Gene Lamont hadn’t been in uniform since 2017, his last year as the Detroit Tigers’ bench coach. And it had been 25 years since he managed the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Gene Lamont is returning to the dugout as a special advisor to Pittsburgh Pirates manager Don Kelly. Lamont was the Pirates' manager from 1997 to 2000 and previously served as a coach under Jim Leyland.

When Don Kelly inherited the managerial title last week, he also inherited most of the Pirates’ coaching staff. There was one glaring hole, though -- his old job, bench coach. He had a dream candidate: Gene Lamont.