A. J. Hinch

Andrew Jay Hinch (born May 15, 1974) is an American professional baseball coach and former player who is the manager of the Detroit Tigers of Major League Baseball (MLB).

He is a 1992 graduate of Midwest City High School in Midwest City, Oklahoma, where, as a senior, he was the 1992 National Gatorade Player of the Year in baseball.

He was drafted in the second round of the Major League Baseball draft but elected to attend Stanford University, where he was a third-round pick after his junior year in 1995.

He decided to return to school and was again a third-round pick as a senior in 1996.

At Stanford he joined Delta Tau Delta International Fraternity.

Hinch won a bronze medal for the United States at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics and was named to the 1998 Topps All-Star Rookie Team.

Hinch is married to his wife, Erin Hinch, with two daughters Haley and Kaitlin.

Hinch was drafted by the Oakland Athletics in the third round of the 1996 Major League Baseball Draft.

He signed with the Athletics in June 1996.

Hinch played catcher for the Oakland Athletics (1998–2000), Kansas City Royals (2001–2002), Detroit Tigers (2003), and Philadelphia Phillies (2004).

He debuted with the Athletics in 1998 and remained with the team through the 2000 season.

In the 2000–01 offseason, Hinch was traded to the Kansas City Royals with Ángel Berroa as part of a 3-team trade that sent Ben Grieve from the Athletics to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, Cory Lidle from the Devil Rays to the Athletics, Roberto Hernández from the Devil Rays to the Royals, and Johnny Damon and Mark Ellis to the Athletics from the Royals.

Hinch was released by the Royals after the 2002 season.

He signed as a minor league free agent with the Cleveland Indians, but was purchased by the Detroit Tigers from the Indians in March 2003.

He went so far as to go to the 2003 general manager's winter meetings to look for future job opportunities and contacts.

He signed with the Philadelphia Phillies for the 2004 season, splitting the year between the majors and Triple-A.

He spent all of 2005 with the Phillies' Triple-A affiliate before retiring.

In an eight-season major league career, Hinch had a .219 batting average with 32 home runs and 112 runs batted in in 350 games.

After the 2005 season, the Arizona Diamondbacks hired Hinch as their manager of minor league operations.

Even while playing, he was planning his post-playing career.

It was Houston's first playoff appearance since 2005.

In the Wild Card Game, the Astros defeated the New York Yankees in Yankee Stadium 3–0 to advance to the American League Division Series.

In the ALDS, Hinch's Astros took a 2–1 series lead against the Kansas City Royals.

The Astros led the Royals 6–2 in Game 4 going into the 8th inning before the Royals came back to win 9–6.

The Astros would go on to lose Game 5 and the series.

In July 2006, Baseball America named him one of baseball's "10 to watch" in the next 10 years for his promise as a farm director and future general manager.

In August 2006, the Diamondbacks named Hinch director of player development.

After retiring from his playing career, Hinch managed the Arizona Diamondbacks from May 2009 to July 2010, and was vice president of professional scouting for the San Diego Padres from September 2010 to August 2014.

Hinch was named manager of the Arizona Diamondbacks on May 8, 2009, replacing Bob Melvin, despite never having managed or coached a team at any level.

At age 34 years and 357 days, Hinch became the youngest person to be named manager of a Major League team since Eric Wedge (34 years, 275 days).

Hinch was fired from the Diamondbacks on July 1, 2010, following a 31–48 start to the 2010 season.

Overall he compiled an 89–123 record in 212 games.

His .420 winning percentage ranks as the lowest for a non-interim manager in Diamondbacks history.

The San Diego Padres hired Hinch as vice president of professional scouting on September 21, 2010.

He resigned from the position on August 5, 2014.

Hinch was named manager of the Houston Astros on September 29, 2014, replacing Bo Porter, who was fired on September 1, 2014.

He managed the Houston Astros from 2015 through 2019, winning the 2017 World Series over the Los Angeles Dodgers, but was fired after being suspended for the 2020 season for his role in the Houston Astros sign stealing scandal.

The Tigers hired Hinch before the 2021 season.

Hinch lived in Nashua, Iowa, until he was eight, when he moved to Oklahoma.

In the 2015 season, Hinch led the Astros to an 86–76 record and a wild card berth.