CLEVELAND — Stephen Vogt exited the white Chevy Tahoe at Raleigh-Durham International Airport, embraced his wife and told his six-month-old daughter she had no idea how much her life was about to change.
About an hour earlier, Vogt learned he was getting the call to the majors with the Tampa Bay Rays for Opening Day in 2012, a last-minute decision spurred by an injury to B.J. Upton. The big leagues were never a guarantee for the product of Azusa Pacific University, for a guy who was stuck in A-ball as a 25-year-old third-stringer. His playing career unfolded in implausible fashion, with a rise to two All-Star Games, cult hero status among the diehards in Oakland and a World Series ring in Atlanta.
But his coaching future? That was never in doubt. An American League Manager of the Year award in his first year at the helm in Cleveland? It’s not shocking to anyone who has witnessed any part of his baseball journey.
Vogt inherited the coaching DNA from his father, Randy, who presided over his sons’ teams through high school. Randy would set his alarm for 3 a.m. during baseball season so he could hustle home along Highway 99 in central California each afternoon from his job as a CPA to coach them on the diamond. He’d do anything to accommodate his kids’ baseball aspirations. He first noticed Stephen’s leadership qualities when his son was a sophomore in high school and lifted his mask and raised his hand to tell his short-fused head coach (Randy) to stop condemning the umpire.
At every stop since, Vogt soaked up as much guidance as he could. It started with Matt Quatraro, his first manager in pro ball and who, as skipper of the Kansas City Royals, was a finalist for the hardware Vogt claimed on Tuesday. Vogt learned under Joe Maddon, who announced his win on MLB Network, after an impersonation of the former Rays manager during a spring training talent show performance that captivated the room and earned him his first serious look from the organization’s decision-makers. He studied every move made by Craig Counsell and Pat Murphy in Milwaukee in 2018, when shoulder surgery left him without any better use of time.
Even with a lack of tangible coaching experience he could list on a resume, Vogt had actually been preparing for this job for decades. He had the Cleveland Guardians brass mesmerized five minutes into his first Zoom interview in October 2023. A couple weeks later, the club tabbed him to replace future Hall of Famer Terry Francona.
Vogt insisted there was no way he could fill Francona’s squeaky shower shoes. Vogt relied on his staff and admitted there was plenty he didn’t know. He told pitching coach Carl Willis he’d lean on Willis until they fell over.
But there never really seemed to be a learning curve, at least not a glaring one that handcuffed his team. The Guardians sprinted out of the gate in 2024 and never looked back, ultimately reaching the ALCS for the first time in eight years. Vogt steadily steered them to a 92-69 record. A team projected to finish within a few games — in either direction — of the .500 mark sat atop a competitive division for all but six days of the six-month season.
The experiences gained during a decade-long playing career prepared Vogt for the opportunity, too. It’s the 0-for-32 nightmare to begin his career that allows Vogt to commiserate with any player mired in a funk. It’s the familiarity with being the last guy on the roster that allows him to connect with a player who might sulk about a lack of playing time; it’s why Vogt vowed to start every position player at least once a series. It’s his history with being traded, being designated for assignment and being cut in the final days of spring training that allow him to hold honest, face-to-face conversations with players who can stare him in the eye, believe he cares about them and understand why a decision was made.
The Guardians, on the heels of a 76-86 season and a quiet winter, lost two of their back-end relievers in spring training and lost their ace, Shane Bieber, a week into the season. Their rotation never found its footing. They cycled through uninspiring outfielders. And they never flinched.
When their nine-game AL Central lead evaporated in August, Vogt refused to deviate from the status quo, from what had propelled the club to such a standing in the first place. No unhinged shouting at players in the clubhouse. No desperate lineup changes or overhauled strategy.
His players rewarded him for his unwavering confidence in them. The Guardians rebounded and cruised to a division title. He urged them to pop champagne when they clinched a playoff spot and again when they wrapped up the AL Central, encouraging them to celebrate every milestone possible during an unforgiving grind of a season, one he knows all too well. Nothing came easy to him as a player. The managing thing, though, seems like it has.
When the Guardians hosted the Detroit Tigers for a winner-take-all affair in the AL Division Series, there was Randy, once again making another commute to assist with his son’s baseball schedule. Randy dropped off the Guardians manager at Progressive Field about five hours before first pitch. Along the drive, Randy pestered his son about his emotions, his jitters, the weight of the task at hand, the way in which it had to be eating him alive.
But this was what Vogt had worked toward for years. He was savoring the moment. He couldn’t wait to change into his white uniform and red playoff hoodie.
“This is probably the best year of managing I’ve ever seen in my life,” said veteran catcher Austin Hedges.
(Photo of Stephen Vogt: Jason Miller / Getty Images)
