Milwaukee's Pat Murphy and Cleveland's Stephen Vogt had the unenviable task of taking over for successful and well-liked predecessors when they were named managers of their respective teams during the offseason.
Both proved to be naturals.
Murphy won National League Manager of the Year on Tuesday after a stellar debut season with the Brewers, while Vogt took AL honors after leading the Guardians to 92 wins and a division title in his first year as a skipper at any level.
The 40-year-old Vogt is the first to go from a major league player to Manager of the Year in just two years. The previous fastest was Joe Girardi from 2003 to 2006, when he won NL Manager of the Year with the Florida Marlins.
“I got way more excited when any one of our guys hit a home run then I ever did myself or a big play or a strikeout," Vogt said. “I think that’s the beauty of this role and this job — it’s not about you. It’s about your players and it’s about their successes.”
Murphy, 65, led the Brewers to a 93-69 record and an NL Central title and became the first manager in franchise history to win the award since it was introduced in 1983. In the playoffs, Milwaukee lost to the New York Mets in a Wild Card Series.
Murphy had an unusual career path to big league success — he was a longtime college coach at Notre Dame and Arizona State before moving to the professional ranks in 2010. He worked in the Padres’ minor league system until 2015 when he was hired to be Milwaukee’s bench coach under Craig Counsell, who played for Murphy at Notre Dame.
After Counsell surprisingly left for the Cubs during the offseason, the Brewers quickly turned to Murphy. The transition was nearly seamless.
“I just didn’t want to let the Brewers down,” Murphy said. “From the ownership, to the front office, to the players and the coaching staff. I didn't want to let them down. I wanted to be prepared. I wanted to do something to advance the needle a little bit.”
Murphy received 27 of 30 first-place votes in balloting by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America to beat out San Diego's Mike Shildt and New York's Carlos Mendoza. Shildt, Mendoza and Philadelphia's Rob Thomson each received one first-place vote.
The 40-year-old Vogt topped Kansas City’s Matt Quatraro and Detroit’s A.J. Hinch, both AL Central rivals. He's the first AL manager to win the award in his debut season since Minnesota's Rocco Baldelli in 2019.
Vogt received 27 of 30 first-place votes. Quatraro got two and Hinch one.
Vogt led the Guardians to a 92-69 record and the playoffs in his first season after replacing three-time Manager of the Year winner Terry Francona. The former big league catcher took Cleveland to the AL Championship Series before losing to the New York Yankees in five games.
“I knew I had to come in and be myself," Vogt said. “I knew I would never replace Tito or fill his shoes. I just wanted to come in and be me and help our players be as good as they could be and that was the goal from day one.”
Vogt is the third Cleveland skipper to win the honor, joining Francona (2013, 2016, 2022) and Eric Wedge (2007).
Mendoza — in his first year leading the Mets — guided the franchise to an 89-win season and an appearance in the NL Championship Series before they lost in six games to the eventual World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers.
Shildt guided the Padres to the playoffs in his first season in San Diego, winning 93 games. He won the NL Manager of the Year award in 2019 with the St. Louis Cardinals.
The 51-year-old Quatraro, in his second season with the franchise, led the Royals to the postseason one year after a 106-loss season. Kansas City finished with an 86-76 record before beating Baltimore in a Wild Card Series.
Kansas City, led by catcher Salvador Perez and young star shortstop Bobby Witt Jr., lost to the Yankees in a Division Series.
Hinch, a 50-year-old in his fourth season leading the Tigers, also made the playoffs with a torrid second half despite losing quality players like right-hander Jack Flaherty at the July 30 trade deadline.
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AP Sports Writer Tom Withers in Cleveland contributed to this story.
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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB
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