Jim Leyland was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in a vote by the Contemporary Baseball Era Non-Players Committee on Sunday in Nashville. The former Pirates, Marlins, Rockies, and Tigers manager received 15 out of 16 votes. It only takes 12 votes to get into the Hall.
This vote took place at the 2023 Winter Meetings and allows managers, umpires, and executive candidates the ability to be considered separately from their player counterparts in the election cycle. This gives them a better chance of being inducted and covers the period from 1980 to the present.
Jim Leyland was the only one elected to the Hall of Fame this time on the Contemporary Baseball Era Committee’s managers/executives/umpires ballot. He was named on 15 of 16 ballots, while no others reached the 75-percent threshold.
— David O'Brien (@DOBrienATL) December 4, 2023
Also on the ballot were managers Cito Gaston, Davey Johnson, and Lou Piniella; umpires Ed Montague and Joe West; and executives Hank Peters and Bill White. Pinella missed out on being inducted by just one vote. It's a shame for Piniella who certainly is deserving of being in the Hall of Fame.
This year’s 16-person committee was comprised of HOF members Jeff Bagwell, Tom Glavine, Chipper Jones, Bud Selig, Ted Simmons, Jim Thome, and Joe Torre; MLB owners and executives Sandy Alderson, Bill DeWitt, Michael Hill, Ken Kendrick, Andy MacPhail, and Phyllis Merhige; media members/historians Sean Forman, Jack O’Connell and Jesus Ortiz.
Jim Leyland inducted into Hall of Fame
Leyland managed 22 seasons in Major League Baseball and got his start with Pittsburgh in 1986. He spent 11 seasons with the Bucs and led them to 3 AL East titles. Jim wasn't able to lead the Pirates to a championship during his time with the Pirates despite being so close multiple times. Pittsburgh faced the Braves in the NLCS in both 1991 and 1992 and fell short.
The 1992 NLCS featured the infamous Sid Bream slide in which Francisco Cabrera drove in David Justice to tie the game and Bream beat the throw from Barry Bonds to send Atlanta to the World Series.
Despite this heartbreaking moment, Leyland went on to have a great career and found himself managing against the Braves much more frequently.
The Pirates skipper became the manager of the Florida Marlins in 1997. All Leyland would do is lead them to their first-ever World Series Championship during that season despite finishing second to the Braves in the division. They were the first Wild Card team to win a World Series.
For some reason, the Marlins organization decided to let go of basically all of their talent after that season. Florida lost 108 games a year after winning the World Series. This led to Leyland submitting his resignation and moving on to manage the Colorado Rockies.
He only remained with the Rockies for one season before deciding to become a scout for the Cardinals. His absence from managing would only last a few years as he accepted the manager position for the Detroit Tiger in 2006. He replaced Tigers legend, Alan Trammell. Trammell had managed the team from 2003 to 2005.
This is likely what most baseball fans will recognize Leyland for, besides his fiery personality. He helped lead the Tigers to the playoffs in his first season as manager. They made it to the World Series against the St. Louis Cardinals. They fell just short but this got the team moving in the right direction.
He managed the Tigers for 8 seasons and helped Detroit reach the postseason three times. Unfortunately, each time they reached the World Series, they were unable to seal the deal. Leyland retired from managing after the 2013 season but did help coach in the 2017 WBC a few years later.
Leyland ended his managerial career with a 1769-1728 record which is good enough for the 18th most wins amongst all MLB managers.
I remember Leyland for his passionate arguments with umpires that often led to ejections and his honest press conferences. You always knew what you were getting from Leyland. That transparency is refreshing. He was beloved by almost everyone whether that be players, fellow managers, etc.
This is a well-deserved honor for one of baseball's most recognized managers.
Leyland will be inducted into the Hall of Fame on July 13 and joined by any players elected. That announcement will be made on January 23.