American League Manager of the Year

Baseball writers are notorious for being one of the last bastions of a "boys club" atmosphere. They have their favorites and they stick with them. Take the voting for American League manager of the year. Now, I will not contest Joe Madden of Tampa as the winner. After all, the man got his team to the playoffs again this year with virtually no star talent. But Jim Leyland as a close second is a joke. He has a great pitching staff, headed by the winner of the American League Cy Young award, Justin Verlander. He has a powerful lineup that includes the American League batting champion. And then, Ron Washington finishes a distant third. Could they still be getting on Wash for his little indiscretion two years ago when he tested positive for a controlled substance?