Detroit Tigers News

Tigers' manager search: Tim Wallach talks reportedly 'escalating'

Wallach has ties to Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski

By Kurt Mensching@KurtJustKurt Oct 25, 2013, 10:53pm EDT

Dodgers third base coach Tim Wallach may be involved in "escalating" talks with the Tigers to become the team's next manager. Jonah Keri, who writes for ESPN's Grantland, reported that as a "source-based rumor" on Twitter Friday night.

Wallach had his contract with the Dodgers renewed earlier this week. Jim Leyland stepped down from the Tigers' managing job Monday.

Chris Iott of MLive reports this text message exchange with Wallach:

"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.

As Ken Rosenthal noted earlier in the week, Wallach played for the Montreal Expos while Tigers president and general manager Dave Dombrowski was a member of that organization. Dombrowski joined the club as director of player development in 1987 and served as the team's GM 1988-91. Wallach played for the Expos from 1980-1992 before finishing his career with the Dodgers. Wallach was an all-star, Silver Slugger and Gold Glove third baseman for Montreal and earned the organization's player of the year in 1987, 1989 and 1990.

Wallach has been third-base coach with the Dodgers for the past three seasons, under manager Don Mattingly. Before that Wallach was manager of the Triple-A Albuquerque Isotopes, with whom he was the Pacific Coast League manager of the year in 2009. Baseball America tabbed him the best manager prospect at that time.

"I've been trying to get experience managing," Wallach said in 2009, per True Blue LA. "It wasn't necessarily to lead me to manage the Dodgers; it was to get me experience to have an opportunity to manage. It's up to other people to decide whether or not I have enough experience to manage [in the major leagues]."

Wallach interviewed with the Red Sox last offseason and the Brewers in 2010. That year the Blue Jays were denied an opportunity to interview him due to a clause in his contract, ESPN notes.

Wallach was the Dodgers' hitting coach in 2004-05.