For the Red Sox, the 2026 season will be remembered as the one in which interim manager Chad Tracy helped guide his team to one of the most impressive hot streaks in club history -- the one that vaulted a team that was 14 games under .500 as late as June 24 to an eventual postseason berth.
And by the end of it, Tracy no longer held the interim label. Two days after the Red Sox punched their ticket to the postseason, Tracy was rewarded with a three-year contract extension that includes an option for 2030. Amid a tumultuous situation following the dismissal of long-time manager Alex Cora, Tracy calmed the waters and his team eventually took off.
For his efforts, Tracy finished third in the American League Manager of the Year voting, announced on Tuesday night. White Sox manager Will Venable finished first and Rays skipper Kevin Cash came in second.
Tracy received three first-place votes, five second-place votes and 17 third-place votes.
Tracy was aiming to join John McNamara (1986) and Jimy Williams ('99) as the only skippers in Red Sox history to win Manager of the Year.
Even in defeat, Tracy made history.
His father, Jim Tracy, was named National League Manager of the Year in 2009 with the Rockies, making the father/son duo the first to finish in the top three for the award, which was established in 1983.
That wasn’t the only similarity between father and son. Jim Tracy took over for Clint Hurdle two months into the 2009 season and guided his team to the postseason.
During his first season managing in the Majors, Chad expressed appreciation for his father’s constant support.
“I talk to him all the time. We always talk, but we're talking a lot more now, just because we can go through games and talk,” Chad Tracy told MLB.com in May. “He always watches; he and my mom are watching every single game. He managed in big and small markets; he managed as an interim. So, every single thing I'm encountering, he has. He's right there for me with an answer, ready to answer the phone, even if it's at 11:30 at night.”
At his post with Triple-A Worcester, Chad Tracy many of Boston’s players when they were prospects, or even veterans on rehab assignments.
That made his transition more seamless than it would have been otherwise.
On April 25, Tracy was going about his job managing a game in Worcester. Shortly after the game, he received a phone call from Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow requesting that he pack his bags and hustle to Baltimore. Suddenly, he was the interim manager after Cora's surprising dismissal. Instead of being panicky or nervous, Tracy created instant calm and helped the Red Sox turn their season around in stunning fashion.
The Red Sox caught fire beginning June 25, the opener of a four-game series at Fenway Park against the Yankees, and went on a 32-5 run that vaulted the club back into the postseason picture.
Some referred to it as the Tracy Transformation. It felt a lot like the summer of 1988, when another interim manager named Joe Morgan piloted his Red Sox to “Morgan’s Magic,” when the team went from nine games out at the All-Star break to AL East champs.
Tracy guided Boston to a postseason appearance that few thought could happen in June. The Red Sox went 77-58 under Tracy, including 55-29 in the final 84 games.
Boston went 27-3 from July 3-Aug. 7, marking the best 30-game stretch in club history.
When the Red Sox clinched a trip to the postseason on Sept. 20, Tracy addressed his champagne-soaked clubhouse in a typically selfless manner.
“I want to just express gratitude for everyone in the room,” he said. “Accomplishing something like this takes a lot of people. Everybody came together and made this happen. But mostly, gratitude to you guys, to the players. The players play the game. And you guys were incredible.”