MLB Awards: The Race for American League Manager of the Year

 The American League has been nothing if not wild, and entertaining, and voting for MLB awards in the AL will likely be the same, so who should take home this year’s AL Manager of the Year Award?

Managing a baseball game is no easy task. It takes focus and strategy. It takes a certain level of relatability, and it requires the coaches to take risks. When managers walk out from the dugout to the mound and point at the bullpen, they don’t know how the following out, or following inning is going to go. Even Mariano Rivera can give up a run or two. Voting for MLB awards for managers id doubly difficult for that reason.

This year, we have seen new managers make their very first pitching change, and take the kind of risks that mean everything in October. We have seen the great, the bad, and the downright difficult types of moves.

A lot of managers have proven their talent this season. Even new managers who manage teams already out of the pennant, like Ron Gardenhire, deserve credit.

That said, there are four standouts this season that are making this list of bold and intelligent managers. Now, I’m not saying that AJ Hinch (who has been left off this list) is not intelligent or observant. Of course he is, all managers have to be, but in MLB awards, Managers of the Year tend to be skippers who take their team and set them on a new course. The reigning World Series Champs are good this year, just like they were last year. Not too much has changed (a testament to Hinch’s consistent and informed managing skills).

The new guys, however, guys like Alex Cora and Aaron Boone, walked into this season with something to prove. They walked in with a vision and have been consistently able to see it through as the season goes on.

Then, there are the managers like Scott Servais and Bob Melvin, managers of teams that play in a division dominated by the Houston Astros. And yet, that division race is closer than we predicted it to be.

Manager of the Year has little correlation with the results of one team’s season come November. It’s about leadership and the intangible team chemistry that can alter the direction of a season.

It’s about making an impact. So, who’s made the biggest one so far this season?

Alex Cora-Boston Red Sox

Alex Cora has done an excellent job in his first year as the manager of the Red Sox. How excellent, you ask? Well, Boston currently has a 95-44 record. The next closest team is the New York Yankees, and even they are 8.5 games back of their rivals.

Cora’s excellence isn’t exactly a surprise, as he was the bench coach for the now-champion Astros under A.J Hinch.

Boston isn’t always an easy crowd, but Cora seems to manage it just fine. Even in the midst of the release of Hanley Ramirez and Chris Sale‘s injuries, Cora is standing tall in that dugout. It’s surely not uncommon to win Manager of the Year in your first year. Dave Roberts won the award after the 2016 season, his first with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Cora’s record with Boston speaks for itself, but a voice that can be even louder in October. Should the Red Sox go on to with the World Series, or even just the AL Pennant, it’ll be hard to see why Cora isn’t a serious Manager of the Year contender during MLB awards voting.

Aaron Boone- New York Yankees

Fifteen years ago, during one of the most dramatic games in recent history, Aaron Boone stepped up to the plate and hit a career-defining home run for the Yankees, beating the Red Sox and continuing the Curse of the Bambino.

Now, he’s writing the next chapter of a baseball career that, so far, has been highlighted by a single hit.

The Yankees may be in second place, but they are still having a great season, despite some injuries. Aaron Judge hasn’t played in a game since late July. Aroldis Chapman and Didi Gregorious are also sidelined due to injury for the time being.

Boone was the unlikely candidate for this job, and it is still up for debate as to whether someone out there is a better fit. That said, he is contracted through 2020 with a club option for 2021. Barring any major changes, Boone is sticking around.

It’s been a bit of a rocky road but hey, maybe he will surprise us and help the Yankees win it.

He’s done it before.

Scott Servais-Seattle Mariners

The Seattle Mariners have had a pretty strong season so far. Though they are 8 games back and their chance at the Wild Card seems to be getting smaller and smaller, Scott Servais deserves a pat on the back.

The Mariners have a pretty interesting story. They haven’t been to the postseason in 17 years, and own the longest playoff drought in North American pro sports. The last time they saw the lights of October was 2001, a season in which they won an astounding 116 games. They’d go on to lose the ALCS four games to one to the Yankees.

This season, however, they’ve made great strides towards erasing that drought, and Scott Servais is the biggest reason why.

They may not make the postseason this year (mathematically, they can, but the Astros and A’s are going to make it difficult) but next season or even the year after that may be their time to win it all.