Chicago White Sox manager Will Venable won the American League Manager of the Year.
Venable is the third manager in the American League and the fourth overall to win the award one year after suffering through a season of 100 or more losses. The White Sox went from a 60-102 record in 2025 to 84-78 this year and a second-place finish in the AL Central and a wild card berth. Paul Molitor won the award in 2017 when his Twins posted an 85-77 mark, one year after finishing 59-103. Frank Robinson was 54-101 with the Orioles in 1988 and won the award after leading the Orioles to an 87-75 record in the next season. In National League voting, Don Mattingly was the winner in the shortened pandemic season of 2020 with a 31-29 record for the Marlins, the year following a 57-105 season.
This is the sixth time a White Sox manager has been honored. Other Chicago winners in the AL: Ozzie Guillen (2005), Jerry Manuel (2000), Gene Lamont (1993), Jeff Torborg (1990) and Tony La Russa (1983).
No manager was named on every ballot.
Ballots were cast before the start of the postseason. They are tabulated on a system that rewards five points for first place, three points for second place and one point for third place.
2026 AL Manager of the Year
| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Points | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Will Venable, White Sox | 15 | 11 | 3 | 111 |
| Kevin Cash, Rays | 12 | 12 | 2 | 98 |
| Chad Tracy, Red Sox | 3 | 5 | 17 | 47 |
| Stephen Vogt, Guardians | 1 | 6 | 9 | |
| Aaron Boone, Yankees | 1 | 1 | 4 | |
| Joe Espada, Astros | 1 | 1 |
Below is a breakdown of the 30 individual ballots, submitted by two writers representing each city in the American League. For more information on the voting, see our Voting FAQ.
| Name | Affiliation | Chapter | 1st | 2nd | 3rd |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jon Meoli | The Baltimore Banner | BAL | Cash | Venable | Tracy |
| Jake Rill | MLB.com | BAL | Cash | Venable | Tracy |
| Marcos Grunfeld | Elemergente.com | BOS | Tracy | Cash | Venable |
| Ian Browne | MLB.com | BOS | Tracy | Venable | Vogt |
| Mitchell Armentrout | Chicago Sun-Times | CHI | Venable | Tracy | Vogt |
| Jay Cohen | The Associated Press | CHI | Venable | Cash | Tracy |
| Travis Sawchik | MLB.com | CLE | Venable | Cash | Vogt |
| Ryan Lewis | Akron Beacon Journal | CLE | Venable | Cash | Tracy |
| Jon Paul Morosi | MLB.com | DET | Venable | Cash | Tracy |
| Chris McCosky | Detroit News | DET | Venable | Cash | Boone |
| Angel Cantu | Our Esquina | HOU | Cash | Venable | Espada |
| Reyes Urena | Diario Las Américas | HOU | Venable | Cash | Tracy |
| Jackson Stone | MLB.com | KC | Venable | Cash | Tracy |
| Dan Hirsch | Baseball-Reference | KC | Cash | Venable | Tracy |
| Doug Padilla | Field Level Media | LA | Venable | Tracy | Cash |
| Johnny Flores Jr | The Athletic | LA | Cash | Venable | Tracy |
| John Shipley | St. Paul Pioneer Press | MIN | Cash | Venable | Tracy |
| Dave Campbell | Associated Press | MIN | Venable | Cash | Tracy |
| Brendan Kuty | The Athletic | NY | Cash | Boone | Tracy |
| Greg Joyce | NY Post | NY | Venable | Cash | Tracy |
| Mike Vorel | The Seattle Times | SEA | Venable | Vogt | Tracy |
| Doug Miller | MLB.com | SEA | Cash | Venable | Tracy |
| Martín Gallegos | MLB.com | SF/ATH | Cash | Venable | Vogt |
| Manolo Hernández-Douen | Béisbolporgotas | SF/ATH | Venable | Tracy | Cash |
| Luis Murphy | Con Las Bases Llenas | TB | Cash | Venable | Vogt |
| Rob Maaddi | The Associated Press | TB | Venable | Cash | Tracy |
| Evan Grant | Dallas Morning News | TEX | Tracy | Venable | Vogt |
| Stephen Hawkins | Associated Press | TEX | Venable | Cash | Tracy |
| David Singh | Sportsnet | TOR | Cash | Tracy | Venable |
| Brandon Wile | theScore | TOR | Cash | Tracy | Venable |