CLEVELAND — Stephen Vogt more than proved his worth in the Guardians dugout this past season. He didn't need some award to give him validation, however it's hard to see how anyone else could've been more deserving of the honor.
Following a debut campaign that saw him lead Cleveland to an American League Central Division title and a berth in the AL Championship Series, Vogt was officially named AL Manager of the Year on Tuesday by the Baseball Writers' Association of America. The 40-year-old beat out two division rival skippers for the accolade: A.J. Hinch of the Detroit Tigers and Matt Quatraro of the Kansas City Royals.
Vogt was the overwhelming winner, receiving 27 out of a possible 30 first-place votes. Quatraro received two, while Hinch was given the last one.
All three finalists guided their respective teams to the playoffs after missing the postseason entirely in 2023. Still, none faced a more daunting task than Vogt, who not only took over a club reeling from a poor record, but also found himself replacing a legend.
The Guardians hired Vogt, a former All-Star catcher for 10 seasons, to be their new manager last November. He was coming off just one season as the Seattle Mariners' bullpen coach and had never before managed at any level, making him a somewhat surprising choice to succeed future Hall of Famer Terry Francona after 11 seasons on the bench.
Francona set a Cleveland record with 921 wins during his tenure, along with six playoff appearances and an AL pennant, yet his sterling run with the Guards ended with a bit of a thud in 2023 with a mediocre 76-86 record. Expectations were not high coming into 2024, with most hoping Vogt could just keep the club on the edge of contention while helping some of the younger players develop.
The development came, alright, and strikingly, so did the victories.
Even after losing ace Shane Bieber to Tommy John surgery, the Guardians roared out of the gate at 17-6, taking over first place on April 14 and never looking back. José Ramírez and Josh Naylor each hit 30 homers and drove in 100 runs, David Fry emerged as a surprising All-Star, and Emmanuel Clase and Cade Smith anchored the best bullpen in the game.
When it was all over, Cleveland had achieved a 92-69 record and claimed its fifth divisional crown in nine years. By contrast, Hinch's Tigers and Quatraro's Royals finished in a tie for second, 6 1/2 games behind.
It's worth noting that the voting for these awards takes place before the postseason begins, but Vogt was still able to add an extra exclamation point with a five-game triumph over Hinch and Detroit in the AL Division Series. That earned Cleveland a shot at the league pennant, but the resilient Guards fell to the New York Yankees four games to one.
Vogt's triumph marks the fifth Manager of the Year Award in franchise history, with Eric Wedge winning the first back in 2007 followed by Francona in 2013, '16, and '22. Vogt also joined Francona and Tris Speaker as the only Cleveland skippers to make the playoffs in their first full seasons leading the team.
Besides Vogt, the Guardians have racked up plenty of awards already this offseason, with Andrés Giménez and Steven Kwan each winning their third consecutive Gold Gloves at their respective positions, Ramírez earning his fifth Silver Slugger at third base, and Clase taking home his second career AL Reliever of the Year honor. Clase is also a finalist for the AL Cy Young Award, which will be announced on Wednesday.
