Our Favorite Tigers of All Time: #7: Alan Trammell and Lou Whitaker
Names: Louis Rodman Whitaker, Jr., aka ‘Sweet Lou’; Alan Stuart Trammell, aka ‘Tram’.
Years with the Tigers: Whittaker: 1977-1995; Trammell: 1977-1996.
World Series Rings with the Tigers: 1 each (1984)
More after the jump…
Why, oh why did you pick them? These two Tiger greats could certainly have separate spots on this list, but I decided to keep them together because of their magical history as one of the most dynamic duos the game has ever seen. The two began playing alongside one another with the Double-A Montgomery Rebels and were promoted to the big leagues together; they remained teammates until 1995 when Whitaker retired.
During their time together, Whitaker appeared in the All Star Game 5 times in a row, won 3 Gold Glove awards and was Rookie of the Year in 1978.
Despite a mediocre stint as manager of the Tigers from 2002-2005, Trammell was an outstanding Tiger ballplayer. He played in the All Star Game 6 times and won 4 Gold Glove awards. Among many other accolodaes, Tram was also named Comeback Player of the Year in 1983.
The pair hold the record for number of AL games played together.
I remember when Lou Whitaker would come to bat the crowd would erupt in “LOUUUUUU”, kind of like how the CoPa crowd does when Pudge comes to bat now.