You can’t talk about the Cleveland Guardians’ recent run of success without talking about Stephen Vogt. Since taking over as the Guardians’ manager ahead of the 2024 season, Vogt has helped lead the Guardians to a 180-143 record with two American League Central crowns.
And he’s not going to go anywhere any time soon. On Friday, ESPN’s Jeff Passan put out a story about Vogt and Brewers manager Pat Murphy (who have both won back-to-back Manager of the Year Awards in their respective leagues), where he provided a promising update about Vogt’s future in Cleveland.
“Vogt, in fact, is not a lame duck. He signed a new multiyear contract with the Guardians following the 2024 season that was never made public, sources told ESPN,” Passan wrote.
Vogt quietly signing an extension isn’t a huge surprise given that most managerial extensions happen in silence, but it’s still exciting nonetheless.
Stephen Vogt isn’t going to leave the Guardians any time soon
Vogt’s contract extension looks even better compared to Murphy’s situation, as Passan wrote that Murphy’s contract is set to expire after the 2026 season, which is the worst position for a manager to be in.
Most of the time managers have a contract that covers multiple seasons so that way they’re not in a “lame duck” status where everyone knows they’re going to be gone after the season.
The last time the Brewers were in a situation like this, they lost Craig Counsell to the Cubs for a record-setting deal with the Cubs, as Passan pointed out in his story.
The Guardians were in a similar situation with Terry Francona in 2023, but it was a bit of an open secret that would be his final season in Cleveland. And Francona leaving led to the Guardians hiring Vogt, which has been one of the shrewdest moves in recent team history.
Last season was Vogt at his best, as he managed multiple injuries, suspensions and trade rumors to help guide the Guardians on a record-setting comeback in the American League Central to win the division crown.
Vogt’s track record of success is even more impressive when you consider the deck he’s playing with. While he has an All-World player in José Ramírez, he’s had to navigate all that winning with a subpar lineup and a roster that’s routinely ranked near the bottom of the league in payroll.
Even if it helps that the Guardians have a stellar starting rotation and bullpen, he’s had a lineup filled with frustratingly inconsistent players, and it seems like that’s going to continue in 2026.
Still, any Guardians team with Vogt at the helm is going to be a contender, so keeping him in the fold was a clear win. It was already hard to imagine a world where Vogt wasn’t at the top step of the home dugout at Progressive Field, and now it’s even harder to imagine.