Rene Lachemann
Encyclopedia
Rene George Lachemann is a former coach
, catcher
and manager
in Major League Baseball
. Lachemann served as the first manager in the history of the Florida Marlins
(1993–96) and also skippered the Seattle Mariners
(1981–83) and Milwaukee Brewers
(1984). In , he will serve his fourth consecutive season as a coach with the Colorado Springs Sky Sox
of the Pacific Coast League
, AAA affiliate of the Colorado Rockies
.
is a member of the Rockies' front office and a former pitcher
, coach and manager in the major leagues, and Bill
is a longtime skipper and instructor in the farm system of the Los Angeles Angels
. Rene served as a batboy
for the Los Angeles Dodgers
from 1959–62, graduated from Dorsey High School, and attended the University of Southern California
. He signed a bonus contract with the Kansas City Athletics
in 1964, where he joined other young players such as Tony La Russa
and Dave Duncan
, with whom he would have a lasting professional association.
Lachemann, a right-handed hitter, played only one full season in the major leagues, 1965, batting
.227 with nine home run
s and 29 runs batted in and appearing in 92 games. He reappeared briefly – in 26 total games – for the A’s in 1966 and 1968, but spent the rest of his playing career in minor league baseball
. His major league batting average was .210 in 281 at bats.
' farm system in 1973, and switched to the Seattle organization five years later. On May 6, 1981, Lachemann was promoted from AAA to succeed Maury Wills
as the M’s manager. But during the equivalent of almost two full seasons, Seattle was only able to win 140 of 320 games (.437) and was in the midst of an eight-game losing streak when Lachemann was fired on June 25, 1983 and replaced by Del Crandall
. He returned the following year as manager of the contending Brewers, but the 1984 Milwaukee club collapsed (67-94, .416 and last in the American League East Division) and he was fired with three games remaining to be played in the season though Lachemann continued to manage the team.
Lachemann then began his career as a major league coach, under John McNamara
with the Boston Red Sox
(1985–86) and La Russa in Oakland (1987–92). He was the A’s third-base coach during their three consecutive (1988–90) American League
pennants (after he held the same post with 1986 AL champ Boston) and was a key member of La Russa’s highly regarded staff.
in 1993. But the expansion club suffered through 3 ½ losing seasons, compiling a mark of 221-285 (.437), before Lachemann’s dismissal on July 7, 1996.
He returned to the coaching ranks the following season, on La Russa’s staff with the St. Louis Cardinals
, and he since has coached for the Chicago Cubs
and the Mariners, before returning to Oakland in 2005 for three years as bench coach and third base coach. His contract was not renewed at the close of the 2007 season
. Including a one-game stint as interim pilot of the 2002 Cubs, Lachemann’s major league managing record is 428 wins, 560 losses (.433).
Coach (baseball)
In baseball, a number of coaches assist in the smooth functioning of a team. They are assistants to the manager, or head coach, who determines the lineup and decides how to substitute players during the game...
, 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...
and 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...
in 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...
. Lachemann served as the first manager in the history of 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...
(1993–96) and also skippered the Seattle Mariners
Seattle Mariners
The Seattle Mariners are a professional baseball team based in Seattle, Washington. Enfranchised in , the Mariners are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. Safeco Field has been the Mariners' home ballpark since July...
(1981–83) and Milwaukee Brewers
Milwaukee Brewers
The Milwaukee Brewers are a professional baseball team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, currently playing in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League...
(1984). In , he will serve his fourth consecutive season as a coach with the Colorado Springs Sky Sox
Colorado Springs Sky Sox
The Colorado Springs Sky Sox are a minor league baseball team in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The team's colors are red and blue. The team plays in the Pacific Coast League and are the Triple-A affiliate of the major league Colorado Rockies...
of the Pacific Coast League
Pacific Coast League
The Pacific Coast League is a minor-league baseball league operating in the Western, Midwestern and Southeastern United States. Along with the International League and the Mexican League, it is one of three leagues playing at the Triple-A level, which is one step below Major League Baseball.The...
, AAA affiliate of the Colorado Rockies
Colorado Rockies
The Colorado Rockies are a Major League Baseball team based in Denver, Colorado. Established in 1991, they started play in 1993 and are in the West Division of the National League. The team is named after the Rocky Mountains...
.
Early connections with LaRussa, Duncan
The son of a hotel chef, he is the youngest of three brothers to enjoy long careers in professional baseball: Marcel LachemannMarcel Lachemann
Marcel Ernest Lachemann is a baseball pitching coach and a former relief pitcher for the Oakland Athletics...
is a member of the Rockies' front office and a former 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...
, coach and manager in the major leagues, and Bill
Bill Lachemann
William Charles Lachemann is an American minor league baseball coach. A longtime member of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim organization, in at age 77 he was still active in professional baseball as the Angels' roving catching instructor and special assignment coach...
is a longtime skipper and instructor in the farm system of the Los Angeles Angels
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim are a professional baseball team based in Anaheim, California, United States. The Angels are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. The "Angels" name originates from the city in which the team started, Los Angeles...
. Rene served as a batboy
Batboy
A batboy is an individual who carries the baseball bats around to a baseball team. A batboy may also lay out the equipment and mud the baseballs to be used in the game.Mascots and batboys had both been part of baseball since the 1880s....
for the Los Angeles Dodgers
Los Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers are a professional baseball team based in Los Angeles, California. The Dodgers are members of Major League Baseball's National League West Division. Established in 1883, the team originated in Brooklyn, New York, where it was known by a number of nicknames before becoming...
from 1959–62, graduated from Dorsey High School, and attended the University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
. He signed a bonus contract with the Kansas City 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 1964, where he joined other young players such as Tony La Russa
Tony La Russa
Anthony "Tony" La Russa, Jr. is a former Major League Baseball manager and infielder, best known for his tenures as manager of the Chicago White Sox, Oakland Athletics, and St. Louis Cardinals...
and Dave Duncan
Dave Duncan (baseball)
David Edwin Duncan is an American former professional baseball player and current pitching coach for the St. Louis Cardinals...
, with whom he would have a lasting professional association.
Lachemann, a right-handed hitter, played only one full season in the major leagues, 1965, batting
Batting average
Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball that measures the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters. The two statistics are related in that baseball averages are directly descended from the concept of cricket averages.- Cricket :...
.227 with nine home run
Home run
In baseball, a home run is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to reach home safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team in the process...
s and 29 runs batted in and appearing in 92 games. He reappeared briefly – in 26 total games – for the A’s in 1966 and 1968, but spent the rest of his playing career in minor league baseball
Minor league baseball
Minor league baseball is a hierarchy of professional baseball leagues in the Americas that compete at levels below Major League Baseball and provide opportunities for player development. All of the minor leagues are operated as independent businesses...
. His major league batting average was .210 in 281 at bats.
Manager in Seattle and Milwaukee
He began managing in the Oakland AthleticsOakland 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....
' farm system in 1973, and switched to the Seattle organization five years later. On May 6, 1981, Lachemann was promoted from AAA to succeed Maury Wills
Maury Wills
Maurice Morning "Maury" Wills is a former Major League Baseball shortstop and switch-hitting batter who played most prominently with the Los Angeles Dodgers , and also with the Pittsburgh Pirates and Montreal Expos...
as the M’s manager. But during the equivalent of almost two full seasons, Seattle was only able to win 140 of 320 games (.437) and was in the midst of an eight-game losing streak when Lachemann was fired on June 25, 1983 and replaced by Del Crandall
Del Crandall
Delmar Wesley Crandall is a former professional baseball catcher and manager in Major League Baseball who played most of his career with the Boston & Milwaukee Braves...
. He returned the following year as manager of the contending Brewers, but the 1984 Milwaukee club collapsed (67-94, .416 and last in the American League East Division) and he was fired with three games remaining to be played in the season though Lachemann continued to manage the team.
Lachemann then began his career as a major league coach, under John McNamara
John McNamara (baseball)
John Francis McNamara is a former manager and coach in Major League Baseball. He managed six major league teams, directing the 1986 Boston Red Sox to the American League pennant, only to experience an excruciating defeat in that season's World Series at the hands of the New York Mets.-Playing,...
with 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"...
(1985–86) and La Russa in Oakland (1987–92). He was the A’s third-base coach during their three consecutive (1988–90) 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...
pennants (after he held the same post with 1986 AL champ Boston) and was a key member of La Russa’s highly regarded staff.
First Marlins' skipper
As a result, he was chosen as the Marlins’ first manager when they entered the National LeagueNational 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...
in 1993. But the expansion club suffered through 3 ½ losing seasons, compiling a mark of 221-285 (.437), before Lachemann’s dismissal on July 7, 1996.
He returned to the coaching ranks the following season, on La Russa’s staff with 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...
, and he since has coached for the Chicago Cubs
Chicago Cubs
The Chicago Cubs are a professional baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League. They are one of two Major League clubs based in Chicago . The Cubs are also one of the two remaining charter members of the National...
and the Mariners, before returning to Oakland in 2005 for three years as bench coach and third base coach. His contract was not renewed at the close of the 2007 season
2007 in baseball
-Major League Baseball:*Regular Season Champions*World Series Champion – [Boston Red Sox]*Postseason – October 2 to October 28Click on any series score to link to that series' page....
. Including a one-game stint as interim pilot of the 2002 Cubs, Lachemann’s major league managing record is 428 wins, 560 losses (.433).