Buck Showalter and Dan Duquette Given Top Honors

Last night it was announced that Buck Showalter was chosen as American League Manager of the Year. The Orioles skipper received 25 of the 30 first-place votes by the Baseball Writers' Association of America. This is his third Manager of the Year award, but first with the Orioles.

This was on the heels of Orioles GM Dan Duquette being named the Sporting News Executive of the Year earlier this week, for the second time in his career, due to strategic moves like the signing of Nelson Cruz.

"This was a tough year for American League awards. It was a packed field," said MLB senior writer Jerry Crasnick. "What sets Showalter apart is . . . he's just an amazingly prepared guy. He uses his bullpen probably better than any other manager. He uses his roster well. He's also created a culture in Baltimore that, after all these years of losing, is certainly a lot different from what they had before. 

"He's really found new life in Baltimore, along with Dan Duquette, both of them have found an ideal spot . . . To get to that next level, though, [Showalter's] going to have to win a World Championship, that's the thing that's eluded him. They just need to take another stride for him to reach that echelon."

Interestingly, Showalter kept up his pattern of winning the award exactly a decade apart. First came with the Yankees in 1994, then with Rangers in 2004, now with the Orioles in 2014. Let's hope we don't have to wait another 10 years for him to "reach that echelon."