Trio of AL Central Skippers Make History as Manager of the Year Finalists

Cleveland Guardians manager Stephen Vogt, Detroit Tigers manager A.J. Hinch and Kansas City Royals manager Matt Quatraro combined to achieve a feat not seen since 2017.

Sep 25, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians manager Stephen Vogt (12) reacts in the eighth inning against the Cincinnati Reds at Progressive Field. / David Richard-Imagn Images

The AL Central made up a quarter of the entire MLB postseason bracket in 2024, and the managers who made that possible are up for some major hardware on Tuesday.

Cleveland Guardians manager Stephen Vogt, Detroit Tigers manager A.J. Hinch and Kansas City Royals manager Matt Quatraro were named finalists for AL Manager of the Year on Nov. 11. The winner will be revealed Tuesday night on MLB Network.

The Guardians won the AL Central by 6.5 games and reached the ALCS. The Royals and Tigers both went 86-76 and swept their way through the AL Wild Card Series, only to fall in the ALDS.

This marks the first time since 2017 that all three finalists for either AL or NL Manager of the Year came from the same division. It is the first such occurrence on the American League side since the modern three-division format was implemented in 1994.

Back in 2017, Torey Lovullo won NL Manager of the Year after leading the Arizona Diamondbacks to the postseason. The Los Angeles Dodgers' Dave Roberts and Colorado Rockies' Bud Black finished in second and third place, respectively, while also guiding their teams to the playoffs.

✔️ Led their teams to the Postseason
✔️ Finished in the top 3 for Manager of the Year

Who will win AL and NL Manager of the Year honors? Find out tonight at 6 PM ET on @MLBNetwork. pic.twitter.com/YhEarhJnv8

— MLB (@MLB) November 19, 2024

Fast-forward seven years, and all three of those managers are still with the same franchise. Roberts just helped the Dodgers win their second World Series in five years, one year after Lovullo and the D-Backs won the NL pennant.

Even Black, who hasn't seen playoff action since 2018, got a contract extension in October.

The three AL Central clubs who made the postseason in 2024 would love to have their skippers in place for the rest of the decade, especially if that leads to pennants and championships like it did in the NL West.

Cleveland may have won the AL in 1995, 1997 and 2016, but the team hasn't won a World Series since 1948. And while the Tigers' 40-year title drought isn't quite as historic, World Series losses in 2006 and 2012 still sting in Detroit.

The Royals are the division's most recent champion, having reached the World Series in 2014 and won it in 2015. That dominant stretch was immediately followed by a nine-year playoff drought, though.

Vogt, Hinch and Quatraro proved themselves to be some of baseball's best managers in 2024, and history suggests there is plenty of success ahead, regardless of who wins the top honor on Tuesday.

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