After leading a very young Braves team to the East Division title, Bobby Cox is named the National League’s Manager of the Year. The well-respected field boss becomes the first skipper, in either league, ever to win the award in consecutive years.
Ozzie Guillen is selected as the American League’s Manager of the Year after guiding his team to a World Championship. The White Sox skipper joins his former field boss Bobby Cox, the NL’s selection, as a recipient of the honor this season.
Roger Clemens (18-4, 218, 2.98), after coming out of retirement to pitch for his hometown team, becomes the oldest hurler to win the Cy Young Award. The 42 year-old ‘Rocket’ has received the honor a record seven times and becomes the first to win the award with four different teams: Red Sox (1986-87, 1991), Blue Jays (1997-98), Yankees (2001), and the Astros (2004).
“You want the truth. You can’t handle the truth. The truth of this situation is an extremely talented bunch of guys who want to look at all directions except where they should really look and kind of make excuses for what happened. At the end of the day, boys, don’t tell me how rough the water is, you bring in the ship.” – STEVE STONE, Cubs veteran broadcaster criticizing the team for making excuses during an October interview on WGN radio.The Cubs, hoping to fill the void created by Steve Stone’s resignation, hire former Diamondback manager and current Fox television analyst Bob Brenly to broadcast games on WGN. After spending twenty years in the broadcast booth, Stone left Chicago after his on-air comments concerning the team’s swoon in the wild-card race angered manager Dusty Baker and some of the players.
Joining Seattle Mariners new manager, Mike Hargrove, Don Baylor is named the team’s batting coach, replacing Paul Molitor. The former major league manager became available after the Mets announced a new coaching staff would be put in place to work with recently-hired pilot Willie Randolph.
Dusty Baker signs a four-year deal to pilot the Cubs, leaving the Giants after guiding the club to a pennant this season. The three-time National League Manager of the Year compiled an 840-715 record during his ten-year tenure with San Francisco.
After exercising Omar Daal’s $4.5 million contract option for 2002 yesterday, the Phillies trade him to the Dodgers for minor league pitchers Eric Junge and Jesus Cordero. Philadelphia acquired the right-hander along with Travis Lee, Nelson Figueroa, and Vicente Padilla in the 2000 deal which sent Curt Schilling to the Diamondbacks.
Dusty Baker, after posting the best record in baseball this season, is named by the BBWAA as the National League Manager of the Year. The 51 year-old skipper, who guided the Giants to a 97-65 record, joins Tony La Russa (White Sox ’83 and A’s ’88 and ’92) as the only three-time winner of the award.
Kansas City Royals outfielder Carlos Beltran is named the American League Rookie of the Year. Beltran became the first rookie with 100 or more RBI since Mike Piazza had 112 in 1993 and the first in the AL since Mark McGwire had 118 in 1987. Beltran is also the first rookie with a 100 run-100 RBI season since Fred Lynn in 1975.
Hall of Fame pitcher Jim “Catfish” Hunter announces that he is suffering from Lou Gehrig’s disease. The fatal disease, known medically as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, attacks the nerves in the spinal cord and the brain and leads to a loss of motor skills. Hunter will succumb to the disease less than a year later.
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