The Detroit Tigers are a professional baseball team based in Detroit, Michigan. The Tigers are members of the American League Central Division in Major League Baseball. In baseball, the head coach of a team is called the manager, or more formally, the field manager. The duties of the team manager include team strategy and leadership on and off the field. [1] [2] The team initially began in the now defunct Western League in 1894, and later became one of the American League's eight charter franchises in 1901. Since the inception of the team in 1894, it has employed 48 different managers. [3] The Tigers' current manager is A. J. Hinch, who was named manager on October 30, 2020, following the sudden retirement of Ron Gardenhire. [4]
The franchise's first manager after the team's arrival in the American League was George Stallings, who managed the team for one season. Hall of Famer Hughie Jennings, who managed the team from 1907 to 1920, led the team to three American League championships. Jennings however was unable to win the World Series, losing to the Chicago Cubs in 1907 and 1908 and the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1909. The Detroit Tigers did not win their first World Series until 1935 under the leadership of player-manager Mickey Cochrane. Steve O'Neill later led the Tigers to another World Series victory again in 1945. The Tigers would not win another World Series until 1968 World Series when the Tigers, led by Mayo Smith, defeated the St. Louis Cardinals. Sparky Anderson's 1984 Detroit Tigers team was the franchise's last World Series victory, and marked the first time in Major League Baseball history that a manager won the World Series in both leagues. In total, the Tigers have won the American League pennant 10 times, and the World Series 4 times.
The longest tenured Tiger manager was Sparky Anderson. Anderson managed the team for 2,579 games from 1979 to 1995. Hughie Jennings, Bucky Harris and Jim Leyland are the only other Detroit Tiger managers who have managed the team for more than 1,000 games. Anderson's 1331 wins and 1248 losses also lead all Tiger managers, while Cochrane's winning percentage of .582 is the highest of any Tiger manager who has managed at least one full-season. Nine Hall of Famers have managed the Tigers: Ed Barrow, Jennings, Ty Cobb, Cochrane, Joe Gordon, Bucky Harris, Alan Trammell, Anderson, and Leyland. Barrow was elected as an executive, Jennings, Anderson, and Leyland were elected as managers; the others were elected as players.
# | Number of managers [a] |
G | Regular season games managed; may not equal sum of wins and losses due to tie games |
W | Regular season wins |
L | Regular season losses |
Win% | Winning percentage |
PA | Playoff appearances: number of years this manager has led the franchise to the playoffs |
PW | Playoff wins |
PL | Playoff losses |
LC | League Championships: number of League Championships, or pennants, achieved by the manager |
WS | World Series Championships: number of World Series victories achieved by the manager |
Ref | Reference(s) |
† | Inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame primarily as a manager or executive |
* | Inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame primarily as a player |
** | Manager acted as interim manager |
# [a] | Image | Manager | Seasons | W | L | Win% | Ref |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Bob Glenalvin | 1894 | |||||
2 | Con Strouthers | 1895–96 | |||||
3 | George Stallings | 1896 | |||||
4 | Bob Allen | 1897 | |||||
5 | Frank Graves | 1897–98 | |||||
6 | Ollie Beard | 1898 | |||||
7 | Tony Mullane | 1898 | |||||
8 | George Stallings | 1898–1900 |
# [a] | Image | Manager | Seasons | W | L | Win% | PA | PW | PL | LC | WS | Ref |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | George Stallings | 1901 | 74 | 61 | .548 | [5] | ||||||
2 | Frank Dwyer | 1902 | 52 | 83 | .385 | [5] | ||||||
3 | Ed Barrow † | 1903–1904 | 97 | 117 | .453 | [5] | ||||||
4 | Bobby Lowe ** | 1904 | 30 | 44 | .405 | [5] | ||||||
5 | Bill Armour | 1905–1906 | 150 | 152 | .497 | [5] | ||||||
6 | Hughie Jennings † | 1907–1920 | 1131 | 972 | .538 | 3 | 4 | 12 | 3 | 0 | [5] [6] | |
7 | Ty Cobb * | 1921–1926 | 479 | 444 | .519 | [5] | ||||||
8 | George Moriarty | 1927–1928 | 150 | 157 | .489 | [5] | ||||||
9 | Bucky Harris | 1929–1933 | 355 | 410 | .464 | [5] | ||||||
10 | Del Baker ** | 1933 | 2 | 0 | 1.000 | [5] [7] | ||||||
11 | Mickey Cochrane * | 1934–1936 | 259 | 166 | .609 | 2 | 7 | 6 | 2 | 1 | [5] [8] | |
– | Del Baker | 1936 | 18 | 16 | .529 | [5] [7] | ||||||
– | Mickey Cochrane * | 1937 | 42 | 33 | .560 | [5] [8] | ||||||
– | Del Baker | 1937 | 41 | 23 | .641 | [5] [7] | ||||||
12 | Cy Perkins ** | 1937 | 6 | 9 | .400 | [5] | ||||||
– | Mickey Cochrane * | 1938 | 47 | 51 | .480 | [5] [8] | ||||||
– | Del Baker | 1938–1942 | 356 | 316 | .530 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 0 | [5] [7] | |
13 | Steve O'Neill | 1943–1948 | 509 | 414 | .551 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 1 | [5] [9] | |
14 | Red Rolfe | 1949–1952 | 278 | 256 | .521 | [5] | ||||||
15 | Fred Hutchinson | 1952–1954 | 155 | 235 | .397 | [5] | ||||||
– | Bucky Harris | 1955–1956 | 161 | 147 | .523 | [5] | ||||||
16 | Jack Tighe | 1957–1958 | 99 | 104 | .488 | [5] | ||||||
17 | Bill Norman | 1958–1959 | 58 | 64 | .475 | [5] | ||||||
18 | Jimmy Dykes | 1959–1960 | 118 | 115 | .506 | [5] | ||||||
19 | Billy Hitchcock ** | 1960 | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | [5] | ||||||
20 | Joe Gordon * | 1960 | 26 | 31 | .456 | [5] | ||||||
21 | Bob Scheffing | 1961–1963 | 210 | 173 | .548 | [5] | ||||||
22 | Chuck Dressen | 1963–1964 | 140 | 124 | .530 | [5] | ||||||
23 | Bob Swift | 1965 | 24 | 18 | .571 | [5] | ||||||
– | Chuck Dressen | 1965–1966 | 81 | 65 | .555 | [5] | ||||||
– | Bob Swift ** | 1966 | 32 | 25 | .561 | [5] | ||||||
24 | Frank Skaff ** | 1966 | 40 | 39 | .506 | [5] | ||||||
25 | Mayo Smith | 1967–1970 | 363 | 285 | .560 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 1 | [5] [10] | |
26 | Billy Martin | 1971–1973 | 248 | 204 | .549 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | [5] [11] | |
27 | Joe Schultz ** | 1973 | 14 | 14 | .500 | [5] | ||||||
28 | Ralph Houk | 1974–1978 | 363 | 443 | .450 | [5] | ||||||
29 | Les Moss | 1979 | 27 | 26 | .509 | [5] | ||||||
30 | Dick Tracewski ** | 1979 | 2 | 0 | 1.000 | [5] | ||||||
31 | Sparky Anderson † | 1979–1995 | 1331 | 1248 | .516 | 2 | 8 | 5 | 1 | 1 | [5] [12] | |
32 | Buddy Bell | 1996–1998 | 184 | 277 | .399 | [5] | ||||||
33 | Larry Parrish | 1998–1999 | 82 | 104 | .441 | [5] | ||||||
34 | Phil Garner | 2000–2002 | 145 | 185 | .439 | [5] | ||||||
35 | Luis Pujols ** | 2002 | 55 | 100 | .355 | [5] | ||||||
36 | Alan Trammell * | 2003–2005 | 186 | 300 | .383 | [5] | ||||||
37 | Jim Leyland | 2006–2013 | 700 | 597 | .540 | 4 | 25 | 23 | 2 | 0 | [5] [13] [14] | |
38 | Brad Ausmus | 2014–2017 | 314 | 332 | .486 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | [5] | |
39 | Ron Gardenhire | 2018–2020 | 132 | 241 | .354 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | [5] [15] | |
40 | Lloyd McClendon ** | 2020 | 2 | 6 | .250 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | [5] [16] | |
41 | A. J. Hinch | 2021–present | 287 | 334 | .462 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | [5] [4] |
# | Manager | Seasons | G | W | L | Win% | PA | PW | PL | LC | WS | Ref |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
9 | Bucky Harris | 1929–1933 1955–1956 | 1,078 | 516 | 557 | .481 | ||||||
10 | Mickey Cochrane * | 1934–1936, 1937, 1938 | 600 | 348 | 250 | .582 | 2 | 7 | 6 | 2 | 1 | |
11 | Del Baker | 1933, 1936, 1937, 1938–1942 | 675 | 417 | 355 | .540 | ||||||
22 | Chuck Dressen | 1963–1964 1965–1966 | 411 | 221 | 189 | .539 | ||||||
23 | Bob Swift | 1965, 1966 | 99 | 56 | 43 | .566 |
The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central Division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was founded in Detroit as a member of the minor league Western League in 1894 and is the only Western League team still in its original city. They are also the oldest continuous one name, one city franchise in the AL. Ty Cobb, who played his first season with Detroit in 1905, later became the first Tiger to be inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1936.
George Lee"Sparky"Anderson was an American Major League Baseball (MLB) player, coach, and manager. He managed the National League's Cincinnati Reds to the 1975 and 1976 championships, then added a third title in 1984 with the Detroit Tigers of the American League. Anderson was the first manager to win the World Series in both leagues. His 2,194 career wins are the sixth-most for a manager in Major League history. His 1,331 wins with the Tigers are the most for any manager in team history. Anderson was named American League Manager of the Year in 1984 and 1987. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2000.
Gordon Stanley "Mickey" Cochrane, nicknamed "Black Mike", was an American professional baseball player, manager and coach. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher for the Philadelphia Athletics and Detroit Tigers. Cochrane was considered one of the best catchers in baseball history and is a member of the Baseball Hall of Fame. In his first season as manager, he led the Tigers to 101 wins, which was the most for a rookie manager for 27 years.
James Richard Leyland is an American former professional baseball player, coach and manager. He serves as a special assistant to the Detroit Tigers of Major League Baseball (MLB).
Hugh Ambrose Jennings was an American professional baseball player, coach and manager from 1891 to 1925. Jennings was a leader, both as a batter and as a shortstop, with the Baltimore Orioles teams that won National League championships in 1894, 1895, and 1896. During those three seasons, Jennings had 355 runs batted in and hit .335, .386, and .401.
In Major League Baseball, the Manager of the Year Award is an honor given annually since 1983 to two outstanding managers, one each in the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner is voted on by 30 members of the Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA). Each submits a vote for first, second, and third place among the managers of each league.[a] The manager with the highest score in each league wins the award.
John Scott Morris is an American former professional baseball starting pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) between 1977 and 1994, mainly for the Detroit Tigers. Morris won 254 games throughout his career.
Kirk Harold Gibson is an American former professional baseball outfielder and manager. He is currently a color commentator for the Detroit Tigers on Bally Sports Detroit and a special assistant for the Tigers. Gibson spent most of his career with the Detroit Tigers, but also played for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Kansas City Royals, and Pittsburgh Pirates. He batted and threw left-handed.
Alan Stuart Trammell is an American former professional baseball shortstop, manager and coach and member of the National Baseball Hall of Fame as a player. His entire 20-year playing career in Major League Baseball (MLB) was with the Detroit Tigers. Trammell has served as a special assistant to the General Manager of the Detroit Tigers since the 2014 season.
The 1984 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1984 season. The 81st edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the American League (AL) champion Detroit Tigers and the National League (NL) champion San Diego Padres. The Tigers won the series, four games to one. This was the city of Detroit's first sports championship since the Tigers won the 1968 World Series.
Andrew Jay Hinch is an American professional baseball coach and former player who is the manager of the Detroit Tigers of Major League Baseball (MLB). Hinch played catcher for the Oakland Athletics (1998–2000), Kansas City Royals (2001–2002), Detroit Tigers (2003), and Philadelphia Phillies (2004).
Lloyd Glenn McClendon is an American former professional baseball player, coach and manager. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as an outfielder from 1987 to 1994 for the Cincinnati Reds, Chicago Cubs, and the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Ronald Clyde Gardenhire is an American former professional baseball player, coach, and manager. He played as a shortstop for the New York Mets from 1981 through 1985. After another year playing in the minor leagues, he served as a manager in the Minnesota Twins farm system for three years, then as a coach for the Twins from 1991 through 2001, and then as the Twins' manager from 2002 through 2014, winning the American League Manager of the Year Award in 2010. He then coached for the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2017 and managed the Detroit Tigers from 2018 through most of 2020, when he retired from baseball.
Thomas Dale Brookens is an American former professional baseball third baseman. He played for the Detroit Tigers, New York Yankees and Cleveland Indians of the Major League Baseball (MLB). Brookens was on the Tigers' coaching staff from 2009 to 2013, serving as first base coach and later third base coach. He was replaced as third base coach prior to the 2014 season by Dave Clark.
The 2006 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 2006 season. The 102nd edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the American League (AL) champion Detroit Tigers and the National League (NL) champion St. Louis Cardinals; the Cardinals won the series in five games to win their tenth World Series championship. This was the third World Series meeting between the Tigers and the Cardinals, the first in 38 years. The Cardinals won the first in 1934, and the Tigers won the second in 1968; each went the full seven games.
Richard Arlen Anderson is an American former professional baseball pitcher and coach. He played for the New York Mets and Kansas City Royals of Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1986 to 1988. He served as the pitching coach for the Minnesota Twins and Detroit Tigers of MLB from 2002 to 2020.
The history of the Detroit Tigers, a professional baseball franchise based in Detroit, Michigan, dates back to 1894 when they were a member of the minor league Western League. Becoming a charter member of the American League in 1901, they are the oldest continuous one name, one city franchise in the league.
Miguel Angel Rojas is an American former professional baseball player and current baseball manager. He played in Minor league baseball as a catcher from 1983 to 1984 for the Oakland Athletics and Toronto Blue Jays organizations. After his playing career, he continued his involvement in professional baseball as a coach and manager for several organizations. He is the current manager for the Northwest Arkansas Naturals of the Double-A Texas League and the Leones del Caracas of the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League.