Before the Tigers hired Ron Gardenhire, their previous three managers had all spent time in the organization as players: Brad Ausmus, Jim Leyland and Alan Trammell.
Will their next manager resume the trend?
Of the Tigers' many candidates for the job, according to MLB Insider Jon Morosi, five wore the Old English 'D' in their playing days. Two of them combined to play over 1,000 games for Detroit.
Here they are, in order of games played.
Don Kelly
Tigers fans remember Kelly fondly. He was a mainstay on the team that won four straight division titles from 2011-14, and wound up playing 544 games over six seasons with the Tigers. Kelly retired in 2016 after a nine-year career and immediately joined the Tigers organization as a scout. He moved to the Astros to serve as first base coach for the 2019 season, then became bench coach of the Pirates this season.
Marcus Thames
Thames was popular around these parts, too. The former slugger played 485 games for the Tigers from 2004-09 and helped the club reach the World Series in 2006. He ranked second on the team that year in OPS. Thames retired in 2011 after a 10-year career and soon became a hitting coach in the Yankees' minor league system. He's been the team's big-league hitting coach for the past three seasons.
Vance Wilson
Wilson was also a member of the 2006 Tigers. He served as the club's backup catcher, appearing in 117 games from 2005-06. Wilson, who spent most of his eight-year playing career with the Mets, has spent the duration of his coaching career with the Royals. He was a manager in the minor leagues, then joined the big-league club as bullpen coach in 2018. He's now the third base coach.
George Lombard
Lombard had a brief stint with the Tigers, appearing in 72 games as an outfielder in 2002. He also had stints with the Braves, Devil Rays and Nationals over his six-year career, which concluded in 2006. Lombard has spent the past five seasons as first base coach for the Dodgers.
AJ Hinch
You might remember Hinch as the backup catcher on the worst team in franchise history. He played 27 games for the Tigers in 2003. More likely, you know him as the manager who presided over the Astros' sign-stealing scandal and was subsequently fired and suspended. But Hinch will be eligible to return to the dugout next season, and his track record in Houston -- three division titles and a World Series ring -- speaks for itself.
Related
According to Morosi, the Tigers will also consider former Marlins manager and current Rockies bench coach Mike Redmond, Royals bench coach Pedro Grifol, Cubs third base coach Will Venable, along with in-house candidate Lloyd McClendon, who's in the midst of his second coaching stint in Detroit.