AJ Hinch hired as manager for the Detroit Tigers.
DETROIT — As he waited out his suspension this year, AJ Hinch knew he wanted to return to baseball. The question was whether anyone in the sport would be ready to welcome him.
His answer came pretty quickly.
“About 30 minutes after the World Series’ last out, my phone rang,” Hinch said.
It was Detroit General Manager Al Avila, telling Hinch to get on a plane. The Tigers quickly hired Hinch as their new manager, giving him a chance to return to a major-league dugout after he was fired by Houston after the Astros’ sign-stealing scandal.
It may take a while for Hinch to overcome the stigma of what happened in Houston, but he and his new bosses were ready to address the topic Friday.
“I understand the question and I understand how wrong it was, and I’m sorry for that,” Hinch said. “I’ve said that before, I’ll say it again, I’ll continue to say it. I’ll never forget the feeling that I’ve had throughout the past year as I’ve navigated this with my family, but you quickly get to the exciting time of getting back and leading a group of men again, and establishing what Tigers baseball’s going to be all about.”
The 46-year-old Hinch replaces Ron Gardenhire, who retired late last season. He takes over a team that has been rebuilding for the past few years.
Detroit went 23-35, finishing last in the AL Central. That’s been a familiar spot for the Tigers recently — Detroit lost 114 games in 2019 — but the team has been able to pick high in the draft during this stretch. Casey Mize, the top overall pick in 2018, reached the majors this year, and Detroit used this year’s No. 1 selection on infielder Spencer Torkelson.
Hinch is 570-452 as a major-league manager. He played from 1998-2004, spending time with Oakland, Kansas City, Detroit and Philadelphia.