of a hometown boy. He is from Perrysburg, Ohio which is a southern suburb of Toledo. And if I remember correctly, this will be his second stint in the Tigers’ organization. I believe he was the manager of one of the Tigers’ minor league affiliates for during the late 70′s and/or early 80′s.
I think the Tigers are going to catch some heat for hiring him. If I understand correctly, just like the NFL, teams need to have a rather long list of candidates to interview for the job, which is to include a percentage of minorities. I also hope he does truly feel the desire and passion to coach again. Walking out on the Colorado Rockies after the 1999 season had a lot of people shaking their head. I think he is the right man for the job, but his heart has to be in it to get this team anywhere. Desire and heart is not something Alan Trammell lacked.
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