NEW YORK, 14 November 2003 — Jack McKeon, who guided the Florida Marlins to a shock World Series victory, and Kansas City Royals’ Tony Pena were named Major League Baseball managers of the year on Wednesday.
Transforming the Marlins from contraction candidates into World Series champions, McKeon was the runaway winner in the ballot for the National League honor with a total of 116 points.
Chicago Cubs manager Dusty Baker, a three-time winner of the award, finished a distant second with 62.
Also getting consideration were Atlanta Braves longtime manager Bobby Cox in third place with 56 points followed by San Francisco Giants Felipe Alou with 51.
Pena, who took the Royals to their first winning season since 1994, was also the overwhelming choice for the American League honor. He received 24 first-place votes from the Baseball Writers’ Association of America for 130 points. Minnesota Twins Ron Gardenhire was second with 44 points.
The third oldest manager in baseball history behind Connie Mack (88) and Casey Stengel (75), it is the second time the 72-year-old McKeon has claimed manager of the year honors.
He also won the award with Cincinnati in 1999.
“This is much more special than 1999,” said McKeon, the first manager to win the award after taking over a team during the season. “This is the year of the Marlin.”
“It’s nice to see the wide margin but there are other managers out there deserving of this award.”
Following 16-22 start to the season, McKeon took over the floundering franchise from fired Jeff Torborg. The Marlins posted a 75-49 record under McKeon’s control.
With McKeon at the helm, the Marlins played inspired baseball to secure a remarkable six-game World Series win over the New York Yankees.
While the Royals finished third in their division to miss out on the playoffs, Pena’s first year in charge was still considered a success in Kansas City. Having set a franchise record 100 losses the previous season, the Royals drastically improved their record under Pena’s guidance to register their first winning season since 1994.
