The 2024 campaign was a magical one for the Cleveland Guardians in many ways.
Yes, it ended in heartache with that American League Championship Series elimination at the hands of the New York Yankees, but it also brought many positives.
One of them was rookie skipper Stephen Vogt being crowned the AL’s Manager of the Year, getting 27 out of 30 first-place votes and leading the team to a 92-69 record.
A few weeks ago, in early July, Cleveland was 40-48, and no one was talking about Vogt as a MOTY candidate.
In fact, some fans were asking for his head.
That’s how the game works sometimes.
Now, the Guardians have gone on an impressive 22-8 run since July 7 and have put themselves back into the postseason picture with a 62-56 record overall.
They are 5.5 games behind the AL Central lead and 1.0 games behind the Yankees for the last Wild Card spot.
Bruce Drennan wondered, on Monday, if Vogt could be considered for the Manager of the Year award again if he manages to get the Guardians into October.
If the #Guardians make the playoffs, does Stephen Vogt HAVE to be considered for AL Manager Of the Year? #GuardsBall
"You know what Bruce, you're not completely wrong on that."
Presented by #mentornissan https://t.co/ouNQklEUGb pic.twitter.com/MZZxPPaFdG
— Bruce Drennan Show (@Bruce_Drennan) August 13, 2025
His co-host Ryan Tyler embraced the idea, telling Drennan that he’s “not completely wrong on that.”
Usually, voters consider skippers who do the most with fewer resources.
Last year, they concluded that Vogt did some magic with a rather inexperienced Guardians roster.
Well, this time, the Guardians might have even fewer tools to work with between key injuries, two key players being placed on leave, and a few veterans and potential second-half contributors being traded.
John Schneider of the Toronto Blue Jays has been magnificent, as have Alex Cora of the Boston Red Sox and Dan Wilson of the Seattle Mariners, just to name a few.
The Guardians, contrary to what all those franchises did, were not active buyers at the deadline, yet Vogt might still get his team into the postseason.
We are not saying Vogt will automatically win or deserve the award if he achieves that goal, but he should be considered at the very least.
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