Tigers name Dave Owen, Al Nipper to key minor league positions

Last Updated: September 19. 2011 2:32PM
Tigers name Dave Owen, Al Nipper to key minor league positions
Lynn Henning/ The Detroit News

The Tigers made a pair of moves Monday to fill two high-profile positions in their farm system.

Dave Owen, 53, a coach with the Kansas City Royals from 2008 through 2010, has been named the team's new director of player development.

Al Nipper, an accomplished starting pitcher with the Red Sox during the 1990s, as well as a former Royals and Red Sox pitching coach, is the team's new minor-league pitching coordinator.

Owen replaces Mike Rojas who became the Tigers bullpen coach in June after pitching coach Rick Knapp was fired and replaced by Jeff Jones, who had been bullpen coach. Monday's move all but confirmed that Rojas will return next season as part of manager Jim Leyland's staff.

Nipper, 52, succeeds Jon Matlack, who was fired earlier this month as the team's roving minor-league pitching coach.

Owen had been working in 2011 as the Tigers minor-league infield coordinator. Before joining the Royals in 2008, he coached for one season in Japan for the Nippon Ham Fighters. Previously, he worked as minor-league field coordinator for the Philadelphia Phillies. He had earlier scouted for the White Sox, Tigers (1997-99) and Phillies.

Owen played in the big leagues as a shortstop for the Cubs (1983-85) and Royals (1988).

Nipper has been with the Red Sox for the past nine years in a variety of roles: special assignment pitching evaluator, minor-league pitching coach, and big-league bullpen coach.

He was Boston's pitching coach from July of 1995 to April of 1996 and worked for the Royals as their pitching coach during the 2001 and 2002 seasons.

lynn.henning@detnews.com

From The Detroit News: http://detnews.com/article/20110919/SPORTS0104/109190387/Tigers-name-Dave-Owen--Al-Nipper-to-key-minor-league-positions#ixzz1YTMNmDdi