Lloyd McClendon interviews to replace Leyland

The Tigers' managerial hunt is officially underway.

According to multiple media sources, hitting coach Lloyd McClendon had a lengthy interview with team president Dave Dombrowski on Thursday and told MLive.com "the process went well."

The 54-year-old is an obvious candidate, since he was one of Jim Leyland's coaches during his entire eight-year tenure in Detroit. He served as Leyland's bullpen coach in 2006, and has been the hitting coach since 2007.

He also has big-league managerial experience with the Pirates. He took over the team in 2001 and left late in the 2005 season with a 336-446 record.

The biggest negatives against McClendon are that he has never managed a contending team -- he was in Pittsburgh when they were in the middle of their low-budget, 22-year losing streak -- and that he has had mixed success in his current job.

While the Tigers did finish second in the American League in scoring this season, McClendon wasn't able to prevent Prince Fielder's sub-par season or Detroit's offensive swoon after Labor Day. There's also a question mark about the number of young players who have failed to take a step forward after reaching the major leagues.

McClendon, though, would provide continuity for the Tigers, and he's significantly younger than the other in-house candidates: Tom Brookens and Gene Lamont.

He'd also be great entertainment for fans used to Leyland's occasional spectacular arguments with umpires. McClendon famously stole first base -- literally -- after being ejected while managing the Pirates in 2001.