Phillies Boss' Thoughts on New HOFer

Philadelphia Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski has a reason to go to Cooperstown, N.Y., for next year’s Hall of Fame induction ceremony.

With the election of Jim Leyland on Sunday, Dombrowski’s former manager with two different teams will be enshrined next July.

“Absolutely thrilled for him. So deserving,” Dombrowski said to the New York Post on Sunday in Nashville at baseball’s Winter Meetings.

Leyland was the only finalist to receive the necessary 75 percent of the vote to be inducted on this year’s Contemporary Baseball Era Committee ballot, which was reserved for managers, umpires and executives who have contributed to the game.

The other finalists were former managers Cito Gaston, Davey Johnson and Lou Piniella; umpires Ed Montague and Joe West; and executives Hank Peters and Bill White.

Leyland managed 22 seasons, starting with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1986. He also managed the Florida Marlins, the Colorado Rockies and the Detroit Tigers. He compiled a record of 1,769-1,728.

Dombrowski and Leyland go all the way back to the 1980s, when Dombrowski was the White Sox’s assistant general manager and Leyland was the third base coach.

Dombrowski hired Leyland as Florida’s manager in 1997 and he guided the Marlins to their first World Series title. The Marlins tore the team down after the season and Leyland left after the 1998 season. Dombrowski was out in Florida after the 2001 season.

Dombrowski hired Leyland again in Detroit in 2006 and Leyland led the Tigers to two World Series appearances. Leyland remained with the Tigers through the 2013 season, while Dombrowski left the Tigers for the Boston Red Sox in 2015.