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Alan Stuart Trammell ( ; born February 21, 1958) is an American former professional
baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...
shortstop Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball positions, baseball or softball fielding position between second base, second and third base, which is considered to be among the Defensive spectrum, most demanding defensive positions. Historically, the ...
,
manager Management (or managing) is the administration of organizations, whether businesses, nonprofit organizations, or a government bodies through business administration, nonprofit management, or the political science sub-field of public administra ...
, and coach. He is a member of the
National Baseball Hall of Fame The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by a private foundation. It serves as the central collection and gathering space for the history of baseball in the United St ...
. He played for the
Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. One of the AL's eight chart ...
for the entirety of his 20-year playing career in
Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...
(MLB). Trammell has served as a special assistant to the General Manager of the Detroit Tigers since the 2014 season. Trammell won the 1984 World Series championship over his hometown
San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Division. ...
, earning Series MVP honors. His team also won an
American League East The American League East is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions. MLB consists of an East, Central, and West division for each of its two 15-team leagues, the American League (AL) and National League (baseball), National League (NL). T ...
division championship in 1987. Although his arm was not overpowering, he had a quick release and made accurate throws, ultimately winning four Gold Glove awards. Trammell's defense perfectly complemented his double-play partner, Lou Whitaker. The two formed the longest continuous double-play combination in major league history, playing 19 seasons together. At the plate, Trammell was one of the best-hitting shortstops of his era and won three Silver Slugger awards. Trammell later served as the Tigers'
manager Management (or managing) is the administration of organizations, whether businesses, nonprofit organizations, or a government bodies through business administration, nonprofit management, or the political science sub-field of public administra ...
from
2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...
through
2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...
. He also served as the interim manager for the
Arizona Diamondbacks The Arizona Diamondbacks are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West Division. The franchise was established ...
during the final three games of the 2014 season. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2018.


Playing career


Early years

Trammell attended Kearny High School in
San Diego, California San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...
and played American Legion Baseball. He was named the 1989 American Legion Graduate of the Year. The
Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. One of the AL's eight chart ...
selected him in the second round of the 1976 MLB draft. While playing for the Tigers' farm team in Montgomery of the Southern League, Trammell played his first game with teammate Lou Whitaker before the two infielders were promoted, making their major league debut at
Fenway Park Fenway Park is a ballpark located in Boston, Massachusetts, less than one mile from Kenmore Square. Since 1912, it has been the home field of Major League Baseball's (MLB) Boston Red Sox. While the stadium was built in 1912, it was substantia ...
together, during the second game of a double-header on September 9, 1977, the first of nineteen seasons together. Both players became regulars at their positions the following season. Trammell batted .300 in 1980 as he made the
All-Star An all-star team is a group of people all having a high level of performance in their field. Originating in sports, it has since drifted into vernacular and has been borrowed heavily by the entertainment industry. Sports "All-star" as a sport ...
team for the first time. In 1983, he batted .319 with 14
home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the Baseball (ball), ball is hit in such a way that the batting (baseball), batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safe (baseball), safely in one play without any error ( ...
s, 66
runs batted in A run batted in or runs batted in (RBI) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if th ...
and 30
stolen base In baseball, a stolen base occurs when a runner advances to a base unaided by other actions and the official scorer rules that the advance should be credited to the action of the runner. The umpires determine whether the runner is safe or out ...
s. Having hit .258 in both 1981 and 1982, Trammell won the 1983 MLB Comeback Player of the Year Award in the
American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is the younger of two sports leagues, leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western L ...
(AL). Trammell and Whitaker made a cameo appearance on the television show '' Magnum, P.I.'', starring Tom Selleck, during the 1983 season. Selleck's character was a Tigers fan, as is Selleck himself.


1984

The Tigers enjoyed a championship-winning season in 1984, when they started the season 35–5 and led the AL wire-to-wire en route to winning the World Series. Despite a season-long battle with
tendinitis Tendinopathy is a type of tendon disorder that results in pain, swelling, and impaired function. The pain is typically worse with movement. It most commonly occurs around the shoulder ( rotator cuff tendinitis, biceps tendinitis), elbow ( tenn ...
in his shoulder that caused him to miss 23 regular season games, Trammell finished fifth in the AL batting race with a .314 mark and ranked eighth in
on-base percentage In baseball statistics, on-base percentage (OBP) measures how frequently a batting (baseball), batter reaches base (baseball), base. An official Major League Baseball (MLB) statistic since 1984, it is sometimes referred to as on-base average (OBA ...
(.382). In the AL Championship Series against the
Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The team ...
, he hit .364 with one home run and three RBI. Finally, in the
World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...
, he hit .450 (9-for-20) against the
San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Division. ...
, including a pair of two-run home runs that accounted for all of the Tigers' scoring in a Game 4 victory. Detroit won the series 4–1, and Trammell was named World Series MVP.


1985–1988

In 1985, after two consecutive years of batting not lower than .314, Trammell was hampered by injuries and posted only a .258 batting average. He underwent postseason surgery on his left knee and right shoulder. The following season, a fully healthy Trammell hit 21 homers and stole 25 bases, becoming only the second player in Detroit history to hit 20+ home runs and steal 20+ bases in the same season. ( Kirk Gibson was the other, while Curtis Granderson and
Robbie Grossman Robert Edward Grossman (born September 16, 1989) is an American professional baseball outfielder who is a free agent. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Houston Astros, Minnesota Twins, Oakland Athletics, Detroit Tig ...
later joined the club.) Trammell also set a career-high with 75 RBI. In 1987, asked by manager Sparky Anderson to replace the departed Lance Parrish as
cleanup hitter In baseball, a cleanup hitter is the fourth hitter in the batting order. The cleanup hitter is traditionally the team's most powerful hitter. His job is to "clean up the bases", that is, drive in base runners. Theory The thinking behind the ...
, Trammell responded with his best major league season, hitting a career-high 28 home runs and .343 batting average (ranking third in the AL). In addition, Trammell appeared among the league leaders in most other AL offensive categories: third in hits (205), tenth in RBI (105), tied for fifth in runs (109), fourth in
total bases In baseball statistics, total bases is the number of bases a player gains with hit (baseball), hits. It is a weighted sum with values of 1 for a single (baseball), single, 2 for a double (baseball), double, 3 for a triple (baseball), triple and 4 ...
(329), fifth in on-base percentage (.402), eighth in
slugging average In baseball statistics, slugging percentage (SLG) is a measure of the batting productivity of a hitter. It is calculated as total bases divided by at-bats, through the following formula, where ''AB'' is the number of at-bats for a given player, a ...
(.551), sixth in on-base plus slugging (.953), fifth in OPS+ (155), and tied for fifth in game-winning RBI (16). In September, he batted .416 with six homers and 17 RBI and put together an 18-game hitting streak in which he hit .457. On the penultimate day of the regular season, he hit a walk-off single against the
Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Since 1989, the team has p ...
to help his team take the AL East division lead, which they clinched the next day. He became the first Tiger to collect 200 hits and 100 RBI in the same season since
Al Kaline Albert William Kaline ( ; December 19, 1934 – April 6, 2020), nicknamed "Mr. Tiger", was an American professional baseball right fielder who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Detroit Tigers. For most of his career, Kali ...
did it in 1955. Trammell also became the first shortstop to hit at least .340 with 20+ home runs and 100+ RBI in a season in big league history. Despite his efforts, Trammell finished second to Toronto's George Bell in the MVP voting (332–311). After the season finale, Whitaker gave him second base, on which he had written: ''To Alan Trammell, 1987 Most Valuable Player, from your friend Lou Whitaker.'' Trammell followed up with a .311 season in 1988, though a stint on the disabled list limited him to 128 games that year.


Later years, injuries, and retirement

Following the 1990 season, in which he hit .304 with 89 RBI in 146 games, Trammell suffered a long string of injuries that reduced his production over his final years. In 1991, knee and ankle injuries limited Trammell to 101 games. During the following season, he played in 29 games before breaking his right ankle and missing the remainder of the 1992 season. He hit .329 in a resurgent 1993 season but was ineligible to be ranked among the AL batting leaders because he only had 447 plate appearances. In his final five seasons, Trammell averaged 76 games played after averaging 140 games played the first 13 seasons of his career. From 1993 to 1996, Trammell saw less time at shortstop in favor of Travis Fryman and eventually Chris Gomez and Andújar Cedeño. He instead saw playing time at several positions, including shortstop, third base, second base, left field, center field, and designated hitter. Trammell retired following the 1996 season. In his 20-year career, Trammell batted over .300 seven times, ending with a career average of .285 and 185 home runs with 1,003 RBI, 1,231 runs, 2,365 hits, 412 doubles, 55 triples, 236 stolen bases and 850 walks in 2,293 games. He compiled a .977
fielding percentage In baseball statistics, fielding percentage, also known as fielding average, is a measure that reflects the percentage of times a baseball positions, defensive player properly handles a batted or thrown ball. It is calculated by the sum of putout ...
at shortstop, his primary position.


Hall of Fame consideration and induction

In 2001, Trammell was rated as the ninth-best shortstop of all time in " The New Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract", placing him higher than fourteen Hall of Fame shortstops. In subsequent years, Trammell's candidacy for the Hall of Fame picked up increasing support from the sabermetric community. In his first 12 years of eligibility, he received the following percentage of votes: 15.7% (2002), 14.1% (2003), 13.8% (2004), 16.9% (2005), 17.7% (2006), 13.4% (2007), 18.2% (2008), 17.4% (2009), 22.4% (2010), 24.3% (2011), 36.8% (2012), 33.6% (2013), and 20.8% (2014). His boost in later years was likely due to voters being more receptive to advanced metrics, such as wins above replacement. Trammell was on his 15th and final Baseball Writers' Association of America ballot in 2016, failing to earn enough for induction. Trammell was one of the last candidates to be allowed on the ballot for 15 years after the BBWAA reduced eligibility to ten years, and would next be considered for the Veterans Committee Expansion starting from 2017. On December 10, 2017, he was elected to the Hall of Fame by the Modern Baseball Committee alongside teammate Jack Morris. They were inducted in July 2018. In 1998, Trammell was elected into the National Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame.


Jersey number retirement

Alan Trammell's jersey #3 was retired by the Tigers in a ceremony on August 26, 2018. His name and number were added to the brick wall in left-center field at
Comerica Park Comerica Park is a baseball stadium located in Downtown Detroit. It has been the ballpark of Major League Baseball's Detroit Tigers since 2000, when the team left Tiger Stadium (Detroit), Tiger Stadium. History Construction Founded in 1894, t ...
, alongside
Charlie Gehringer Charles Leonard Gehringer (May 11, 1903 – January 21, 1993), nicknamed "the Mechanical Man", was an American professional baseball second baseman. He played for the Detroit Tigers for 19 seasons from 1924 Detroit Tigers season, 1924 to 1943 Det ...
(#2), Hank Greenberg (#5),
Al Kaline Albert William Kaline ( ; December 19, 1934 – April 6, 2020), nicknamed "Mr. Tiger", was an American professional baseball right fielder who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Detroit Tigers. For most of his career, Kali ...
(#6), Sparky Anderson (#11), Hal Newhouser (#16), Willie Horton (#23),
Ty Cobb Tyrus Raymond Cobb (December 18, 1886 – July 17, 1961), nicknamed "the Georgia Peach", was an American professional baseball center fielder. A native of rural Narrows, Georgia, Cobb played 24 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). He spent ...
(no number) and Jack Morris (#47).
Jackie Robinson Jack Roosevelt Robinson (January 31, 1919 – October 24, 1972) was an American professional baseball player who became the first Black American to play in Major League Baseball (MLB) in the modern era. Robinson broke the Baseball color line, ...
's #42 was retired throughout baseball in 1997. Double-play mate Lou Whitaker had his #1 retired in 2022, and it now fittingly stands to the right of Trammel's on the outfield wall.


Managerial and coaching career

After his retirement, Trammell coached for Detroit (1999,
hitting coach In baseball, a number of coaches assist in the smooth functioning of a team. They are assistants to the manager, who determines the starting lineup and batting order, decides how to substitute players during the game, and makes strategy decisi ...
) and the San Diego Padres (2000–2002, first base coach) before becoming a manager.


Detroit Tigers

Trammell was named the manager of a struggling Tigers team on October 9, 2002. The team lost 119 games in his first season in 2003, an American League record at the time, before posting a 72–90 record in 2004. In the 2005 season, however, the team's record regressed slightly, finishing 71–91. During Trammell's three years as manager, the Tigers compiled a record of 186–300. During the 2003 season, Detroit nearly matched the modern MLB record of 120 losses, set by the expansion
New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National ...
(40–120) in 1962. The Tigers won five of their last six games to avoid the distinction. The Mets' major league record and Tigers' American League record for losses was later surpassed by the 2024 Chicago White Sox. On October 3, 2005, the Tigers released Trammell after three seasons in which the organization failed to post a winning record. Trammell was replaced by Jim Leyland on October 4, 2005. Leyland led Detroit to a 24-game improvement in the regular season, an AL pennant, and a
World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...
appearance in 2006. While there was some media criticism regarding Trammell's managerial strategies and "nice" demeanor, others contend that he was a rookie manager put in charge of a team that was severely lacking in talent, and believe his managerial stint played an integral role in re-instilling professionalism and pride throughout the Tigers organization. Leyland himself attributed a degree of the success that the Tigers saw in the 2006 postseason to Trammell's efforts in the three years prior. In October 2006, Trammell returned to
Comerica Park Comerica Park is a baseball stadium located in Downtown Detroit. It has been the ballpark of Major League Baseball's Detroit Tigers since 2000, when the team left Tiger Stadium (Detroit), Tiger Stadium. History Construction Founded in 1894, t ...
for the first time since his firing to participate, along with Sparky Anderson, in pregame festivities prior to Game 2 of the World Series. Trammell was showered with a lengthy standing ovation from Detroit baseball fans upon taking the field.


Chicago Cubs and Arizona Diamondbacks

After being replaced by Leyland, Trammell turned down an offer to stay with the Tigers as a special assistant, instead opting to sit out 2006. In October 2006, he agreed to join the
Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Division. Th ...
as a bench coach for the 2007 season, a possible precursor to an eventual return to managing a major league club. During the four-game suspension of
Lou Piniella Louis Victor Piniella ( usually ; born August 28, 1943) is a former professional baseball player and manager. An outfielder, he played 18 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) with the Baltimore Orioles, Cleveland Indians, Kansas City Royals a ...
in 2007, Trammell was acting manager of the Chicago Cubs. Trammell was passed over for the Cubs' managerial position when
Lou Piniella Louis Victor Piniella ( usually ; born August 28, 1943) is a former professional baseball player and manager. An outfielder, he played 18 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) with the Baltimore Orioles, Cleveland Indians, Kansas City Royals a ...
retired midway through the 2010 season. Trammell was named bench coach of the Arizona Diamondbacks in October 2010, joining his former teammate Kirk Gibson. Gibson had previously been Trammell's bench and hitting coach with the Tigers. He and Gibson were fired on September 26, 2014, though Trammell stayed on for the final three games of the season to serve as the interim manager. He had a record of one win and two losses with Arizona.


Return to Detroit Tigers

On November 3, 2014, it was announced that Trammell would return to Detroit as a special assistant to Tigers' general manager Dave Dombrowski. During the 2015 season Trammell served as interim first-base coach when Omar Vizquel temporarily left the team on bereavement leave. He wore #4 during this time, as Ian Kinsler was wearing Trammell's familiar #3. Trammell continued to serve as a special assistant to Tigers' GM Al Avila until Avila was dismissed in August 2022, and Avila was replaced as GM by Jeff Greenberg in September 2023, with Trammell maintaining his special assistant role.


Managerial record


Career highlights

*1984 World Series MVP * 1984 World Series Champion *Inducted into the
Baseball Hall of Fame The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by a private foundation. It serves as the central collection and gathering space for the history of baseball in the United S ...
in 2018 *6-time
All-Star An all-star team is a group of people all having a high level of performance in their field. Originating in sports, it has since drifted into vernacular and has been borrowed heavily by the entertainment industry. Sports "All-star" as a sport ...
(1980, 1984, 1985, 1987, 1988, 1990) *4-time Gold Glove (1980, 1981, 1983, 1984) *3-time Top 10
MVP MVP most commonly refers to: * Most valuable player, an award, typically for the best performing player in a sport or competition * Minimum viable product, a concept for feature estimating used in business and engineering MVP may also refer to: ...
finisher (1984, 1987, 1988) *3-time Silver Slugger (1987, 1988, 1990) *3-time Tiger of the Year by the BBWAA-Detroit Chapter (1980, 1987, 1988) * Comeback Player of the Year (1983) *Collected both 200th hit of the season and 1,500th career in same
at bat In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens upon completion of his turn at bat, ...
(October 1, 1987) *Had a 21-game hit streak during the 1987 season. *Had a 20-game hit streak during the 1984 season. *Along with teammate Lou Whitaker holds AL record playing together (1,918 games). They also set the major league record by turning more double plays than any other shortstop-second baseman combination in professional baseball history. *The Trammell–Whitaker duo twice won Gold Gloves together, joining a list of eight shortstop-second baseman duos who have won the honor in the same season while playing together (1983, 1984). *Inducted into the National Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame in 1998 *Inducted into the San Diego Hall of Champions in 1998


See also

* List of Gold Glove middle infield duos *
List of Major League Baseball career hits leaders Listed are all Major League Baseball players who have reached the 2,000 hit (baseball), hit milestone during their career in MLB. Pete Rose holds the Major League record for most career hits, with 4,256. Rose and Ty Cobb, second most, are the only ...
* List of Major League Baseball career doubles leaders *
List of Major League Baseball career runs scored leaders Listed are all Major League Baseball (MLB) players with 1,000 or more career runs scored. Players in boldface are active as of the 2025 Major League Baseball season. Key List *Stats updated as of June 16, 2025. Through June 16, 2025, th ...
*
List of Major League Baseball career runs batted in leaders This is a list of Major League Baseball players who have compiled 1,000 runs batted in (RBIs). RBIs are usually accumulated when a batter in baseball enables a runner on base (including himself, in the case of a home run) to score as a result of m ...
*
List of Major League Baseball career stolen bases leaders In baseball statistics, a stolen base is credited to a baserunning, baserunner when he successfully advances to the next base while the pitcher is throwing the ball to home plate. Under Rule 5.06 of Major League Baseball's (MLB) Official Rules ...
*
List of Major League Baseball players who spent their entire career with one franchise The following is a list of former Major League Baseball (MLB) players who played in at least 10 MLB seasons and spent their entire MLB playing careers exclusively with one franchise. In most cases, this means the player only appeared with one te ...


References


External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Trammell, Alan 1958 births Living people American League All-Stars American people of Polish descent Arizona Diamondbacks coaches Baseball coaches from California Baseball players from San Diego Bristol Tigers players Chicago Cubs coaches Detroit Tigers coaches Detroit Tigers managers Detroit Tigers players Gold Glove Award winners Major League Baseball bench coaches Major League Baseball first base coaches Major League Baseball hitting coaches Major League Baseball players with retired numbers Major League Baseball shortstops Montgomery Rebels players National Baseball Hall of Fame inductees Baseball players from Garden Grove, California San Diego Padres coaches Silver Slugger Award winners United States national baseball team people World Series Most Valuable Player Award winners Kearny High School (California) alumni