Grading the Cleveland Guardians at the All-Star Break

2. Manager

First-year manager Stephen Vogt was given the unenviable task of leading the Cleveland Guardians following future Hall of Fame manager Terry Francona's tenure at the position. The decision to hire Vogt was met with plenty of skepticism about his potential to continue what has been a very successful decade-plus run of success with Francona at the helm. But those who were questioning Vogt's hire were quickly met with a dose of reality that the Guardians did, in fact, make the right choice.

Well, as expected, there have been some ups and downs during Vogt's first year as Guardians manager. At times, Vogt looks every bit the part of being one of the game's best managers, while at others, his decisions can leave plenty scratching their heads (lineup configurations, playing time for certain players, leaving a pitcher in a littel bit too long, etc.). Admittedly, this does sound like somewhat of a harsh criticism, but let's be clear here, it's not. This is just the reality of having a first-year manager learning how to do the job on the job, and for that, his performance has been good.

It is just those few areas that he needs a little more experience in that can lead to no longer making some of the mistakes that some of the more experienced managers do not make. Those corrections will come in time, but for right now, it seems appropriate to give credit but note there is room for improvement.

Managerial Grade: B+