J.Ross: Congrats to Bob Melvin
Nov 14, 2018, 12:00 AM | Updated: Jan 4, 2019, 11:36 am
(Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
(Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
It is just fine to have appreciation for two competing things. I am a New York Yankees fan but I can see that the Oakland A’s had a tremendous year. A lot of that credit will go to the front office, the players on the field and now is going to American League Manager of the Year Bob Melvin. The Oakland A’s had the lowest opening-day payroll in baseball and still guided the green and gold to a 97-65 record and its first playoff berth in four years. Melvin received 18 first-place votes, 19 seconds and one third from the Baseball Writers’ Association of America. He is the eighth manager to win three or more times and is one shy of the record shared by Bobby Cox and Tony La Russa. Melvin won with Oakland in 2012 and took the NL honor with Arizona in 2007.
This honor was well deserved and very shocking at least before the season started. Melvin was given a roster that started the season with a $68.6 million payroll, and won 22 more games this season than last season. Oakland’s 97 wins were the most by any A’s team since 2002. He also had to endure an incredible amount of adversity with a season filled with injuries. The A’s are building some really nice young pieces with a man that knows how to get the best out of all of them. So congrats to Bob Melvin in a well deserved honor.
