NEW YORK: Joe Maddon, who led the Tampa Bay Rays to their first World Series berth in one of baseball's most astonishing turnarounds, was named American League Manager of the Year on Wednesday.
The 54-year-old guided a Tampa Bay club that went a franchise-best 97-65 en route to winning the American League East title.
They continued their cinderella story in the postseason, as the team reached the World Series for the first time since their formation in 1998.
Their stellar season followed a 66-96 record the previous year, when the Rays finished last in the AL East.
Maddon was a near-unanimous winner, receiving 27 out of a possible 28 first-place votes in polling of the Baseball Writers' Association of America.
Maddon collected 138 total points, well ahead of Minnesota Twins manager Ron Gardenhire, who was given the other first-place vote and totalled 58 points.
Mike Scioscia, who managed the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim to a major league-best 100-62 record, finished third.
Maddon had presided over the worst team in the major leagues for two straight seasons before the Rays put things together in 2008.
The manager's patience during the tough times gave him the respect of his players during the good times, and all of Tampa Bay's bad seasons and high draft picks finally began to bear fruit this season as the Rays won the AL pennant.
Despite playing in the most competitive division in the majors, Tampa Bay booked their first winning record and first playoff berth.
They improved their record by 31 games, the third-biggest single-season improvement in baseball history.
And the turnaround came from a team that had the second-lowest payroll in the majors.
After edging out the 2007 World Series champion Boston Red Sox by two games for the division title, Tampa Bay ousted the Chicago White Sox in the first round of the playoffs.
The Rays then stunned the Red Sox in seven games in the American League Championship Series, before falling to the Philadelphia Phillies in the World Series.
Source: China Daily/ AFP
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