Will Venable Named Finalist for AL Manager of the Year

On Monday, the 2026 BBWAA award finalists were officially revealed, including three contenders from each league in five categories: MVP, Cy Young, Rookie of the Year, Manager of the Year, and the new Reliever of the Year award.

The Chicago White Sox were represented in only one category, with Will Venable named a finalist for American League Manager of the Year alongside Kevin Cash of the Tampa Bay Rays and Chad Tracy of the Boston Red Sox.

Miguel Vargas did not make the shortlist of MVP candidates, and Grant Taylor was not named a finalist for AL Reliever of the Year. Both were a bit disappointing, especially on the heels of Chase Meidroth being snubbed for the Gold Glove Award at second base.

Venable made the cut, though, and appears to be a runaway favorite to take home the hardware after a remarkable White Sox turnaround that had all of baseball talking in 2026.

Venable inherited the worst team in modern baseball history after the White Sox finished the 2024 season with a 41–121 record. His first season as manager saw a 19-win improvement as the White Sox improved to 60–102. But still, Chicago had a long way to go, and the White Sox didn't exactly push all their chips in last winter to make themselves a contender.

Still, between veterans being used to their full potential, strong clubhouse chemistry, an internal sense of belief, and young talent finding its way to the big leagues and instantly contributing, the White Sox saw another surge with a 24-win improvement, finishing the season 84–78 and earning a spot in the American League postseason.

Chicago nearly took home the AL Central crown for the first time since 2021. A rough patch in September ultimately paved the way for the Cleveland Guardians to defend their division title, with the White Sox falling just one game short. But that should have little bearing on the Manager of the Year race.

The White Sox were still the talk of baseball in 2026, and the team went on to win its first postseason series in 21 years.

The other two finalists are also incredibly deserving and have compelling arguments of their own. Kevin Cash took a Tampa Bay Rays team that finished 77–85 last season and orchestrated a 21-win improvement, winning 98 games with a bottom-three payroll in baseball before going on to capture the American League pennant and reach the World Series.

After a 10–17 start under Alex Cora, Chad Tracy stepped in and went 77–58 as the manager of the Boston Red Sox, taking a team that looked like one of the worst in baseball all the way to the postseason. That included a remarkable stretch in which Boston went 35–8, highlighted by a 15-game winning streak in early July.

Still, this one appears to be Venable's award to lose.

Current figures on prediction markets have him as the runaway favorite. Polymarket gives Venable a 95.9% chance to win, while Kalshi has him at 97%, with Kevin Cash emerging as the likely runner-up.

Manager of the Year doesn't have the same statistical measurements to support a candidate's case as MVP, Cy Young, or even Gold Glove. As a result, it's often a narrative-driven award. Which manager and which team dominated the storyline of the season? And as good as the Tampa Bay Rays were, that distinction belonged to the White Sox in the American League in 2026.

Venable will likely be rewarded for it when the winners are announced on November 10.

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