Los Angeles Angels Hire Kurt Suzuki as New Manager
The Los Angeles Angels have announced Kurt Suzuki as their new manager, a decision that marks a significant turn for the team. Suzuki, a veteran catcher with an extensive career in Major League Baseball, takes on the role without prior experience as a professional coach, with the mission of revitalizing a franchise facing the longest playoff drought in MLB.
Suzuki, 42, played for 16 seasons on five different teams and was a World Series champion in 2019 with the Washington Nationals. In the last three years, he served as a special assistant to Angels general manager Perry Minasian.
Suzuki’s selection came after considering other prominent figures, including former Angels stars like Albert Pujols and Torii Hunter. The decision to hire Suzuki comes after Ron Washington, the previous manager, was absent for much of the 2025 season due to quadruple bypass surgery.
Ray Montgomery, who served as interim manager during Washington’s absence, received an offer for a different role within the organization, but was not considered for the full-time manager position.
Suzuki inherits a team with considerable offensive potential and a pitching staff that raises doubts. Shortstop Zach Neto is one of the most complete players in the game, while outfielders Jo Adell and Taylor Ward combined for 73 home runs in 2025.
Mike Trout is under contract until 2030, and catcher Logan O’Hoppe, first baseman Nolan Schanuel, and second baseman Christian Moore complete the team’s young core.
The Angels’ rotation, aside from Yusei Kikuchi and José Soriano, is in a state of uncertainty, and the bullpen presents questions that complicate the team’s prospects in a division where the Seattle Mariners are located, who were one game away from representing the American League in the World Series.
Suzuki played his last two seasons, 2021 and 2022, as a backup catcher for the Angels, and received praise for his handling of the pitching staff. He now becomes the fifth manager of the organization since Mike Scioscia ended his 19-year tenure in 2018, succeeding Brad Ausmus, Joe Maddon, Phil Nevin, and Washington.
Under Scioscia’s direction, the Angels won the franchise’s first World Series championship in 2002 and secured five American League West Division titles in a six-year span, from 2004 to 2009. The 2009 season marked the last time the organization won a playoff game. The Angels have only returned to the postseason once, in 2014, being swept in the American League Division Series by the Kansas City Royals. The 2025 season, which ended with a 72-90 record, marked their tenth consecutive losing season.
Fans have expressed their discontent with the management of Arte Moreno, the team owner, who has been criticized for getting too involved in baseball operations, not investing enough in player development, and making poor decisions.
The most notable decision was not to trade Shohei Ohtani before he became a free agent and then to decide not to match the contract offer made to him by the Los Angeles Dodgers.
According to sources, Moreno initially considered Pujols as manager at the beginning of the offseason, but opted for another direction after a collapse in negotiations.
