Detroit Tigers. Nevertheless, after Henry sold the club in early 2002, the Marlins managed to rebuild behind a nucleus of young players, and the following season, with a roster consisting chiefly of players Dombrowski had acquired, the team won the 2003 World Series. Detroit Tigers For the 2002 season, his first with the Tigers after being hired by owner Mike Ilitch, Dombrowski was to serve as president and chief executive officer of the rebuilding Tigers. Incumbent general manager Randy Smith would continue in his role, reporting to Dombrowski. However, when Detroit lost its first six games in 2002, Dombrowski quickly fired both Smith and manager Phil Garner. Dombrowski assumed the general manager's role himself, becoming the first person to serve as both president and GM for the Tigers since Jim Campbell held both titles from 1978 to 1983. In 2003, the Tigers lost an American League-record 119 games, one fewer loss than the modern MLB record set by the 1962 New York Mets. The manager was Alan Trammell, who was the 1984 World Series MVP. Three years later, the 2006 Tigers, led by manager Jim Leyland, won their first AL pennant since their championship season of 1984. Along the way, they won the AL wild card, defeated the favored New York Yankees in four games in the 2006 American League Division Series (ALDS), then swept the Oakland Athletics in the 2006 American League Championship Series (ALCS). In the 2006 World Series, they were defeated in five games by the St. Louis Cardinals. Dombrowski was subsequently named Executive of the Year by Baseball America. In addition to bringing Leyland out of semi-retirement, Dombrowski presided over the acquisition and development of a corps of hard-throwing young pitchers, and signed free agents such as catcher Iván Rodríguez, left-handed pitcher Kenny Rogers, and outfielder Magglio Ordóñez. In 2012, the Tigers reached their second World Series under Dombrowski's tenure by defeating the Oakland Athletics in five games in the 2012 ALDS and sweeping the New York Yankees in the 2012 ALCS. The Tigers were then swept by the San Francisco Giants in four straight games, losing the 2012 World Series. On August 4, 2015, Dombrowski was released by the Tigers, and was replaced by his former assistant general manager Al Avila. In fourteen years with Tigers organization, Dombrowski led the Tigers to five playoff appearances, four consecutive American League Central division titles, four American League