Stephen Vogt Could Do Something Nobody Thought Was Possible

Many people thought that the post-Terry Francona era would be tough, or even traumatic, for the Cleveland Guardians. After all, he is by far the most successful manager in franchise history.

Former catcher Stephen Vogt was the man tasked with the huge responsibility of leading the Guardians before the 2024 campaign when Francona left. Far from being fazed by the challenge, he led the organization to the American League Championship Series and won the Manager of the Year Award in the junior circuit. Not bad for his debut season.

Then, in 2025, Vogt and the Guardians made a furious comeback to steal the AL Central title from the Detroit Tigers, and he won the AL Manager of the Year Award for the second straight season.

Can he win it for a third consecutive time? His Guardians were, before Saturday’s game against the Philadelphia Phillies, first in the AL Central with a 31-22 record. They are the second-best team in the American League behind the Tampa Bay Rays, and they are doing it with minimal offseason spending.

In other words, Vogt is once again positioning himself to win, or at least compete for, the AL Manager of the Year Award. No skipper in the history of the game has done that.

Oddly enough, Pat Murphy of the Milwaukee Brewers can do the same if he wins this year in the National League.

Among those who have won two straight Manager of the Year awards in the history of MLB are Vogt, Murphy, Kevin Cash, and Bobby Cox. No one has done it three consecutive years, though, so Vogt has a nice challenge ahead of him.

The main goal remains to win the World Series with the Guardians for the first time since 1948, but this specific, unique distinction would sure look very nice on Vogt’s resume if he can pull it off. There’s still a long way to go, but he does have a good chance if Cleveland keeps playing as well as they have this month.

They have won seven consecutive games and are among the hottest teams in baseball. If they win their division again and manage to close out the season with one of the best records in the junior circuit, Vogt could make history.