A.J. Hinch just wrapped up his fifth season as manager of the Tigers, and is coming back for more.
Tigers president of baseball operations Scott Harris announced Monday with Hinch sitting by his side at their end-of-season press conference that the organization signed Hinch to a contract extension earlier this year. Hinch went on to lead the Tigers to their second straight playoff berth after they snapped a 10-year playoff drought last season.
"I absolutely love working with A.J.," Harris said. "I think he’s one of the best managers in the game. We have now proactively extended him twice because we want him to be here as long as he’s willing to be here, and I want to work with him as long as I can possibly work with him. It was one of the easier conversations I’ve had, because he wants to be here too, and we’re both bullish on our future in this organization, and we’re both proud of what we’ve done in the three years together."
The Tigers first extended Hinch with a long-term deal after the 2023 season, Harris' first in charge. Hinch's original deal with the Tigers, which he signed in 2020, was believed to run through 2025, so he's likely signed now through at least 2027.
The Tigers have improved on the prior year's win total in each season with Harris and Hinch leading the way, from 78 to 86 to 87. The organization does not release contract terms for non-playing personnel.
"I'm so happy being in Detroit, and I’m so proud to be the manager here," said Hinch, who managed the Astros for five seasons and the Diamondbacks for two prior to joining the Tigers. "I love working for Scott, and it’s the second time that I was approached and asked for more, and it’s an immediate yes for me. When you have an environment that both pushes you and satisfies you, you want to be in it. So I was honored, I was thrilled. It was one conversation with my wife and went back to Scott with an immediate yes, and off we went."
Hinch, 51, said there was no announcement made earlier because "it’s hard to look personally at where you’re at" in the middle of the season, "which is why my one request and Scott’s one request was that we just do it and be done with it and not talk about it. This was about the players during the season. It was about winning. We had a lot of games left, so we didn't want to be a distraction.
"But I can't tell you enough how proud I am to be the manager of the Tigers. It's a rewarding place to be. I've bought a home here, we live here the majority of the year and continue to be thrilled to become more and more Michiganders as a family. Very grateful, from Chris (Ilitch) to Jeff (Greenberg) to Scott, all of us are on board to bring a World Series here and that's why I want to be here."