Kirk Gibson has been fired as manager of the Arizona Diamondbacks, as per the team's announcement today.
Bench coach Alan Trammell has also been fired.
"Kirk has done an admirable job under difficult circumstances and we are grateful for his professionalism and his dedicated service to the organization over the past eight years," Diamondbacks Chief Baseball Officer, Tony La Russa, said in a statement.
The news came shortly before a press conference to announce the organization's new "leadership team in baseball operations," General Manager Dave Stewart and senior vice president of baseball operations De Jon Watson.
Gibson, who won the National League's Manager of the Year in 2011 when Arizona won 94 games, oversaw a team with the worst record in the league this season. The Diamondbacks went 63-96.
"We feel like it is time for a fresh start and with our recent restructuring in baseball operations, we want to get started immediately moving in a new direction. We are also appreciative of Alan Trammell for all that he has done for the D-backs and have great respect for what both men have accomplished in the game of baseball," La Russa said.
Gibson's Diamondbacks have been mired in mediocrity in the recent past, going 81-81 each of the last two seasons.
He released a statement after learning of his fate:
"I am extremely appreciative for this opportunity and I had a great experience with the Diamondbacks. I know we had a tough year and people will look at this as a negative, but we accomplished a lot of good things here. I told the team that I have nothing but the utmost respect for this organization and the people I've met along the way. Most of all, I'd like to thank the players, coaches, staff and everyone within the organization for the unwavering support while I was here."
