Joe Maddon named NL Manager of the Year

After leading the Chicago Cubs to the third-best record in baseball and the franchise's first playoff berth since 2008, Joe Maddon was named the National League's Manager of the Year Tuesday by the Baseball Writers Association of America.

In his first season on Chicago's North Side, Maddon oversaw a roster of highly-touted prospects and rookies who made a 24-game improvement from the 2013 season and advanced to the National League Championship Series before bowing out to the New York Mets.

"At the end of the day, it's a player's game," Maddon said in an interview with MLB Network. "To be the steward of this wonderful group of young players, I feel very fortunate."

He earned the honor over Mike Matheny of the Cardinals, whose team lost to Chicago in the National League Division Series, and the Mets' Terry Collins, who received three first-place votes.

Maddon was the only candidate to appear on all 30 ballots and received 18 first-place votes while Matheny was voted first nine times and finished second. The Pirates' Clint Hurdle, Bruce Bochy of the Giants and former Dodgers manager Don Mattingly -- now with the Miami Marlins -- rounded out the top candidates.

He becomes one of seven managers -- and only three active managers -- to win the award three times. He was twice named Manager of the Year in the American League while leading the Tampa Bay Rays.