Buck Showalter, manager of the New York Mets, and Terry Francona, of the Cleveland Guardians, were recognized as the National and American League Managers of the Year, respectively.
Under Showalter, New York improved from a 77-win team in 2021 to a 101-win club this year, just the fourth time in its history. Among major league teams, only the Orioles had a more dramatic improvement. New York’s squad also qualified for the postseason for the first time since 2016.
Showalter is the first manager to win the Manager of the Year Award with four different squads. Showalter joined Bobby Cox and Tony La Russa as the only foremen with four season-best nods.
The 66-year-old passed Dave Roberts of the Los Angeles Dodgers and Brian Snitker of the Atlanta Braves to become the first Mets to receive the honor.
Meanwhile, Francona, 67, received the honor in 2013 and 2016, and in 2022 managed to push the Guardians, the youngest team in Major League Baseball, to 92 wins and the Central Division pennant.
Cleveland is the first youngest franchise of the year to reach the postseason since 1986 and the second (also the 1970 Cincinnati Reds) since 1961.
Francona outvoted Scott Servais of the Seattle Mariners and Brandon Hyde of the Baltimore Orioles. He received 17 of 30 first-place votes and nine second-place votes for 112 points from a panel of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America.
Hyde was second — with nine first-place votes and 79 points — after leading the Orioles to come around with 31 wins. Servais was third with one first-place, eight second-place, and 14 third-place votes.
He led the Mariners to the postseason, ending a two-decade drought. Dustin Baker of the Houston Astros was fourth.
