Jerry_Manuel
11-02-2001, 07:39 PM
DETROIT -- The Detroit Tigers are pursuing former Florida Marlins president and general manager Dave Dombrowski to take over as the team president, according to the Detroit Free Press.
Dombrowski met recently with Tigers owner Mike Ilitch in Detroit, the paper said. Ilitch would reportedly give Dombrowski a wide berth to make the team competitive again.
Dombrowski has been a big league GM for more than a decade. He was the GM in Montreal in the early 1990s, and helped build Florida into a World Series champion in 1997.
Dombrowski has two years remaining on his $5 million contract in Florida. He's reportedly looking to leave the Marlins because there is no sign that ownership will make a financial commitment to winning. He also interviewed in Texas and was reportedly in Toronto on Friday to inquire about the Blue Jays' vacant GM job.
According to the Free Press, Dombrowski would not replace Randy Smith as the Tigers' GM. And manager Phil Garner's job is considered safe if Dombrowski is hired.
Ilitch froze the Tigers' payroll last winter and refused to allow any bids on free agents. That started a year-long collapse in which the Tigers, who had finished four games under .500 the year before, finished 30 games under .500 in their club-record eighth straight losing season.
In May, president John McHale resigned under pressure from Ilitch. A few weeks later, Ilitch named himself president and said, "I'm going to be very involved with all aspects of the club. I'm not satisfied with where we are. As owner, I take full responsibility for that."
Dombrowski met recently with Tigers owner Mike Ilitch in Detroit, the paper said. Ilitch would reportedly give Dombrowski a wide berth to make the team competitive again.
Dombrowski has been a big league GM for more than a decade. He was the GM in Montreal in the early 1990s, and helped build Florida into a World Series champion in 1997.
Dombrowski has two years remaining on his $5 million contract in Florida. He's reportedly looking to leave the Marlins because there is no sign that ownership will make a financial commitment to winning. He also interviewed in Texas and was reportedly in Toronto on Friday to inquire about the Blue Jays' vacant GM job.
According to the Free Press, Dombrowski would not replace Randy Smith as the Tigers' GM. And manager Phil Garner's job is considered safe if Dombrowski is hired.
Ilitch froze the Tigers' payroll last winter and refused to allow any bids on free agents. That started a year-long collapse in which the Tigers, who had finished four games under .500 the year before, finished 30 games under .500 in their club-record eighth straight losing season.
In May, president John McHale resigned under pressure from Ilitch. A few weeks later, Ilitch named himself president and said, "I'm going to be very involved with all aspects of the club. I'm not satisfied with where we are. As owner, I take full responsibility for that."