CLEVELAND, OH (92.3 THE FAN) - Chris Antonetti has been named Major League Baseball’s Executive of the Year for 2022.
Antonetti has been the general manager of the Cleveland Guardians since 2010. The Connecticut-born Antonetti joined Cleveland’s front office in 1999, after a year with the Montreal Expos.
He has risen from assistant general manager to general manager to president of baseball operations, where he’s served since 2015.
In 2022, the Guardians reached the ALDS following a 92-win season and AL Central title, despite having the youngest team in the entire league.
Cleveland’s nucleus centers around draft selections and developing signees. Aces Shane Bieber (2015) and Triston McKenzie (2016) and gold glove winner Steven Kwan (2018) were all drafted. Jose Ramirez and Oscar Gonzalez were both international signings fully developed by Cleveland.
Despite the third-lowest payroll in MLB, the Guardians roster composition includes acquired talent. All Stars Emmanuel Clase and Andres Gimenez were both traded for in 2021 with Amed Rosario also being featured along with Gimenez as part of the return for Francisco Lindor.
In total 17 players made their debut for Cleveland during the season. The first was opening day, the last being Bo Naylor on October 1st.
This was the fifth year the award was given out and the first time a Cleveland front office member has won it.
Next week the Manager of the Year and Rookie of the Year Awards will be announced. Terry Francona is a finalist for MOTY and Steven Kwan for ROTY. The rookie of the year award will be named Monday November 14th and the manager of the year award will be announced Tuesday November 15th.