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Reports indicate that the Detroit Tigers are set to sign Chris Bosio to take over from Rich Dubee as the team’s pitching coach. Bosio was the Chicago Cubs’ pitching coach for six seasons, until being released last Saturday. He is the first coach added to Ron Gardenhire’s staff.
The news was reported by Gordon Wittmeyer of the Chicago Sun-Times, and confirmed by Bob Nightengale of USA Today. The Tigers have not announced the deal or its terms.
Bosio’s key claim to fame is his work with Cubs ace Jake Arrieta, who went from a castoff into a Cy Young winner under Bosio’s tutelage. Jason Hammel, Scott Feldman and Jeff Samardzija are several other starters that thrived under Bosio’s watch in Chicago.
Bosio joined the Cubs’ organization in 2012, as part of President of Baseball Operations, Theo Epstein’s, first season, and worked for three different managers during his time with the Cubs. Dale Sveum, Rick Renteria and Joe Maddon each retained his services as pitching coach. While there was grumbling in Chicago over the Cubs’ bullpen and the staff walk rate overall in 2017, the move is largely seen as a reflection of Maddon’s desire to bring his old pitching coach, Jim Hickey, from Tampa Bay to the Cubs.
Important thing to note about #Cubs staff, Joe Maddon hand-picked everyone except Chris Bosio
— Sean Sears (@sean_sears6) October 21, 2017
Bosio pitched for parts of 11 seasons in the major leagues. He started his career with the Milwaukee Brewers, and later pitched four seasons for the Seattle Mariners. Bosio threw a no-hitter against the Boston Red Sox on April 22, 1993 while pitching for the Mariners. His career ERA was 3.96.
There was some surprise in Chicago when Bosio was fired. The Cubs’ pitching staff struggled with control issues all season, but were only a year removed from a World Series title. Bosio has enjoyed a lot of credit from shepherding Cubs’ pitching from obscurity to a championship. Given his generally fine reputation, and his experience working with a forward thinking front office, Bosio seems like a good choice for the Tigers. Hopefully he can manage a similar trajectory for his new organization.