eh, Its baseball, so it might have something to do with the Astros - so into this forum it goes, I guess. And I haven't seen another thread on this so . . . Alou to serve as Tigers' bench coach DETROIT -- Former Montreal Expos manager Felipe Alou has accepted an offer to become the Detroit Tigers' bench coach for the remainder of the season. Alou, 66, was to join the Tigers for the Twins' home opener on Friday night. Luis Pujols, hired Monday to succeed the fired Phil Garner as manager, was on Alou's staff in Montreal from 1993-2000. Tigers president Dave Dombrowski was an Expos executive during part of Alou's time with Montreal. "I'm thrilled that he accepted," Dombrowski said. "It's tremendous for the organization to have somebody with Felipe's knowledge, background and experience. I don't think you could describe a better fit right now." Alou, the first major league manager born in the Dominican Republic, declined an offer to stay on for two additional years as a special assistant to the Detroit organization. Dombrowski said he sought Alou because of his close relationship with Pujols, and did not consider Alou as a managerial candidate when he fired Garner. "I don't think it is a short-term-type project," said Dombrowski, whose mission is to turn around a franchise that hasn't had a winning record since 1993. Dombrowski hired as Pujols manager for the rest of the season and fired two coaches Tuesday, one day after firing Garner and general manager Randy Smith. The Tigers' 0-8 start is their worst since 1952. Alou spent the past 27 years with the Montreal organization. He was manager from 1992 until last season, when he was fired after the Expos' 21-32 start. His career record there was 691-717. Alou won the National League Manager of the Year award in 1994 and finished second in 1996.
