Terry Francona earned the third Manager of the Year award of his career. Major League Baseball (MLB) announced that he received 17 first-place and nine second-place votes in the American League ballot, totalling 112 points. Second-place finisher Brandon Hyde (Baltimore Orioles) scored 79 points.
Francona, 63, is a veteran of WBSC competitions. As a collegiate player (University of Arizona), he played in Italy's 1978 Baseball World Cup, helping the United States finish second behind Cuba. After his first experience as an MLB manager with the Philadelphia Phillies, he managed the US at the Baseball World Cup 2001 in Taiwan, the first featuring professional players. The US finished again second behind Cuba.
Francona was a standout College player and won the Golden Spikes Awards after being honoured as the Most Outstanding Player of the College World Series in 1980.
The Montreal Expos drafted him at No. 22 overall. He made his MLB debut in 1981 and retired in 1990 after appearing in 707 games for five organizations: Expos, Chicago Cubs, Cincinnati Reds, Cleveland Indians and Milwaukee Brewers.
Francona, nicknamed Tito, started his MLB coaching career with the Detroit Tigers in 1996. He led the Boston Red Sox to break the Babe Ruth Course and win the World Series in 2004 after 86 years. They repeated as World Series Champions in 2007.
He earned his three Manager of the Year Awards (2013, 2016 and 2022) with the Cleveland Indians.
"The best thing about this award is that it gives me the opportunity to brag about the people who work with me," commented Francona during an interview on MLB Network.
Buck Showalter, New York Mets, won the National League Manager of the Year Award.
