Ex-Tiger Alan Trammell considered possible Piniella replacement
Ex-Tiger Alan Trammell considered possible Piniella replacement
Tony Paul / The Detroit News
Lou Piniella's announcement Tuesday that this will be his final year with the Cubs leaves the door open for popular former Tiger Alan Trammell to manage again.
Trammell managed the talent-starved Tigers from 2003-05 before his firing. He has been the bench coach during Piniella's entire four-year tenure with the Cubs.
The Chicago Tribune has Trammell at the bottom of a five-deep list of possible replacements, saying: "Knows the team and has experience with Detroit. Not the kind of 'big name' hiring that the Cubs normally go for, but he is well liked by (GM Jim) Hendry."
The other names on the Tribune's list: Ryne Sandberg, Joe Girardi, Bob Brenly and Joe Torre.
If Trammell misses out on the managerial job, he'll likely lose his current gig, too. Many managers prefer to bring in their own bench coaches, who are viewed as right-hand men.
Should he be out of a job in Chicago, he should have little problem catching on elsewhere, perhaps with the Diamondbacks if interim manager Kirk Gibson is retained beyond this year. Gibson was Trammell's bench coach most of his three-year tenure in Detroit.
Gibson also is considered a popular pick to replace Torre, should Torre decide to retire or leave the Dodgers for another job. So Trammell could end up there, too.
Trammell, 52, spent his entire 20-year playing career with the Tigers before retiring after the 1996 season.
He joined Larry Parrish's staff in Detroit as hitting coach in 1999, but wasn't kept on when Phil Garner took over the following year. Trammell coached with the Padres in 2000 before the Tigers hired him as manager in October 2002.
Trammell was 186-300 managing the Tigers, in a tough stint that included an American League-record 119 losses his first season and troubles with his star player, Pudge Rodriguez, later on. He was fired in October 2005, and replaced by Jim Leyland, who took the Tigers to the World Series in 2006.
From The Detroit News:
Ex-Tiger Alan Trammell considered possible Piniella replacement | detnews.com | The Detroit News