Manager of the Year 2026: Murphy, Cash and Venable by NUT vs Record
By record against team NUT, the 2026 Manager of the Year case is led by Kevin Cash, whose Rays won 98 games on the #8 roster in MLB (+8.8 SEASON NUT), Will Venable, whose White Sox went from 60 wins to 84 on the #16 roster (+2.1), and Pat Murphy, whose Brewers won an MLB-best 103 on the #2 roster (+16.8). All numbers are final 2026 regular-season totals, as of October 28.
A manager doesn't hit or pitch, so no stat measures him directly. What NUT can measure is the roster he was handed. Team NUT adds up every player's NUT: one number for production against league average, built on the advanced hitting and pitching stats analysts trust, not batting average or ERA. Defense is left out. When a team's wins rank sits well above its NUT rank, the club turned less production into more wins. That gap is the closest number we have to a manager's case.
AL Manager of the Year 2026 Candidates by NUT
Tampa Bay won the AL East and the #1 AL seed with 21 more wins than 2025, on a roster that ranked #8 by NUT. Its pitching carried it: +6.6 pitching NUT against +2.1 hitting.
Chicago's 24-win jump is the biggest in MLB this season. The White Sox finished 84-78 on +2.1 team NUT, #16, a C, and reached the Wild Card round.
Houston won the AL West at 81-81 on the #21 roster (-0.1, a D), a 7-spot gap. Cleveland won the AL Central at 85-77 with -2.3 hitting NUT, the lowest of any division winner, offset by +6.3 pitching.
NL Manager of the Year 2026 Candidates by NUT
Milwaukee's 103 wins were the most in MLB, but its roster also ranked #2 by NUT (+16.8, an A), so its record and its production line up. Murphy's case is the record itself.
San Diego has the widest gap of any playoff team: 91 wins, #6 in MLB, on +2.6 team NUT, #15. Atlanta went from 76 wins to 94 and the NL East title with the #9 roster (+8.2).
Every 2026 Playoff Team: Record vs Roster by NUT
Seven of the 12 playoff teams finished ahead of their roster's NUT rank. Boston is the other way: the #5 roster by NUT (+11.6) won 87 games, #9.
Outside the field, Pittsburgh had the #3 roster by NUT (+13.5, an A) and went 82-80, #13 in wins: a 10-spot gap the other way, tied with San Francisco for the widest in MLB.
What a Record-vs-NUT Gap Does and Doesn't Show
A gap is a team result, not a manager grade. One-run games, bullpen use, injuries and defense, which NUT leaves out, all move it, and some of that is the manager's work and some is not. Read it as one input next to the record and the club's preseason outlook, which is how voters weigh it too.
The BBWAA votes before the postseason, so the World Series between Milwaukee and Tampa Bay doesn't count. For the player races, see the 2026 MVP race and the Relief Pitcher of the Year race by NUT.
Quick Answers
When is Manager of the Year 2026 announced?
On November 10, 2026, on MLB Network, one winner in each league. Rookie of the Year is November 9, Cy Young November 11 and MVP November 12.
Does the postseason count for Manager of the Year?
No. BBWAA writers vote before the postseason starts, so only the 162-game regular season counts. The Rays and Brewers reaching the World Series is not part of the vote.
Which 2026 playoff team won the most games above its roster?
The San Diego Padres. They won 91 games, #6 in MLB, on the #15 roster by SEASON NUT (+2.6), a gap of 9 spots. Kevin Cash’s Rays and Walt Weiss’s Braves were next among division winners, at 5 spots each.
Which team improved the most in 2026?
The Chicago White Sox, from 60-102 in 2025 to 84-78 and a Wild Card spot in Will Venable’s second season: 24 more wins, the biggest jump in MLB. Tampa Bay was next at +21.
Has Pat Murphy won Manager of the Year before?
Yes. Pat Murphy won NL Manager of the Year in 2024 and 2025. His 2026 Brewers went 103-59, the best record in MLB, on the #2 roster by SEASON NUT (+16.8).