Athletics' Billy Beane voted inaugural MLB executive of year

CARLSBAD, Calif. -- Oakland Athletics executive vice president of baseball operations Billy Beane was voted the inaugural Major League Baseball Executive of the Year.

Tampa Bay general manager Erik Neander and Milwaukee general manager David Stearns tied for second, MLB said Monday at the annual GM meetings, without announcing the totals. Each team had one vote, which had to be submitted by the end of the regular season.

Beane, 56, has headed baseball operations for the A's since after the 1997 season, first as general manager, and in his current role since after the 2015 season.

Oakland had the fourth-best record in the major leagues this year at 97-65 and lost to the New York Yankees in the American League wild-card game. The A's had the 28th-highest payroll as of Aug. 31 at $77.8 million, ahead of only the Chicago White Sox ($71.3 million) and Tampa Bay ($70.5 million).