NEW YORK – Former Diamond Dog Charlie Montoyo was named a finalist for American League Manager of the Year, as announced by Major League Baseball on Monday.
 
Montoyo, who played at Louisiana Tech from 1985-87, helped lead the Blue Jays to their first postseason appearance since 2016. The second-year manager guided Toronto to a 32-28 record in the COVID-19 shortened campaign.
 
Not only did Montoyo lead Toronto back to the playoffs, but he also accomplished this feat while playing the Blue Jays' home games in Buffalo, New York, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Toronto finished third in the AL East behind New York and Tampa Bay, the latter of which won the American League pennant.
 
The Blue Jays named Montoyo their manager in October 2018. He was inducted into the Louisiana Tech Athletics Hall of Fame in 2015. The former Bulldog ranks inside the top 10 in many all-time LA Tech Baseball statistical categories, including batting average (fourth), home runs (fifth), walks (first) and total bases (seventh).
 
The other finalists for the AL Manager of the Year include Tampa Bay's Kevin Cash and the Chicago White Sox's Rick Renteria. The winner will be announced on Tuesday on MLB Network.
 
Toronto's only AL Manager of the Year winner came back in 1985 when Bobby Cox led the Jays to a spot in the American League Championship Series.
 
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