'Truly humbled': Tigers to retire Leyland's No. 10

This story was excerpted from Jason Beck’s Tigers Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

ARLINGTON -- Jim Leyland’s No. 10 wasn’t always seen in the dugout during his eight seasons as the Tigers' manager, because he regularly wore a pullover top. But the number won’t be seen on the back of any Tiger again.

As part of the celebration of Leyland’s Hall of Fame induction, scheduled for Aug. 3, the Tigers announced on Monday that they will retire Leyland’s number in a pregame ceremony at Comerica Park. Fittingly, he’ll be the 10th Tiger to have his number retired, and the second manager, joining fellow Hall of Famer Sparky Anderson, whose No. 11 was retired in 2011.

“Jim Leyland is a quintessential baseball man and embodies so much of what our fans in Detroit loved and appreciated about his time as our manager,” Tigers chairman and CEO Chris Ilitch said in a release. “Jim demonstrated a gritty passion in leading his team, a relentless pursuit of excellence, and an uncanny ability to connect with people, which Jim did with the Tigers and throughout his career.

“Given those intangibles, combined with his tenure as a winning manager who was instrumental in an era of success, I feel it’s only fitting that he now has his number retired and a permanent place on the Comerica Park wall. On behalf of the entire Tigers organization, I congratulate Jim and look forward to celebrating with him, his family, and Tigers fans on Aug. 3.”

Leyland will be formally inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame on July 21, having been elected by the Contemporary Era Committee last December. He has spent the past few months putting together what should be an emotional speech for the crowd in Cooperstown as part of ceremonies that will include fellow inductees Todd Helton, Joe Mauer and Adrian Beltré.

Leyland's celebration in Detroit will be different, not just for the audience but in terms of presentation.

“The HOF is an entire baseball career, and that's one thing,” Leyland said on Monday following the Tigers' announcement. “But to have your number retired with one team is something a little bit different. And certainly I would never get into choosing one over the other, but this is the highest honor you can get as an individual that plays on a particular team. I'm accepting it that way. I'm truly humbled.”

And yes, it’ll be emotional. It already is.

“Well, I'm kinda hoping that the tear ducts dry up a little bit, to be honest with you,” he said. “I'm going to try to get through Cooperstown the best I can. The emotions will be flowing, I'm sure. I just hope not too many tears.”

Leyland will go into the Hall of Fame with a blank cap on his plaque instead of wearing the logo of one of the teams he managed during a 22-year career -- including the Pirates (1986-96), the Marlins ('97-98) and the Rockies ('99) in addition to the Tigers (2006-13).

But the Perrysburg, Ohio, native has a special place in his heart for Detroit, where spent his final eight seasons. The Tigers were the only organization he appeared with as a player. It was also where he got his start as a Minor League manager.

His return as the big league skipper sparked the Tigers’ revival in the mid-2000s, starting with a World Series berth in '06 -- Leyland was voted AL Manager of the Year that fall -- and continuing with three consecutive AL Central titles from 2011-13 and a return to the Fall Classic in 2012. Leyland’s 700 wins as a Tiger trail just Anderson (1,331) and Hughie Jennings (1,131), who was elected to the Hall of Fame as a player.

“I've made fun of this so many times: I signed with the Tigers in 1963 and I didn't get to Detroit until 2006,” Leyland said. “That's a long time to wait, but certainly today, it was worth all the wait.”

Leyland’s Tigers teams included one current Hall of Famer in Pudge Rodriguez and three likely future Hall of Famers in Miguel Cabrera, Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer.

After retiring as a manager, Leyland stepped into the front office as a special assistant, serving as a trusted advisor to three heads of baseball operations. He stepped back into the dugout one more time in 2017 to lead Team USA to its first World Baseball Classic title.

The ceremonies honoring Leyland will take place prior to the Tigers' game against the Royals at 6:10 p.m. ET on Aug. 3. Fans are encouraged to find their seats by 5:15 p.m., with gates opening at 4:30 p.m. The first 15,000 fans through the gates will receive a “Jim Leyland Starter Pack,” including a baseball cap, mustache and glasses.