# American Association (1902–1997) Manager of the Year Award

The American Association Manager of the Year Award was an annual award given to the best manager in Minor League Baseball's American Association based on their regular-season performance. Though the league was established in 1902, the award was not created until 1953. It continued to be issued through the 1962 season, after which the league disbanded. In 1969, both the league and the award were revived, and the honor continued to be given until the league disbanded for a second time after the 1997 season.
Nine managers won the award on multiple occasions. Joe Sparks won the award five times, more than any other manager. Marc Bombard and Vern Rapp each won three times. Kerby Farrell, Jim Fregosi, Jim Marshall, Gene Mauch, Jack McKeon, and Rick Renick each won the award twice. Sparks (1986, 1987, and 1988) won three of his five awards consecutively, while Mauch (1958 and 1959), McKeon (1969 and 1970), and Bombard (1994 and 1995) won in back-to-back seasons.
Fourteen managers from the Indianapolis Indians won the Manager of the Year Award, more than any other team in the league, followed by the Denver Zephyrs and Omaha Royals (4); the Evansville Triplets and Minneapolis Millers (3); the Iowa Cubs, Louisville Redbirds, Nashville Sounds, and Wichita Aeros (2); and the Buffalo Bisons, Louisville Colonels, Oklahoma City 89ers, Omaha Dodgers, and Toledo Sox (1).
Eight managers from the Montreal Expos Major League Baseball (MLB) organization won the award, more than any other, followed by the Cincinnati Reds organization (6); the Chicago White Sox and Kansas City Royals organizations (4); the Detroit Tigers and Milwaukee Braves organizations (3); the Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs, Cleveland Indians, and St. Louis Cardinals organizations (2); and the Los Angeles Dodgers, Milwaukee Brewers, New York Giants, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Texas Rangers organizations (1).

## Winners

Key :
| League | The team's final position in the league standings |
| Division | The team's final position in the divisional standings |
| Record | The team's wins and losses during the regular season |
| (#) | Number of wins by managers who won the award multiple times |
| ^ | Indicates multiple award winners in the same year |
| * | Indicates league champions |
Winners :
| Year | Winner | Team | Organization | League | Division | Record |
| 1953 | George Selkirk | Toledo Sox | Milwaukee Braves | 1st | — | 90–64 |
| 1954 | Kerby Farrell (1) | Indianapolis Indians | Cleveland Indians | 1st | — | 95–57 |
| 1955 | Bill Rigney | Minneapolis Millers* | New York Giants | 1st | — | 92–62 |
| 1956 | Kerby Farrell (2) | Indianapolis Indians* | Cleveland Indians | 1st | — | 92–62 |
| 1957 | Ben Geraghty | Wichita Braves | Milwaukee Braves | 1st | — | 93–61 |
| 1958 | Gene Mauch (1) | Minneapolis Millers* | Boston Red Sox | 3rd | — | 82–71 |
| 1959 | Gene Mauch (2) | Minneapolis Millers* | Boston Red Sox | 2nd | 2nd | 95–67 |
| 1960 | Bill Adair | Louisville Colonels* | Milwaukee Braves | 2nd | — | 85–68 |
| 1961 | Cot Deal | Indianapolis Indians | Cincinnati Reds | 1st | — | 86–64 |
| 1962^ | Luke Appling | Indianapolis Indians | Chicago White Sox | 1st | — | 89–58 |
| 1962^ | Danny Ozark | Omaha Dodgers | Los Angeles Dodgers | 2nd | — | 79–68 |
| 1969 | Jack McKeon (1) | Omaha Royals* | Kansas City Royals | 1st | — | 85–55 |
| 1970 | Jack McKeon (2) | Omaha Royals* | Kansas City Royals | 1st | 1st | 73–65 |
| 1971 | Vern Rapp (1) | Indianapolis Indians | Cincinnati Reds | 1st | 1st | 84–55 |
| 1972 | Jim Marshall (1) | Wichita Aeros | Chicago Cubs | 1st | 1st | 87–53 |
| 1973 | Joe Sparks (1) | Iowa Oaks | Chicago White Sox | 1st | 1st | 83–53 |
| 1974 | Vern Rapp (2) | Indianapolis Indians | Cincinnati Reds | 1st | 1st | 78–57 |
| 1975 | Fred Hatfield | Evansville Triplets* | Detroit Tigers | 2nd | 1st | 77–59 |
| 1976 | Vern Rapp (3) | Denver Bears* | Montreal Expos | 1st | 1st | 86–50 |
| 1977 | Jim Marshall (2) | Denver Bears* | Montreal Expos | 3rd | 1st | 71–65 |
| 1978 | Les Moss | Evansville Triplets | Detroit Tigers | 2nd | 2nd | 78–58 |
| 1979 | Jim Leyland | Evansville Triplets* | Detroit Tigers | 1st | 1st | 78–58 |
| 1980 | Billy Gardner | Denver Bears | Montreal Royals | 1st | 1st | 92–44 |
| 1981 | Joe Sparks (2) | Omaha Royals | Kansas City Royals | 1st | 1st | 79–57 |
| 1982 | Jim Napier | Iowa Cubs | Chicago Cubs | 2nd (tie) | 2nd (tie) | 73–62 |
| 1983 | Jim Fregosi (1) | Louisville Redbirds | St. Louis Cardinals | 1st | 1st | 78–57 |
| 1984 | Buck Rogers | Indianapolis Indians | Montreal Expos | 1st | — | 91–63 |
| 1985^ | Jim Fregosi (2) | Louisville Redbirds* | St. Louis Cardinals | 3rd | 1st | 74–68 |
| 1985^ | Dave Oliver | Oklahoma City 89ers | Texas Rangers | 1st | 1st | 79–63 |
| 1986 | Joe Sparks (3) | Indianapolis Indians* | Montreal Expos | 1st | 1st | 80–62 |
| 1987 | Joe Sparks (4) | Indianapolis Indians* | Montreal Expos | 3rd | — | 74–64 |
| 1988 | Joe Sparks (5) | Indianapolis Indians* | Montreal Expos | 1st | 1st | 89–53 |
| 1989 | Tom Runnells | Indianapolis Indians* | Montreal Expos | 1st | 1st | 87–59 |
| 1990 | Sal Rende | Omaha Royals* | Kansas City Royals | 1st | 1st | 86–60 |
| 1991 | Tony Muser | Denver Zephyrs* | Milwaukee Brewers | 2nd | 1st | 79–65 |
| 1992 | Marc Bombard (1) | Buffalo Bisons | Pittsburgh Pirates | 1st | 1st | 87–57 |
| 1993 | Rick Renick (1) | Nashville Sounds | Chicago White Sox | 2nd | 1st | 81–62 |
| 1994 | Marc Bombard (2) | Indianapolis Indians* | Cincinnati Reds | 1st | — | 86–57 |
| 1995 | Marc Bombard (3) | Indianapolis Indians | Cincinnati Reds | 1st | — | 88–56 |
| 1996 | Rick Renick (2) | Nashville Sounds | Chicago White Sox | 4th | 3rd | 77–67 |
| 1997 | Dave Miley | Indianapolis Indians | Cincinnati Reds | 2nd | 2nd | 89–59 |

## Wins by team

| Team | Award(s) | Year(s) |
| Indianapolis Indians | 14 | 1954, 1956, 1961, 1962, 1971, 1974, 1984, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1994, 1995, 1997 |
| Denver Zephyrs (Denver Bears) | 4 | 1976, 1977, 1980, 1991 |
| Omaha Royals | 4 | 1969, 1970, 1981, 1990 |
| Evansville Triplets | 3 | 1975, 1978, 1979 |
| Minneapolis Millers | 3 | 1955, 1958, 1959 |
| Iowa Cubs (Iowa Oaks) | 2 | 1973, 1982 |
| Louisville Redbirds | 2 | 1983, 1985 |
| Nashville Sounds | 2 | 1993, 1996 |
| Wichita Aeros (Wichita Aeros) | 2 | 1957, 1972 |
| Buffalo Bisons | 1 | 1992 |
| Louisville Colonels | 1 | 1960 |
| Oklahoma City 89ers | 1 | 1985 |
| Omaha Dodgers | 1 | 1962 |
| Toledo Sox | 1 | 1953 |

## Wins by organization

| Organization | Award(s) | Year(s) |
| Montreal Expos | 8 | 1976, 1977, 1980, 1984, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989 |
| Cincinnati Reds | 6 | 1961, 1971, 1974, 1994, 1995, 1997 |
| Chicago White Sox | 4 | 1962, 1973, 1993, 1996 |
| Kansas City Royals | 4 | 1969, 1970, 1981, 1990 |
| Detroit Tigers | 3 | 1975, 1978, 1979 |
| Milwaukee Braves | 3 | 1953, 1957, 1960 |
| Boston Red Sox | 2 | 1958, 1959 |
| Chicago Cubs | 2 | 1972, 1982 |
| Cleveland Indians | 2 | 1954, 1956 |
| St. Louis Cardinals | 2 | 1983, 1985 |
| Los Angeles Dodgers | 1 | 1962 |
| Milwaukee Brewers | 1 | 1991 |
| New York Giants | 1 | 1955 |
| Pittsburgh Pirates | 1 | 1992 |
| Texas Rangers | 1 | 1985 |