Predicting the AL & NL Managers of the Year for 2016

I love those questions that have a totally different answer depending on who you ask. I am a big believer that everyone is entitled to their opinion and that no opinion can be wrong unless otherwise backed up by fact. That leads me to the actual bearing that a MLB manager has on a game and the whole idea behind the MLB Manager of the Year Award. Can a team loaded with All-Star players win more games, less games or roughly the same amount of games with a mediocre manager as opposed to a great manager? I think the 1996-2007 Yankees showed that with Joe Torre at the helm that talent won out more times than not but again, that’s my opinion. With that said here are my picks for the Manager of the Year Awards for 2016.

In the American League I have to go with a team that under-achieved for much of the 2015 campaign, especially in the pitching department, in the Cleveland Indians. Corey Kluber was a Cy Young Award pitcher in 2014 before taking a true step back in 2015 but like I said earlier I believe that talent will win out on a long enough timeline. Kluber should be better and so should Danny Salazar and others which will make Terry Francona’s job a whole lot easier. Without the bulky contracts of Michael Bourn and Nick Swisher weighing the organization down I truly believe the team can compete and add pieces at the deadline if they are close giving Francona a true shot at winning the award for the American League.

And in the National League I had to go with Don Mattingly only because I think his team will be much improved in 2016. I don’t believe the team will be better because of his managing, although I do think he is a better manager than what Miami had last season, but I do believe a full year of Giancarlo Stanton, Dee Gordon and Jose Fernandez can’t hurt a guy’s chances. The Marlins may not win the division by any stretch of the imagination but they should be much better than the third place losing team they put out there last season.