Peers vote Melvin as AL’s top manager
Bob Melvin, who managed the A’s to a surprise playoff spot this season after three consecutive last-place finishes, was named the American League Manager of the Year by the Sporting News on Tuesday.
“It’s an honor to win an award like this that’s voted on by my peers,” Melvin said via text. “But it’s my players who allow for this to happen, so thanks to them.”
Melvin also won Sporting News managerial honors in the National League in 2007 with Arizona, and he has twice won the Manager of the Year award from the Baseball Writers’ Association of America, in 2007 with the Diamondbacks and in 2012 when managing the A’s to the AL West title on the final day of the season. The Bay Area native, who is from Menlo Park and played at Cal and for the Giants, is considered a front-runner for the BBWAA award again this year.
“This is an incredibly welldeserved honor for Bob (and hopefully the first of many),” A’s general manager David Forst said via email. “For him to be recognized by his peers is a true testament to the outstanding work he did in 2018.”
The A’s went 97-65 this season, the team’s best record since 2002 and fourth best in the majors this year. The 22win improvement from 2017 was the third time a team Melvin has managed improved by 20 or more wins.
Melvin, 56, is 634-599 in seven-plus seasons as Oakland’s manager, the third-most wins in franchise history behind Connie Mack (3,582) and Tony La Russa (798).
Melvin’s contract is up after the 2019 season but the team is discussing an extension with him that is likely to be announced this month.
The Sporting News award, which dates to 1936, is based on a survey of AL managers.
Astros accused: Yahoo Sports reported that the Red Sox were warned that a man credentialed by the Astros might try to steal signs or information from their dugout.
The Indians caught Kyle McLaughlin taking photos of their dugout in Game 3 of the ALDS and reported him to the league. McLaughlin also was caught taking pictures of the Boston dugout in Game 1 of the ALCS, Yahoo’s Jeff Passan reports.
In August, the A’s complained to the American League that the Astros might have been stealing signs and relaying information to hitters by clapping in the dugout. The Dodgers reportedly had similar concerns in last year’s World Series. Major League Baseball, the Astros and McLaughlin have denied comment or not responded to requests.
Go, fish: The Miami Marlins won county permission to move the kitschy, widely disliked home run sculpture out of Marlins Park to the plaza outside the ballpark. The move is a victory for Marlins CEO Derek Jeter, who considers the sculpture a reminder of unpopular previous owner Jeffrey Loria’s regime. Angels opt out: The Angels opted out of their lease with Anaheim, setting the stage for another round of negotiations over whether the team remains in its longtime host city or finds a new home elsewhere in Southern California.
Angel Stadium, which opened in 1966, is the fourtholdest park in the majors, behind Fenway Park, Wrigley Field and Dodger Stadium.
Update on Boston’s Sale: The Red Sox say they aren’t sure when lefty Chris Sale will be available to pitch. Sale, the potential starter for Game 5 on Thursday night, was released Monday from Massachusetts General Hospital after suffering what the team called a stomach illness.