Louis Victor Piniella ( born August 28, 1943) is a former professional baseball player and manager. An outfielder, he played 16 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) with the Baltimore Orioles, Cleveland Indians, Kansas City Royals and New York Yankees. During his playing career, he was named AL Rookie of the Year in 1969 and captured two World Series championships with the Yankees (1977, 1978).
Following his playing career, Piniella became a manager for the Yankees (1986–1988), Cincinnati Reds (1990–1992), Seattle Mariners (1993–2002), Tampa Bay Devil Rays (2003–2005), and Chicago Cubs (2007–2010). He won the 1990 World Series championship with the Reds and led the Mariners to four postseason appearances in seven years (including a record 116-win regular season in 2001). He also captured back-to-back division titles (2007–2008) during his time with the Cubs. Piniella was named Manager of the Year three times during his career (1995, 2001, 2008) and finished his managerial career ranked 14th all time on the list of managerial wins.
He was nicknamed “Sweet Lou”, both for his swing as a major league hitter and, facetiously, to describe his demeanor as a player and manager.
Early life
Piniella was born in Tampa, Florida. Though he is often mistaken for being Italian American, Piniella’s parents were of Asturian descent, from northwest Spain. He grew up in West Tampa, and played American Legion baseball[8][9] and PONY League baseball alongside fellow future major league manager Tony La Russa.[10] Piniella attended Jesuit High School in Tampa, where he played several sports and was an All-American in basketball. After graduation in 1961, he attended the University of Tampa for a year, where he was a College Division (today’s Division II) All-American in baseball for the Spartans.
Playing career
Piniella was signed by the Cleveland Indians at age 18 as an amateur free agent on June 9, 1962. That fall, he was drafted by the Washington Senators from the Indians in the 1962 first year draft. In August 1964, Piniella was sent to the Baltimore Orioles to complete an earlier trade for Buster Narum, and Piniella played in his first major league game that September with the Orioles at the age of 21. He also played 3 seasons with the Portland Beavers 1966-1968. Prior to the 1966 season, he was traded by the Orioles back to the Indians for Cam Carreon, and made his second major league appearance in September 1968 at age 25 with the Indians.
In the middle part of the decade, Piniella played winter baseball in Nicaragua.
Piniella was selected by the Seattle Pilots in the 1968 expansion draft in October, but was traded after spring training on April 1 to the Kansas City Royals for John Gelnar and Steve Whitaker.
Lou Piniella Net Worth is $16 Million
Lou Piniella’s Salary: $3 Million
Net Worth: $16 Million
Salary: $3 Million
Date of Birth: Aug 28, 1943 (79 years old)
Place of Birth: West Tampa
Gender: Male
Profession: Manager, Baseball player
Nationality: United States of America
What is Lou Piniella’s Net Worth?
Lou Piniella is a former professional baseball player and manager who has a net worth of $16 million. Lou Piniella, AKA “Sweet Lou,” played 16 seasons in Major League Baseball as an outfielder and managed big league teams from 1986 to 2010. He won World Series championships as both a player and manager.
Managerial Career
After retiring from playing, Piniella became a manager for the New York Yankees (1986-1988), Cincinnati Reds (1990-1992), Seattle Mariners (1993-2002), Tampa Bay Devil Rays (2003-2005), and Chicago Cubs (2007-2010). He won the 1990 World Series championship with the Reds, led the Mariners to four postseason appearances in seven years, and captured back-to-back division titles with the Cubs in 2007-2008. Piniella was named Manager of the Year three times in his career—1995, 2001, 2008—and finished his managerial career ranked 14th all-time in wins. His overall record of 1,835-1,712 is good for a .517 career winning percentage. Lou Piniella was inducted into the Seattle Mariners Hall of Fame in 2014.
Coaching Salaries
Here are some of Lou Piniella’s known coaching salaries:
- Tampa Bay Devil Rays (2002-2005): $2.5 million per year
- Chicago Cubs (2006-2010): $3 million per year
- Seattle Mariners (2010-2012): $3 million per year
Personal Life
Lou married his wife, Anita Garcia, in 1967. The couple has three children together.
After suffering a mini-stroke in June 2017, Piniella resumed his role as senior advisor to baseball operations with the Cincinnati Reds for the 2018 season. He also served as a special consultant for the San Francisco Giants in 2011.
Piniella has been a candidate for election into the Baseball Hall of Fame twice, in 2016 and 2018, but has failed to be inducted. In 2018, he received 11 of the required 12 votes for the 2019 induction class.
Lou Piniella has made several television appearances over the years, including a cameo in 1994’s “Little Big League” and commercials for Aquafina bottle water and DirecTV.
Florida Mansion
In September 2012 Lou Piniella paid $925,000 for a 7,000 square foot home in Tampa, Florida. Today this home is likely worth $2-3 million.
Lou Piniella Earnings
- New York Yankees (1974-75)$57 Thousand
- Kansas City Royals (1973-74)$50 Thousand
- Seattle Pilots (1969-70)$10 Thousand
- Cleveland Indians (1968-69)$6.5 Thousand
- Baltimore Orioles (1964-65)$4.5 Thousand
- Total Earnings$128 Thousand
