The Tigers have interviewed Yankees third base coach Phil Nevin for their managerial vacancy, Jason Beck of MLB.com reports (via Twitter). He’s the third member of the Yankees’ staff to be interviewed by the Tigers, joining bench coach Carlos Mendoza and hitting coach Marcus Thames.
Nevin, 49, is no stranger to the Tigers organization. The former big league first baseman spent three of his dozen MLB seasons in a Detroit uniform and, since retiring, has served as the manager of the Tigers’ Double-A and Triple-A affiliates. He’s gone on to manage the Diamondbacks’ Triple-A affiliate and serve as a third base coach with the D-backs and Yankees organizations. New York hired him to his current post in the 2017-18 offseason.
Tigers GM Al Avila made some headlines when he said that he wouldn’t rule out either A.J. Hinch or Alex Cora in his search for recently retired Ron Gardenhire’s replacement, but to this point the Tigers have interviewed a fairly broad array of candidates. Beyond this trio of Yankees staffers, Avila & Co. have spoken with Royals bench coach Pedro Grifol, Pirates bench coach Don Kelly (another former Tiger), Dodgers first base coach George Lombard and Cubs third base coach Will Venable. Among in-house candidates, Detroit has spoken to current interim manager and hitting coach Lloyd McClendon.
All of that can be seen in MLBTR’s 2021 Managerial Tracker, which has updates on both the Red Sox and White Sox vacancies as well.
Nervin is interesting as would Rabelo be interesting..
Nice pic
Depending on how well the teams did, it sounds like he has definitely paid his dues.
Tigers are just treading water until they absolutely interview AJ Hinch. He’s my choice (not that Al Avila cares what I think).
He’s got to be related to Gardy….
Once the Dodgers close out the Rays tomorrow night…..expect Cora and Hinch to be gobbled up before the end of the week.
That would reflect very poorly on the hiring team and lose them a lot of fans. Why would any team hire disgraced cheaters who should be permanently banned from the game along with their players?
I think you overrate the number of fans who would care by a lot
Agreed. It would anger a handful of loud people on social media and they would get over it as soon as the tigers start winning
Enough would care that this hiring would never happen
Of all the names I have heard mentioned for the job outside of Hinch, Nevin would be my top choice. I would love it if the Tigers hired Hinch. Despite the cheating scandal, he is the top available candidate. I just worry that the White Sox will come to their senses and go for Hinch over LaRussa. And given the White Sox are in a win-now mode, Hinch likely would prefer the White Sox over the Tigers. So Al has to have a plan B, and Nevin would be a good plan B.
Hinch’s only (albeit major) flaw was his lack of taking leadership when he discovered cheating going on. He’s an otherwise excellent manager and he will definitely have learned from his mistakes. He should do well with a young Tigers team.
His flaw was allowing the greatest fraud in the history of the game to take place. He benefitted from it as much as anyone involved. He should be banned from the game and no true fan should think twice.
I despise Hinch, too, but re “greatest fraud in the history of the game,” the 1919 White Sox, the 1998 home run race, and Barry Bonds’s head all would like a word
@MWeller None of the items you listed amount to the theft of a World Series and an MVP Award. The 1919 White Sox is the closest thing, but even then, they gifted the World Series to the other team. Still despicable, but it pales in comparison to fraudulently stealing the World Series. Their attack was on baseball and everything in it. The White Sox attacked only their own fans and owner. Put the thing in perspective.
No, tanking a game for money is far worse than cheating to win. And only one of those two is illegal. And you know who disagrees with your contention that the Black Sox taking bribes was NOT an attack on all of baseball? Everybody. MLB was teetering on the edge of going out of business as a result; the thing that saved them was Babe Ruth and a juiced baseball.
That’s a big thing. He says that but his allowing it is giving approval. At least Cora took punishment and OWNED it.
I don’t think getting caught and not having any choice constitutes “owning” anything.
Exactly Chief!
Other than that, how did you like the play Mrs. Lincoln? Hinch’s flaw is a deal breaker to me considering managers are mostly used these days to deal with the media and manage the clubhouse
Hinch’s only flaw as a manager was not having control of the clubhouse (which is the most important part of the job). The players did not respect him and worked around him, or he was aware and did nothing. There is no otherwise. He gets no credit for legibly writing out the lineup card, or making nice with the press. Let the White Sox have him.
Did he ever say sorry or that he was wrong?
Apparently not convincingly.
https://www.si.com/mlb/dodgers/news/the-result-is-a-thinly-veiled-public-relations-effort-a-professional-in-real-time-crisis-management-campaign-to-begin-to-rebuild-a-mans-image-the-end-game-is-about-getting-a-career-back-and-thats-not-an-apology-not-really
What bothers me about Hinch the most is when he openly mocked the Yankees for complaining about the Astros cheating, calling the allegations “ridiculous” and even suggesting that they would have practiced the whistling during Spring Training if they had known the noise would have riled up other teams that much.
Then there’s the part about him being unable to control his clubhouse and putting an end to the matter when he learned of it. Yet pundits at ESPN are so quick to forgive, calling Hinch and Cora great guys. I guess that’s easy to do when you weren’t a player who went through a 162 game season as best you could while the team across the field was gaining their edge unfairly.
Despite the baggage Hinch brings with him, he is a proven winner. Think of the legitimacy a Hinch hiring would bring to the Tigers, like when the Cubs poached Joe Maddon during their rebuild. Hinch will have his choice of good jobs, and to pick your rebuilding team would say he smells another winner (this time without cheating, please).
With all due respect. Last time was not a “winner” it was a “stealer and defrauder.” No one cares about Hinch’s assessment of what a winner and loser looks like. Anything he had, he stole.
Hinch As Astro’s Manager:
2015: 86-76
2016: 84-78
2017 101-61
2018 103-59
2019: 107-55
He was a winner even before the Trash Can Scandal.
He’s won nothing.
The Tigers already tried a Phil at Manager (Garner), and he didn’t work out. I thought they were done with Phils and Brads.
Thanks for the advice – I didn’t realize it was all in the name! Does that mean they should hire George “Sparky II” Lombard?
Yup. George “Sparky” Anderson was great, so Lombard would be a good choice!
Phil Nevin is 49?! I mean, it makes sense since he started his time with the Padres when I was in college. It just makes me feel like I should be applying for Medicare or something
This guy is meathead trash. He would last about three months as a major league manager.
The Tigers need a Spanish speaking manager to deal with Miggy and his posse.
I didn’t know Miguel Cabrera had a “posse”.
Ron LeFlore had one in the late 1970s and took it with him to Montreal where they helped ruin Ellis Valentine’s career and almost Tim Raines’ too.
It’s going up end up with Tigers hiring AJ, the Red Sox hiring Cora and the White Sox going with LaRussa. If the WS weren’t going to hire Tony, why have they not even sat down with anyone else? Could they be waiting for Hinch or Cora? Sure, I could see that. But they’d atleast interview other candidates. Their waiting b/c MLB hates it when anyone makes a splash during the World Series (like that’s going to hurt numbers anymore than they already are) and when its over I think all 3 of these hires will be made before Halloween. Just an opinion, but one I feel strongly about.
Boston loved Cora. I’ll be surprised if he’s NOT rehired. Hinch is too good to let sit on the shelf another year. We fans think this was the scandal of all scandals but the baseball guys all know a lot of crap like that goes on every day. Hinch et al were caught and they had to take one for the team i.e. MLB. He will be hired by someone within the week. I want it to be the Tigers.
Once the Tigers start winning more it will all be forgotten. If they hire Hinch the Tigers could flirt with .500 next year. ’22 will be when they really compete.
How many times are you going to say it and get shut down before you realize it’s already been done?
Roberts and Cash are managing in the WS, and they had no previous experience managing in the bigs. Hinch and Cora are not the only way to go and be successful.