Alan Stuart Trammell (born February 21, 1958) is an American former professional baseball shortstop, manager, and coach. He is a member of the National Baseball Hall of Fame. He played for the Detroit Tigers for all 20 years of his Major League Baseball (MLB) career. Since the 2014 season, Trammell has worked as a special assistant to the general manager of the Detroit Tigers.

Trammell won the 1984 World Series championship against his hometown team, the San Diego Padres, and was named the Series MVP. His team also won the American League East division championship in 1987. Although Trammell’s throwing arm was not very strong, he had a fast release and made precise throws, earning four Gold Glove awards. His defense worked well with his double-play partner, Lou Whitaker. Together, they formed the longest double-play partnership in major league history, playing 19 seasons together. At the plate, Trammell was one of the best-hitting shortstops of his time and won three Silver Slugger awards.

Later, Trammell managed the Tigers from 2003 to 2005. He also briefly managed the Arizona Diamondbacks for the final three games of the 2014 season. Trammell was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2018.

Playing career

Alan Trammell attended Kearny High School in San Diego, California, and played American Legion Baseball. He was named the 1989 American Legion Graduate of the Year.

The Detroit Tigers chose him in the second round of the 1976 MLB draft. While playing for the Tigers' farm team in Montgomery, Alabama, in the Southern League, Trammell played his first game with teammate Lou Whitaker before both were promoted to the major leagues. They made their major league debut together at Fenway Park on September 9, 1977, during the second game of a double-header. This was the first of nineteen seasons they played together. Both became regulars at their positions the following season.

In 1980, Trammell hit .300 and was named to the All-Star team for the first time. In 1983, he hit .319 with 14 home runs, 66 runs batted in, and 30 stolen bases. After hitting .258 in both 1981 and 1982, Trammell won the 1983 MLB Comeback Player of the Year Award in the American League (AL).

Trammell and Whitaker appeared briefly on the television show Magnum, P.I., starring Tom Selleck, during the 1983 season. Selleck’s character was a Tigers fan, as is Selleck himself.

The Tigers won the World Series in 1984 after starting the season 35–5 and leading the AL from start to finish. Despite missing 23 regular-season games due to shoulder tendinitis, Trammell finished fifth in the AL batting race with a .314 average and eighth in on-base percentage (.382). In the AL Championship Series against the Kansas City Royals, he hit .364 with one home run and three RBI. In the World Series against the San Diego Padres, he hit .450 (9-for-20), including two two-run home runs that helped the Tigers win Game 4. Detroit won the series 4–1, and Trammell was named World Series MVP.

In 1985, after two seasons of hitting .314 or higher, Trammell struggled with injuries and hit only .258. He had surgery on his left knee and right shoulder. The next season, he was healthy and hit 21 home runs and stole 25 bases, becoming only the second player in Detroit history to hit 20+ home runs and steal 20+ bases in the same season. Kirk Gibson was the first, and Curtis Granderson and Robbie Grossman later joined him. Trammell also set a career-high with 75 RBI.

In 1987, manager Sparky Anderson asked Trammell to replace Lance Parrish as cleanup hitter. Trammell responded with his best season, hitting a career-high 28 home runs and a .343 batting average (third in the AL). He ranked among the league leaders in most offensive categories, including third in hits (205), tenth in RBI (105), and fifth in on-base percentage (.402). In September, he hit .416 with six home runs and 17 RBI and had an 18-game hitting streak with a .457 average. On the final day of the regular season, he hit a walk-off single against the Toronto Blue Jays to help his team take the AL East lead, which they clinched the next day. Trammell became the first Tiger to collect 200 hits and 100 RBI in the same season since Al Kaline in 1955. He also became the first shortstop to hit at least .340 with 20+ home runs and 100+ RBI in a season. Despite his performance, he finished second to Toronto’s George Bell in the MVP voting (332–311). After the season, Whitaker gave him second base with a note that read: To Alan Trammell, 1987 Most Valuable Player, from your friend Lou Whitaker.

Trammell hit .311 in 1988, though a stint on the disabled list limited him to 128 games that year.

After the 1990 season, in which he hit .304 with 89 RBI in 146 games, Trammell faced many injuries that reduced his performance in his final years. In 1991, knee and ankle injuries limited him to 101 games. In 1992, he played in 29 games before breaking his right ankle and missing the rest of the season. He hit .329 in a strong 1993 season but was not eligible for the AL batting leaders because he had only 447 plate appearances. In his final five seasons, Trammell averaged 76 games played, compared to 140 games in his first 13 seasons. From 1993 to 1996, he played less often at shortstop, with Travis Fryman, Chris Gomez, and Andújar Cedeño taking over. He played at several positions, including shortstop, third base, second base, left field, center field, and designated hitter. Trammell retired after the 1996 season.

Over his 20-year career, Trammell batted over .300 seven times, ending with a .285 career average. He hit 185 home runs, had 1,003 RBI, 1,231 runs, 2,365 hits, 412 doubles, 55 triples, 236 stolen bases, and 850 walks in 2,293 games. He had a .977 fielding percentage at shortstop, his primary position.

In 2001, Trammell was ranked as the ninth-best shortstop of all time in *The New Bill James

Managerial and coaching career

After retiring, Trammell worked as a hitting coach for Detroit in 1999 and as a first base coach for the San Diego Padres from 2000 to 2002. He later became a manager.

Trammell was named manager of the Detroit Tigers on October 9, 2002. The team lost 119 games in his first season in 2003, which was an American League record at the time. In 2004, the team had a record of 72 wins and 90 losses. In 2005, the team's record worsened slightly, finishing with 71 wins and 91 losses. During his three seasons as manager, the Tigers had a total record of 186 wins and 300 losses.

In 2003, the Tigers nearly tied the modern Major League Baseball record of 120 losses, which was set by the New York Mets in 1962. The Tigers avoided this record by winning five of their last six games. Later, the record for losses was broken by the 2024 Chicago White Sox.

On October 3, 2005, the Tigers released Trammell after three seasons without a winning record. Jim Leyland was named manager the next day. Leyland improved the team’s performance by 24 games in the regular season, led the Tigers to an American League pennant, and helped them reach the World Series in 2006. Some media criticized Trammell’s strategies and calm style, but others said he was a new manager working with a team that lacked talent. They believed his work helped improve the team’s professionalism and pride. Leyland credited some of the team’s 2006 success to Trammell’s efforts during his time as manager.

In October 2006, Trammell returned to Detroit’s Comerica Park for the first time since being fired. He participated in pregame events before Game 2 of the World Series with Sparky Anderson. Detroit fans gave him a long standing ovation when he took the field.

After being replaced by Leyland, Trammell refused an offer to stay with the Tigers as a special assistant. Instead, he took a break from baseball in 2006. In October 2006, he joined the Chicago Cubs as a bench coach for the 2007 season.

During the 2007 suspension of Cubs manager Lou Piniella, Trammell acted as the team’s manager.

Trammell was not chosen to replace Piniella when he retired in 2010.

In October 2010, Trammell was named bench coach of the Arizona Diamondbacks. He joined his former teammate Kirk Gibson, who had previously worked with him as a coach with the Tigers. Both were fired on September 26, 2014, but Trammell stayed with the team for the final three games as the temporary manager. He had a record of 1 win and 2 losses with Arizona.

On November 3, 2014, it was announced that Trammell would return to Detroit as a special assistant to the Tigers’ general manager, Dave Dombrowski. In 2015, he served as interim first-base coach when Omar Vizquel left the team temporarily. He wore uniform number 4 during this time because Ian Kinsler was wearing Trammell’s usual number, 3. Trammell continued as a special assistant to the Tigers’ general manager, Al Avila, until Avila was removed from his position in August 2022. Avila was replaced by Jeff Greenberg in September 2023, and Trammell kept his role as a special assistant.

Career highlights

• Won the 1984 World Series Most Valuable Player (MVP) award
• Won the 1984 World Series championship
• Inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2018
• Selected as an All-Star six times (1980, 1984, 1985, 1987, 1988, 1990)
• Won the Gold Glove award four times (1980, 1981, 1983, 1984)
• Finished in the top 10 for the MVP award three times (1984, 1987, 1988)
• Won the Silver Slugger award three times (1987, 1988, 1990)
• Named "Tiger of the Year" by the Detroit Chapter of the BBWAA three times (1980, 1987, 1988)
• Won the Comeback Player of the Year award in 1983
• Achieved his 200th hit of the season and his 1,500th career hit in the same at-bat on October 1, 1987
• Had a 21-game hit streak during the 1987 season
• Had a 20-game hit streak during the 1984 season
• Played 1,918 games with teammate Lou Whitaker, setting an American League record for the longest partnership between a shortstop and a second baseman. This duo also holds the major league record for the most double plays by a shortstop-second baseman combination in professional baseball history
• Won Gold Glove awards together twice (1983, 1984), joining a group of eight shortstop-second baseman pairs who have won the award in the same season while playing together
• Inducted into the National Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame in 1998
• Inducted into the San Diego Hall of Champions in 1998