Dave Dombrowski
Encyclopedia
David Dombrowski is the current president, CEO, and general manager
of the Detroit Tigers
of Major League Baseball
.
in 1978, as an administrative assistant in their minor league organization. He moved up the ladder to assistant general manager to Hemond by his late 20s, but was purged during Ken Harrelson
's one-year reign in 1986 as the White Sox front-office boss.
front office as director of player development for the 1987 season under Bill Stoneman
, and on July 5, 1988, he became, at age 31, Montreal's general manager—the youngest in MLB at the time.
Dombrowski built up the Expos farm system during his term. The team enjoyed .500 or better seasons from 1988–90 but struggled on the field in 1991. Concurrently, the National League
expanded to 14 teams, with two new franchises to begin play in 1993. One of those teams, the Florida Marlins
, recruited Dombrowski to become its first general manager; he was appointed on September 19, 1991.
. Although he built a sound minor league system, the Marlins, with Jim Leyland
as their manager
, achieved their first great success—the 1997 NL pennant and world championship
—with a team composed of many high-salaried players signed as free agents. The following year, Dombrowski presided over Huizenga's mandated fire sale of those veteran players, and the Marlins sank into a half-decade of obscurity. Nevertheless, the Marlins managed to rebuild behind a nucleus of young players when Henry sold the club in 2001 to purchase the Boston Red Sox
. In 2003 the Marlins, consisting chiefly of players Dombrowski had acquired, won the World Series
.
. As president, Dombrowski was expected to oversee the business side of the club, including all senior staff, but was not necessarily going to be involved in matters of player personnel. Dombrowski initially kept incumbent general manager Randy Smith
in place, but when Detroit lost its first six games in 2002, Dombrowski relieved Smith of his duties and assumed the GM role as well. He was the first person to act as both president and GM with the Tigers since Jim Campbell
held both titles from 1978–1983.
In 2003, the Tigers lost an American League
-record 119 games, one fewer loss than the MLB record set by the 1962 New York Mets
. Three years later, the 2006 Tigers
, led by manager Leyland, won their first AL pennant since their championship season of 1984
. Along the way, they won the AL wild card, defeated the favored New York Yankees
in four games in the division series, then swept the Oakland Athletics
in the American League Championship Series
. In the 2006 World Series
, they were defeated in five games by the St. Louis Cardinals
.
In addition to bringing Leyland out of semi-retirement, Dombrowski presided over the acquisition and development of a corps of hard-throwing young pitcher
s, and signed free agent
s such as catcher
Iván Rodríguez
, left-handed pitcher Kenny Rogers, and outfielder Magglio Ordóñez
.
before transferring to Western Michigan University
, where he earned a degree in business administration.
He is married to Karie Dombrowski, who worked as an ESPN
reporter from 1988 to 1990. They have two children, Landon and Darbi.
Dave grew up in Palos Heights, IL, attended Crab Orchard Jr. High School and graduated from H.L. Richards H.S. in Oak Lawn, IL.
General manager (baseball)
In Major League Baseball, the general manager of a team typically controls player transactions and bears the primary responsibility on behalf of the ballclub during contract discussions with players....
of the Detroit Tigers
Detroit Tigers
The Detroit Tigers are a Major League Baseball team located in Detroit, Michigan. One of the American League's eight charter franchises, the club was founded in Detroit in as part of the Western League. The Tigers have won four World Series championships and have won the American League pennant...
of Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
.
Chicago White Sox
Dombrowski began his career with the Chicago White SoxChicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are a Major League Baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois.The White Sox play in the American League's Central Division. Since , the White Sox have played in U.S. Cellular Field, which was originally called New Comiskey Park and nicknamed The Cell by local fans...
in 1978, as an administrative assistant in their minor league organization. He moved up the ladder to assistant general manager to Hemond by his late 20s, but was purged during Ken Harrelson
Ken Harrelson
Kenneth Smith Harrelson , nicknamed "The Hawk" due to his distinctive profile, is a former All-Star first baseman and outfielder in Major League Baseball...
's one-year reign in 1986 as the White Sox front-office boss.
Montreal Expos
Dombrowski joined the Montreal ExposMontreal Expos
The Montreal Expos were a Major League Baseball team located in Montreal, Quebec from 1969 through 2004, holding the first MLB franchise awarded outside the United States. After the 2004 season, MLB moved the Expos to Washington, D.C. and renamed them the Nationals.Named after the Expo 67 World's...
front office as director of player development for the 1987 season under Bill Stoneman
Bill Stoneman
William Hambly Stoneman III is a consultant for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim of Major League Baseball. From 1999 to October 15, 2007, he served as the general manager of the Angels...
, and on July 5, 1988, he became, at age 31, Montreal's general manager—the youngest in MLB at the time.
Dombrowski built up the Expos farm system during his term. The team enjoyed .500 or better seasons from 1988–90 but struggled on the field in 1991. Concurrently, the National League
National League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League , is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional...
expanded to 14 teams, with two new franchises to begin play in 1993. One of those teams, the Florida Marlins
Florida Marlins
The Miami Marlins are a professional baseball team based in Miami, Florida, United States. Established in 1993 as an expansion franchise called the Florida Marlins, the Marlins are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Marlins played their home games at...
, recruited Dombrowski to become its first general manager; he was appointed on September 19, 1991.
Florida Marlins
Dombrowski spent more than a decade in Miami, working under owners H. Wayne Huizenga and John W. HenryJohn W. Henry
John William Henry II is a futures and foreign exchange trading advisor who founded John W. Henry & Company . He is the principal owner of the Boston Red Sox and Liverpool F.C., and co-owner of Roush Fenway Racing. In March 2006, Boston Magazine estimated his net worth at $1.1 billion, but noted...
. Although he built a sound minor league system, the Marlins, with Jim Leyland
Jim Leyland
James Richard "Jim" Leyland is a Major League Baseball manager, currently with the Detroit Tigers.He led the Florida Marlins to a World Series championship in 1997, and previously won three straight division titles with the Pittsburgh Pirates...
as their manager
Manager (baseball)
In baseball, the field manager is an individual who is responsible for matters of team strategy on the field and team leadership. Managers are typically assisted by between one and six assistant coaches, whose responsibilities are specialized...
, achieved their first great success—the 1997 NL pennant and world championship
1997 World Series
-Game 1:Saturday, October 18, 1997 at Pro Player Stadium in Miami Gardens, FloridaThe first World Series game in the state of Florida, Game 1 featured a youngster and a veteran facing each other on the mound...
—with a team composed of many high-salaried players signed as free agents. The following year, Dombrowski presided over Huizenga's mandated fire sale of those veteran players, and the Marlins sank into a half-decade of obscurity. Nevertheless, the Marlins managed to rebuild behind a nucleus of young players when Henry sold the club in 2001 to purchase the Boston Red Sox
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
. In 2003 the Marlins, consisting chiefly of players Dombrowski had acquired, won the World Series
2003 World Series
The 2003 World Series marked the 99th baseball World Series event. The Florida Marlins defeated the New York Yankees in six games, 4–2.-Background:...
.
Detroit Tigers
Prior to the 2002 season, Dombrowski was hired as president and chief executive officer of the rebuilding Tigers by owner Mike IlitchMike Ilitch
Michael "Mike" Ilitch Sr. is an American entrepreneur and owner of the Detroit Red Wings and the Detroit Tigers. In addition to his sports ownerships, he is the founder and owner of Little Caesars Pizza since 1959, which has become an international fast food franchise...
. As president, Dombrowski was expected to oversee the business side of the club, including all senior staff, but was not necessarily going to be involved in matters of player personnel. Dombrowski initially kept incumbent general manager Randy Smith
Randy Smith (baseball)
Randall Edward Smith was born June 15, 1963 in Houston, Texas. He is an executive in Major League Baseball and has served as general manager of the San Diego Padres and the Detroit Tigers and Assistant General Manager for the Colorado Rockies...
in place, but when Detroit lost its first six games in 2002, Dombrowski relieved Smith of his duties and assumed the GM role as well. He was the first person to act as both president and GM with the Tigers since Jim Campbell
Jim Campbell (baseball executive)
James A. "Jim" Campbell was an American baseball executive in Major League Baseball. He served 43 seasons with the Detroit Tigers organization, 27 of them as either general manager or president....
held both titles from 1978–1983.
In 2003, the Tigers lost an American League
American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the American League , is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league based in the Great Lakes states, which eventually aspired to major...
-record 119 games, one fewer loss than the MLB record set by the 1962 New York Mets
1962 New York Mets season
The New York Mets season was the first regular season for the Mets, as the National League returned to New York for the first time since . They went 40-120 and finished tenth and last in the National League, games behind the NL Champion San Francisco Giants, who once called New York home...
. Three years later, the 2006 Tigers
2006 Detroit Tigers season
The 2006 Detroit Tigers won the American League Pennant. They represented the AL in the World Series before falling to the St. Louis Cardinals 4 games to 1. The season was their 106th since they entered the AL in 1901.- Regular season :...
, led by manager Leyland, won their first AL pennant since their championship season of 1984
1984 World Series
The 1984 World Series began on October 9 and ended on October 14, 1984. The American League champion Detroit Tigers played against the National League champion San Diego Padres, with the Tigers winning the series four games to one....
. Along the way, they won the AL wild card, defeated the favored New York Yankees
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...
in four games in the division series, then swept the Oakland Athletics
Oakland Athletics
The Oakland Athletics are a Major League Baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. From to the present, the Athletics have played in the O.co Coliseum....
in the American League Championship Series
American League Championship Series
In Major League Baseball, the American League Championship Series , played in October, is a round in the postseason that determines the winner of the American League pennant...
. In the 2006 World Series
2006 World Series
The 2006 World Series, the 102nd edition of Major League Baseball's championship series, began on October 21 and ended on October 27, and matched the American League champion Detroit Tigers against the National League champion St. Louis Cardinals. The Cardinals won the Series in five games, taking...
, they were defeated in five games by the St. Louis Cardinals
St. Louis Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals are a professional baseball team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are members of the Central Division in the National League of Major League Baseball. The Cardinals have won eleven World Series championships, the most of any National League team, and second overall only to...
.
In addition to bringing Leyland out of semi-retirement, Dombrowski presided over the acquisition and development of a corps of hard-throwing young pitcher
Pitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the...
s, and signed free agent
Free agent
In professional sports, a free agent is a player whose contract with a team has expired and who is thus eligible to sign with another club or franchise....
s such as catcher
Catcher
Catcher is a position for a baseball or softball player. When a batter takes his turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. This is a catcher's primary duty, but he is also called upon to master many other skills in order to...
Iván Rodríguez
Iván Rodríguez
Iván Rodríguez Torres , nicknamed "Pudge" and "I-Rod", is a Major League Baseball catcher...
, left-handed pitcher Kenny Rogers, and outfielder Magglio Ordóñez
Magglio Ordóñez
Magglio José Ordóñez Delgado is a Venezuelan Major League Baseball right fielder. He has played for the Chicago White Sox and Detroit Tigers . Ordóñez is six feet, one inch tall and weighs .-Professional career:...
.
Personal life
Dombrowski briefly attended Cornell UniversityCornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
before transferring to Western Michigan University
Western Michigan University
Western Michigan University is a public university located in Kalamazoo, Michigan, United States. The university was established in 1903 by Dwight B. Waldo, and as of the Fall 2010 semester, its enrollment is 25,045....
, where he earned a degree in business administration.
He is married to Karie Dombrowski, who worked as an ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
reporter from 1988 to 1990. They have two children, Landon and Darbi.
Dave grew up in Palos Heights, IL, attended Crab Orchard Jr. High School and graduated from H.L. Richards H.S. in Oak Lawn, IL.