When Jim Leyland retired Monday, plenty of names were tossed around as possible replacements. One name that didn't make those early lists was Dodgers third base coach Tim Wallach. Right now, however, he seems to be the hot name. The Tigers interviewed Wallach Friday and the baseball world is buzzing. Here's are some highlights on the nonstop Tim Wallach-Detroit Tigers watch.
Detroit News: He was in town Thursday for dinner with Dombrowski, then the two sat down for a formal interview Friday.
“I don’t want to talk about what was talked about, but you feel like it went well,” Wallach, the Dodgers third-base coach, told The Detroit News in a phone conversation Saturday afternoon. “I enjoyed meeting with him. I’ve known Dave for a long time.”
Detroit Free Press: The Tigers general manager interviewed Wallach for the club’s managerial vacancy on Friday in a session that Wallach estimated lasted about five hours.
MLive: "I thought it went well," Wallach told MLive.com via text message just after midnight Saturday upon returning to his home in Yorba Linda, Calif. "It's a very good ballclub and I know how Dave works. He was my general manager in Montreal."
Dombrowski responded early Saturday morning to a text message sent late Friday night.
"He handled himself well," said Dombrowski, who confirmed the Tigers have interviewed two candidates so far.
L.A. Times: Jim Leyland announced his retirement as Tigers manager on Monday. One of Leyland's coaches, former Pittsburgh Pirates manager Lloyd McClendon, interviewed for the job on Thursday. No candidates beyond Wallach and McClendon have surfaced publicly.
ESPN: Wallach, 56, has been one of the leading managerial candidates for the past few seasons. He was the runner-up to John Farrell last winter for the Boston Red Sox job.
"It's nice, and I think everybody knows I want to manage someday," Wallach said earlier this month regarding speculation on his future.
MLB.com: After interviewing Friday afternoon, Wallach flew back home to California that night. [ESPN's Jonah} Keri reported that talks were escalating, but at this point, Wallach said, they have nothing further scheduled.
