The Whitecaps Get a New Manager

The Detroit Tigers today announced that the West Michigan Whitecaps will have a new manager to begin the 2017 season, and it one of their own, so to speak.

Mike Rabelo, and former Whitecaps catcher, will become the West Michigan Whitecaps’ 2017 manager.

This marks the second straight former Whitecaps catcher to become team manager, and only the second former player in the Whitecaps’ 23-year history to go on to manage the team. Former catcher Andrew Graham, who managed the team for the past three seasons, is moving up, and has been promoted to Class A Lakeland for the 2017 season.

Rabelo, a fourth round draft pick by the Tigers in 2001, played two seasons (2002 and 2003) with the Whitecaps. He went on to make his Major League debut with the Tigers on September 23, 2006, then played 51 games with the Tigers in 2007 as backup catcher to Ivan Rodriguez. In December 2007, he was part of the blockbuster trade that brought Miguel Cabrera to the Tigers from the Florida Marlins. He spent part of the 2008 season with the Marlins, then became a free agent in 2009. He re-signed with the Tigers and, battling injuries, played his final season (2010) with the AAA Toledo Mud Hens.

Rabelo’s career immediately transitioned to coaching, as the Tigers took note of his leadership abilities and understanding of the game and named him as the rookie short-season Gulf Coast League Tigers’ hitting coach in 2011. In 2012, he advanced to the Connecticut Tigers (short-season New York-Penn League) as hitting coach, and in 2014 he was named that team’s manager. After spending three seasons impressing the Tigers front office as Connecticut’s manager, where he accumulated a 118-107 record, he joins the Whitecaps as manager in 2017.

There will also be two new coaches with the Whitecaps. Mike Hessman will join the Whitecaps as hitting coach and Jorge Cordova will join the organization the Whitecaps as pitching coach for the 2017 season.