The Midwest League Manager of the Year Award is an annual award given to the best

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities ...

in Minor League Baseball's

Midwest League The Midwest League is a Minor League Baseball league established in 1947 and based in the Midwestern United States. A Class A league for most of its history, the league was promoted to High-A as part of Major League Baseball's 2021 reorganizat ...

based on their regular-season performance as voted on by league managers. Broadcasters, Minor League Baseball executives, and members of the media have previously voted as well. The award was created in the league's inaugural 1947 season. The circuit was known as the Illinois State League from 1947 to 1948 and as the Mississippi–Ohio Valley League from 1949 to 1955 before becoming the Midwest League in 1956. After the cancellation of the 2020 season, the league was known as the High-A Central in 2021 before reverting to the Midwest League name in 2022. The only manager to win the award on three occasions is Mark Haley, who won in 2005, 2008, and 2013. Three others have each won twice: Bruce Fields, Gomer Hodge, and

Buddy Kerr John Joseph "Buddy" Kerr (November 6, 1922 – November 7, 2006) was an American shortstop in Major League Baseball. From 1943 through 1951, Kerr played for the New York Giants (1943–1949) and Boston Braves (1950–1951). A native of Astoria, Ne ...

. Six managers from the

Cedar Rapids Kernels The Cedar Rapids Kernels are Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Minnesota Twins. They are located in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and play their home games at Veterans Memorial Stadium. The Kernels are owned ...

and

Wisconsin Timber Rattlers The Wisconsin Timber Rattlers are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. They are located in Grand Chute, Wisconsin, a town on the outskirts of Appleton in the Fox Cities, and are na ...

have been selected for the Manager of the Year Award, more than any other teams in the league, followed by the

Kane County Cougars The Kane County Cougars are an independent professional baseball team located in Geneva, Illinois and are members of the American Association of Professional Baseball, an official Partner League of Major League Baseball (MLB). They play thei ...

, Waterloo Indians, and

West Michigan Whitecaps The West Michigan Whitecaps are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers. They are located in Comstock Park, Michigan, a suburb of Grand Rapids, and play their home games at LMCU Ballpa ...

(5); the

Quad Cities River Bandits The Quad Cities River Bandits are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Kansas City Royals. Their home games are played at Modern Woodmen Park (formerly John O'Donnell Stadium) in Davenport, Iowa, o ...

and

South Bend Cubs The South Bend Cubs are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. They are located in South Bend, Indiana, and play their home games at Four Winds Field at Coveleski Stadium. The team was o ...

(4); the

Burlington Bees The Burlington Bees are a collegiate summer baseball team of the Prospect League. They are located in Burlington, Iowa, and have played their home games at Community Field since 1947. Founded in 1889, the Bees played in Minor League Baseball' ...

, Danville Warriors, and

Great Lakes Loons The Great Lakes Loons are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers. They are located in Midland, Michigan, and play their home games at Dow Diamond, which opened in April 2007. Histor ...

(3); the

Clinton Giants Clinton is an English toponymic surname, indicating one's ancestors came from English places called Glympton or Glinton.Hanks, P. & Hodges, F. ''A Dictionary of Surnames''. Oxford University Press, 1988 Clinton has frequently been used as a give ...

, Kenosha Twins,

Lansing Lugnuts The Lansing Lugnuts are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Oakland Athletics. They are located in Lansing, Michigan, and play their home games at Jackson Field. The Midwest League came to Lans ...

Michigan Battle Cats The Michigan Battle Cats were a Minor League Baseball team which began playing in the Midwest League in 1995 and called C.O. Brown Stadium in Battle Creek, Michigan, home. The franchise had previously been located in Madison, Wisconsin, in 1994 ...

Peoria Chiefs The Peoria Chiefs are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. The team was established in 1983 as the Peoria Suns. They are located in Peoria, Illinois, and are named for the Peor ...

, and Wisconsin Rapids Twins (2); and the

Belleville Stags The Belleville Stags were a minor league baseball team based in Belleville, Illinois from 1947 to 1949. The Belleville Stags were charter members of the Class D level Illinois State League and remained a franchise when the league changed names t ...

, Beloit Sky Carp,

Bowling Green Hot Rods The Bowling Green Hot Rods are a Minor League Baseball team of the South Atlantic League and the High-A affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays. They are located in Bowling Green, Kentucky, and play their home games at Bowling Green Ballpark, which open ...

Decatur Commodores The Decatur Commodores were a professional minor league baseball team based in Decatur, Illinois that played for 64 seasons. The Commodores are the primary ancestor of today's Kane County Cougars. They played, with sporadic interruptions, from 1 ...

Fort Wayne TinCaps The Fort Wayne TinCaps are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the San Diego Padres. They are located in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and play their home games at Parkview Field. They won their lone Midwest Le ...

Lafayette Red Sox Lafayette or La Fayette may refer to: People * Lafayette (name), a list of people with the surname Lafayette or La Fayette or the given name Lafayette * House of La Fayette, a French noble family ** Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette (1757� ...

Madison Muskies The Madison Muskies were a Class A minor league baseball team that played in the Midwest League from 1982 to 1993 in Madison, Wisconsin. In 1993, the team relocated to Comstock Park, Michigan and became today's West Michigan Whitecaps. The Mu ...

Michigan City White Caps The Michigan City White Caps were a minor league baseball team based in Michigan City, Indiana from 1956 to 1959. The White Caps were a member of the Class C Midwest League (1956–1959). The team set the foundation for today's West Michigan Whi ...

, Quincy Giants,

Rockford Royals Rockford or Rockfords may refer to: Places United States * Rockford, Illinois, a city, the largest municipality of this name *Rockford, Alabama, a town * Rockford, Idaho, a census-designated place * Rockford metropolitan area, Illinois, a United St ...

Springfield Cardinals The Springfield Cardinals are a Minor League Baseball team based in Springfield, Missouri. They compete as a member of the Texas League's North Division. The Cardinals began play in 2005. The team is owned by the 11-time Major League Baseball ...

, and

Wausau Timbers The Wausau Timbers were a minor league baseball team, located in Wausau, Wisconsin. The Timbers were members of the Class A Midwest League from 1975 to 1990. The franchise was sold in 1991 and moved to Geneva, Illinois, where it became the Kane Co ...

(1). Six managers from the Detroit Tigers

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

(MLB) organization have won the award, more than any other, followed by the

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...

, Minnesota Twins, and Oakland Athletics organizations (5); the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eigh ...

, Chicago Cubs, Milwaukee Brewers, and

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Y ...

organizations (4); the

Arizona Diamondbacks The Arizona Diamondbacks (colloquially known as the D-backs) are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The ...

Cleveland Guardians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive Fi ...

, Kansas City Royals,

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...

, and

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...

organizations (3); the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. As one of the American League's eight charter ...

, Cincinnati Reds,

Los Angeles Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team h ...

, Houston Astros, Miami Marlins, and

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...

organizations (2); and the

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penn ...

and

Tampa Bay Rays The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since its inception, the team's home v ...

organizations (1). Two award winners played for teams that operated as cooperatives of several MLB organizations.

Winners

Don Leppert - Washington Senators - 1964

Wins by team

''Active Midwest League teams appear in bold.''

Wins by organization

''Active Midwest League–Major League Baseball affiliations appear in bold.''

Notes

References

Specific General * {{Midwest League Awards established in 1947

Manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities ...

Minor league baseball coaching awards