The Cleveland Guardians undeniably struck gold when they hired Stephen Vogt as their manager for the 2024 season. Just two years removed from his playing career, and with no managerial experience whatsoever, Vogt was named AL Manager of the Year in his first two campaigns running the Cleveland dugout.
The first year, after missing the playoffs in their final season under longtime manager Terry Francona, Vogt led Cleveland to 92 wins and the AL Central title. That satisfies one of the usual MOY criteria of turning a team around.
The next year, Vogt helped the Guardians overcome a 15.5-game deficit, which was still at 11 games in September, to overtake the Detroit Tigers and win the division again. That met a typical MOY standard of doing something unprecedented.
This year, Vogt does not have those two circumstances going for him, at least not yet. Cleveland was considered a playoff contender, despite an influx of youth into the lineup. The Guardians have been in or near first place all season, which actually could hurt Vogt’s MOY candidacy.
That is why MLB.com analyst Anthony Castrovince believes Vogt could be facing stiff competition for the major award this time around, with other candidates having seasons more typical of a winner.
“At this point, we probably shouldn’t put it past Vogt and [Pat] Murphy (of the Milwaukee Brewers) to win again, but an upstart season for Will Venable’s White Sox, a big bounceback from the Braves under their new skipper Walt Weiss, surprise surges from Oliver Marmol’s Cardinals and Blake Butera’s Nationals, a midseason turnaround for the Phillies under interim skipper Don Mattingly, the resurgence of Kevin Cash and the Rays and general voting history suggests there will be changes at the top of those Manager of the Year ballots,” Castrovince wrote.
If the voting were held today, there is little doubt that Venable, in his second season, would be the runaway winner. With Chicago coming off two straight 100-loss seasons, he has the White Sox challenging the Guardians for first place in the division, and even if they settle for a wild-card berth, that huge turnaround would be more than enough to deserve the honor.
With only five AL teams currently above .500, Cash would be another contender, especially if the Rays can win the AL East over the New York Yankees. Vogt could make a strong case for a three-peat if the Guardians win the division despite injuries to multiple key players and a lineup led by two rookies.
There is still half the season left to be played, and Vogt surely would trade another MOY award for a chance to manage in the World Series.
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