Angels Have Made Decision on New Manager

Jon Heyman of the New York Post was first to report the news of Suzuki's hire on Twitter/X.

Suzuki is a former Angels catcher who joined the front office as a special assistant following his 2022 retirement. He had also drawn interest from the San Francisco Giants for their managerial vacancy.

Suzuki, a 16-year major league veteran, played for the Angels from 2021-22. He becomes the first Hawaii-born manager in American or National League history.

Suzuki, 42, also played for the Oakland A’s, Minnesota Twins, Washington Nationals, and Atlanta Braves in his career. He won a championship with the Nationals in 2019 and was an All-Star with the Twins in 2014.

A standout catcher at Cal State Fullerton, he led the Titans to a College World Series title in 2004, the fourth in the program's history. Suzuki also won the Johnny Bench Award as the nation’s top collegiate catcher and the inaugural Brooks Wallace Award, given to the nation’s most outstanding college player.

A second-round draft pick by the A's in 2004, Suzuki tallied a .255 career average with 295 doubles, 143 home runs and 730 RBI in 1,635 big league games. From his first full season in 2008 until he retired, Suzuki ranked second in MLB in hits (1,314) as a catcher, fourth in runs (544), second in doubles (266), ninth in home runs (131) and third in RBIs (654).

The Angels were one of nine teams in the market for a new manager this offseason, and the first to fill their vacancy. Albert Pujols and Torii Hunter — both former Angels — were also candidates for the job.

Pujols was reportedly the first to interview to replace Ron Washington, whose option for 2026 was declined after two losing seasons.

However, The Athletic reported Monday that Pujols and the Angels could not agree to terms on the money and term of his contract, even though his initial meeting to discuss the job reportedly went well.

Heyman additionally reported that the Angels and Pujols had differing opinions about "coaches and resources."

Bo Porter, the Angels' first- and third-base coach under Washington, also expressed interest in the job via The Athletic. However, according to Brittany Ghiroli, the Angels (either through owner Arte Moreno or GM Perry Minasian) had not reached out to Porter about the job.

Suzuki will have the latitude to choose his own staff. It's unclear how many coaches, if any, will be retained.

Suzuki becomes the Angels' fifth manager in eight seasons since Mike Scioscia managed his final game in 2018. Among his recent predecessors, Brad Ausmus, Joe Maddon and Washington all had previous managerial experience. Only Phil Nevin — promoted from bench coach to manager after Maddon was fired in 2022 — did not.

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