Lou Piniella announced today that he would retire at the end of the season:

Announcing his retirement now, Piniella added, gives the team time to find a replacement.

“I’m proud of our accomplishments during my time here and this will be a perfect way for me to end my career,” he said. “But let me make one thing perfectly clear: our work is far from over. I want to keep the momentum going more than anything else and win as many games as we can to get back in this pennant race.”

Lou turned out to be a much better manager than a player. He hit for average, but didn’t walk much so his OBP was low for a .291 hitter. He will be remembered for making one of the great defensive plays of all time, saving the 1978 playoff game against the Red Sox by stabbing a ball he could barely see, holding the hit to a single in the bottom of the ninth.

As a manager, he owns a .519 winning percentage. That’s quite an accomplishment. Go through the manager register sometime and see how many left the game with a record below .500. He took the Reds to a World Championship and managed the Mariners to 116 wins. His team won 90 or more games eight times.

Lou was Billy Martin without the chip on his shoulder. He was fiery and tough, not afraid to give the umpire a good argument and entertain the fans at the same time. He was a Rookie of the Year and three time manager of the year. Not a bad career at all.

Rob Neyer doesn’t think the retirement will be permanent:

Granted, at 67 Piniella is old for a manager. But Bobby Cox is 69. Joe Torre was 67 when the Dodgers hired him. Jack McKeon managed the Reds until he was 69 … and managed the Marlins until he was 74. So while 67, historically speaking, is old for a manager, in the 21st century it’s not particularly old.

So I’m not sure that “retiring” is the right word, because I’m not sure that Piniella isn’t going to manage again and I won’t be sure until he’s gone a few years without managing.

Lou has that competitive fire, and I can see if the right job comes along in a couple of years, he could be persuaded to spend less time with his family.

I like this comparison of Lou Piniella to a character on Lost:

Arzt insisted on handling the dynamite due to its instability after sitting out in the jungle for over a century. He lectured the other survivors about the history of dynamite and began gesturing with his arms and promptly detonated himself.

And that his why I connect him with Lou Piniella. He loves (used to love?) to go out and put on a show when arguing a call, waving his arms, kicking his hat, throwing bases, etc. He also has a newfound tendency to self-destruct by putting his best starting pitcher in a set up role. Lou Piniella–Dr. Arzt.

There actually was a similar scene on Little House on the Prairie.