| Lou Piniella | |
|---|---|
 Piniella with the Chicago Cubs in2008 | |
| Left fielder /Manager | |
| Born: (1943-08-28)August 28, 1943 (age 81) Tampa, Florida, U.S. | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| September 4, 1964, for the Baltimore Orioles | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| June 16, 1984, for the New York Yankees | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .291 |
| Home runs | 102 |
| Runs batted in | 766 |
| Managerial record | 1,835–1,712 |
| Winning % | .517 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Managerial record at Baseball Reference | |
| Teams | |
As player
As manager
As coach | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Louis Victor Piniella (/piːnˈjeɪjɑː/[1][2] usually/pɪˈnɛlə/; born August 28, 1943)[3] is a former professionalbaseball player andmanager. Anoutfielder, he played 18 seasons inMajor League Baseball (MLB) with theBaltimore Orioles,Cleveland Indians,Kansas City Royals andNew York Yankees. During his playing career, he was namedAL Rookie of the Year in 1969 and captured twoWorld Series championships with the Yankees (1977,1978).
Following his playing career, Piniella became a manager for the Yankees (1986–1988),Cincinnati Reds (1990–1992),Seattle Mariners (1993–2002),Tampa Bay Devil Rays (2003–2005), andChicago Cubs (2007–2010). He won the1990 World Series championship with the Reds and led the Mariners to four postseason appearances in seven years (including a record 116-win regular season in2001). As the Mariners' manager, Piniella presided over the franchise's most successful period. He also captured back-to-back division titles (2007–2008) during his time with the Cubs.
Piniella was namedManager of the Year three times during his career (1995, 2001, 2008) and finished his managerial career ranked 14th all time on thelist of managerial wins.
He was nicknamed "Sweet Lou", both for his swing as a major league hitter and, facetiously, to describe his demeanor as a player and manager.
Piniella was born inTampa, Florida. Though he is often mistaken for beingItalian American, Piniella's parents were ofAsturian descent, from northwestSpain.[1][4][5][6][7] He grew up inWest Tampa, and playedAmerican Legion baseball[8][9] andPONY League baseball alongside fellow future major league managerTony La Russa.[10] Piniella attendedJesuit High School in Tampa, where he played several sports and was anAll-American inbasketball.[11] After graduation in 1961,[12][13][14] he attended theUniversity of Tampa for a year, where he was a College Division (today'sDivision II) All-American in baseball for the Spartans.[15]
Piniella was signed by theCleveland Indians at age 18 as an amateur free agent on June 9, 1962.[16] That fall, he was drafted by theWashington Senators from the Indians in the 1962 first-year draft.[17] On August 4,1964, Piniella was sent to theBaltimore Orioles to complete an earlier trade forBuster Narum.[17] He made his major league debut that year on September 4 at the age of 21, appearing as apinch hitter and grounding out in his firstat bat.[18] Prior to the 1966 season, he was traded back to the Indians forCam Carreon.[17] He spent three seasons with thePortland Beavers from 1966 to 1968.[19] He returned to the majors with Cleveland near the end of the 1968 season, appearing in six games and going hitless in five at-bats with one RBI.[17]
In the middle part of the decade, Piniella played winter baseball in Nicaragua.[20]
Piniella was selected by theSeattle Pilots in the1968 expansion draft in October, but was traded after spring training on April 1, 1969 to theKansas City Royals forJohn Gelnar andSteve Whitaker.[21]
Piniella played with the Royals for their first five seasons (1969–1973) and was theAmerican League'sRookie of the Year in 1969 and was named to the1972 All-Star Game.[17] He was the first batter in Royals history; on April 8 of their first season in 1969, he led off the bottom of the first inning against left-handerTom Hall of theMinnesota Twins. Pinielladoubled to left field, then scored on anRBI single byJerry Adair.[22] On April 16, 1970, Piniella went 3-5 with a home run while accomplishing the rare feat of being thrown out at all four bases in the same game.[23]
After the 1973 season, Piniella was traded by the Royals withKen Wright to theNew York Yankees forLindy McDaniel.[24] Baseball authorBill James called the trade the only clinker the Royals made during the 1970s.[25] He played with the Yankees for 11 seasons, during which the Yankees won fiveAL East titles (1976–78, 1980, and 1981), four AL pennants (1976–78, and 1981), and twoWorld Series championships (1977–78). In 1975, he missed part of the year with an inner ear infection. From mid-1977 through the end of 1980, he split his playing time between left field, right field, and designated hitter.[17]
In his career, Piniella made one All-Star team and compiled 1,705 lifetime hits despite not playing full-time for just under half of his career.[17] He received two votes for the Hall of Fame as a player in 1990.[26]
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While he was still an active player, Piniella served on theYankees coaching staff as thehitting coach.[27] On October 28, 1985, he accepted an offer to become the Yankees' manager.[28] His initial managerial contract for 1986 was for $200,000.[29] Piniella managed the Yankees from1986 to1987; promoted to general manager to start the1988 season, he took over as manager after the firing ofBilly Martin (in his fifth and final run as Yankee manager) on June 23. Combining both stints as Yankees manager, he posted 224 wins and 193 losses.[30]
TheCincinnati Reds let go ofTommy Helms after he managed the last 37 games of the 1989 season (marred by the permanent ban ofplayer-managerPete Rose). October 13 saw the hiring of former Yankee front officemanBob Quinn as general manager. Piniella was hired by the Reds on November 3, 1989 on a three-year deal for $350,000 after getting approval from Steinbrenner to be released from the personal services contract that paid Piniella $400,000 each for two years.[31] Piniella managed theCincinnati Reds from1990 through1992 with a 3-year contract worth $1.05 million.[31] In his first year, the Reds won theWorld Series in a four-game sweep of the favoreddefending championOakland Athletics. The sweep over a team with 12 wins more than the 91-win Reds was considered a massive shock, and it was the first Reds title since 1976. Piniella's honeymoon with the Reds would not last long. Wracked with injuries and a less effective bullpen that saw the team lose ten games in a row in July,[32] the Reds finished with the worst winning percentage for a defending World Series champion, a dubious mark later surpassed by the1998 Florida Marlins and2014 Boston Red Sox.[33]
The most noted moment was an outburst by Piniella in an August game. UmpireGary Darling overturned a call that cost the Reds a home run, and after the game, Piniella accused Darling of being biased against the Reds. Two months later, Darling and theMajor League Umpires Association sued for defamation to the tune of $5 million against Piniella. When he asked ownerMarge Schott for help, she did not budge on helping with paying for a lawyer, which Piniella had to do out of his own pocket. While he stated that realized his own error in making the statement against Darling, the fact that he received no backing from the Reds played a key part in him not wanting to manage there. The lawsuit ended in compromise, with Piniella issuing a statement.[34]
Following his third season with the Reds, Piniella announced in October that he had rejected a contract extension.[35] He finished with a record of 255 wins and 231 losses.[30] He was replaced byTony Pérez, who was fired 44 games into the 1993 season forDavey Johnson.[36][37] Since Piniella's departure, the Reds have won only one postseason series.[38]
Under a new ownership group,[39] Piniella was introduced as the new manager of the Mariners in November 1992[40][41] and led theSeattle Mariners for ten seasons (1993–2002). His wife Anita initially insisted he not take the job. They lived inNew Jersey inAllendale, and she thoughtSeattle was too far away from their family and children, and spring training was inArizona instead of Florida.[42] His initial contract in Seattle was for $2.5 million over three years,[40][41] significantly more than his predecessor,Bill Plummer, who had a two-year $500,000 contract.[43]
On August 18,1999, Piniella won his 1,000th game (having managed 1,926 in total) in a 5–1 victory over theToronto Blue Jays.[44]
Piniella won the ALManager of the Year Award in1995, and again in2001, when he led the Mariners to a record-tying 116 wins. After winning the2001 AL Division Series against theCleveland Indians, the Mariners dropped the first two games of theAL Championship Series to theNew York Yankees, and Piniella held an angry post-game press conference in which he guaranteed the Mariners would win two out of three games in New York to return the ALCS to Seattle. However, the Yankees closed out the series atYankee Stadium, and the Mariners would not reach the postseason again until2022. Following the 2002 season, Piniella requested out of his final year with the Mariners to manage theTampa Bay Devil Rays.[15][45] As compensation, the Devil Rays traded outfielderRandy Winn to the Mariners for infield prospectAntonio Pérez.[46]
Piniella finished with a record of 840 wins and 711 losses.[30] All four of the Mariners' playoff appearances in team history to that point were under Piniella. On August 9, 2014, Piniella was inducted into theSeattle Mariners Hall of Fame.[47]
Piniella returned to the Tampa area in October 2002, taking over for a team that had just finished at 55–106 (.342) underHal McRae.[1][46] In his first two seasons with theDevil Rays, Piniella was able to improve the team somewhat, and they won a franchise-record 70 games in2004.[30] This was also the first season in which they did not finish last in their division.
During the2005 season, Piniella was critical of the Devil Rays' front office for focusing too much on the future and not enough on immediate results, and for not increasing payroll quickly enough to field a competitive team. The Devil Rays started the season with a $30 million payroll, which was the lowest in the major leagues; theYankees payroll in 2005 was over $208 million. Tensions eventually made Piniella step down as the Devil Rays' manager on September 21.[48] He finished with a record of 200 wins and 285 losses.[30] He had a season remaining on his four-year $13 million contract from October 2002, but agreed to a $2.2 million buyout, in lieu of $4.4 million that he was due for a fourth season. He would have also received $1.25 million in deferred salary from 2003.[49][50]
On October 16,2006, Piniella agreed to a three-year contract to manage theChicago Cubs for $10 million with a $5 million option for a fourth year in 2010.[51]
Though Piniella's Cubs won the Central Division in his first two years (2007–2008), and boasted the best record in the NL in 2008, the Cubs were swept in the postseason both years, first by theArizona Diamondbacks in the2007 NLDS and then theLos Angeles Dodgers in the2008 NLDS. Piniella was named NL Manager of the Year for 2008.[52][53]
In2010, Piniella announced on July 20 his intention to retire as manager of the Cubs at season's end.[54] However, on August 22, Piniella decided to resign after that day's game, stating that he wanted to care for his ailing 90-year-old mother.[55] He finished with a record of 316 wins and 293 losses.[30]
On February 2,2011, Piniella was hired by theSan Francisco Giants as a special consultant.[56][57] He did not return to that position after the season.[58]
On February 5,2016, Piniella rejoined the Cincinnati Reds as a special consultant.
| Team | Year | Regular season | Postseason | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Games | Won | Lost | Win % | Finish | Won | Lost | Win % | Result | ||
| NYY | 1986 | 162 | 90 | 72 | .556 | 2nd in AL East | – | – | – | – |
| NYY | 1987 | 162 | 89 | 73 | .549 | 4th in AL East | – | – | – | – |
| NYY | 1988 | 93 | 45 | 48 | .484 | 5th in AL East | – | – | – | – |
| NYY total | 417 | 224 | 193 | .537 | 0 | 0 | – | |||
| CIN | 1990 | 162 | 91 | 71 | .562 | 1st in NL West | 8 | 2 | .800 | WonWorld Series (OAK) |
| CIN | 1991 | 162 | 74 | 88 | .457 | 5th in NL West | – | – | – | – |
| CIN | 1992 | 162 | 90 | 72 | .556 | 2nd in NL West | – | – | – | – |
| CIN total | 486 | 255 | 231 | .525 | 8 | 2 | .800 | |||
| SEA | 1993 | 162 | 82 | 80 | .506 | 4th in AL West | – | – | – | – |
| SEA | 1994 | 112 | 49 | 63 | .438 | 3rd in AL West | – | – | – | – |
| SEA | 1995 | 145 | 79 | 66 | .545 | 1st in AL West | 5 | 6 | .455 | LostALCS (CLE) |
| SEA | 1996 | 161 | 85 | 76 | .528 | 2nd in AL West | – | – | – | – |
| SEA | 1997 | 162 | 90 | 72 | .556 | 1st in AL West | 1 | 3 | .250 | LostALDS (BAL) |
| SEA | 1998 | 161 | 76 | 85 | .472 | 3rd in AL West | – | – | – | – |
| SEA | 1999 | 162 | 79 | 83 | .488 | 3rd in AL West | – | – | – | – |
| SEA | 2000 | 162 | 91 | 71 | .562 | 2nd in AL West | 5 | 4 | .556 | LostALCS (NYY) |
| SEA | 2001 | 162 | 116 | 46 | .716 | 1st in AL West | 4 | 6 | .400 | LostALCS (NYY) |
| SEA | 2002 | 162 | 93 | 69 | .574 | 3rd in AL West | – | – | – | – |
| SEA total | 1551 | 840 | 711 | .542 | 15 | 19 | .441 | |||
| TB | 2003 | 162 | 63 | 99 | .389 | 5th in AL East | – | – | – | – |
| TB | 2004 | 161 | 70 | 91 | .435 | 4th in AL East | – | – | – | – |
| TB | 2005 | 162 | 67 | 95 | .414 | 5th in AL East | – | – | – | – |
| TB total | 485 | 200 | 285 | .412 | 0 | 0 | – | |||
| CHC | 2007 | 162 | 85 | 77 | .525 | 1st in NL Central | 0 | 3 | .000 | LostNLDS (ARI) |
| CHC | 2008 | 161 | 97 | 64 | .602 | 1st in NL Central | 0 | 3 | .000 | LostNLDS (LAD) |
| CHC | 2009 | 161 | 83 | 78 | .516 | 2nd in NL Central | – | – | – | – |
| CHC | 2010 | 125 | 51 | 74 | .408 | resigned | – | – | – | – |
| CHC total | 609 | 316 | 293 | .519 | 0 | 6 | .000 | |||
| Total[30] | 3548 | 1835 | 1713 | .517 | 23 | 27 | .460 | |||
In 1989, Piniella worked as acolor analyst for Yankees telecasts onMSG Network. After parting ways with the Devil Rays in 2005, Piniella was an analyst forFox Sports, first joiningJoe Buck andTim McCarver calling the2005 American League Championship Series. He was then an analyst with the network for the2006 season, and also joinedThom Brennaman andSteve Lyons for the postseason.
On February 22,2012, it was announced Piniella would join theYES Network as an analyst for Yankees games. He made his YES debut on March 4 during a Yankees-Phillies spring training game.[58][59] He left the network after the season.
Piniella married his wife Anita (Garcia)[1] in 1967, and together they have three children.[60]
Piniella suffered what was described as a "mini-stroke" in June 2017, but sufficiently recovered to resume his role as senior advisor to baseball operations with the Cincinnati Reds for the 2018 season.[61]
Piniella has been a candidate for election to theBaseball Hall of Fame by theVeterans Committee three times, in 2016,[62] 2018, and 2023 but has thus far failed to be elected. In 2018 he received 11 of a required 12 votes for the 2019 induction class.[63] On the ballot for December 2023, he again received eleven votes, one short of induction.
Piniella made a cameo appearance in the 1994 filmLittle Big League.
In late 2007, Piniella appeared in atelevision commercial forAquafinabottled water in which he parodies his famous June 2, 2007meltdown atWrigley Field.
Piniella andChicago White Sox managerOzzie Guillén appeared in one commercial to advertise a local car dealership during the first half of the2008 Crosstown series. The creators of the commercial used their likeness in three other commercials, which featuredstunt doubles ridingbicycles andjumping rope.[64]
In 2009, Piniella did a commercial forDirecTV and in 2018, commercials in the Seattle area for Sustainable Housing for Ageless Generations (SHAG), formerly Senior Housing Assistance Group, a non-profit senior citizen affordable living organization.
By the time they returned to their Allendale, N.J., home, he was ready to say no -- perhaps because that was the word that Anita pounded into his ear on the flight. 'No, no, no, no, no,' Piniella recalled her saying. 'She said, 'You're not going to Seattle. Just get that totally out of your mind.' Her reasons were obvious: Too far from home, and spring training was in Arizona instead of Florida.
| International | |
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| National | |
| Other | |
