Los Angeles Angels: Joe Maddon will be the next manager
Joe Maddon, the former Chicago Cubs skipper, has been linked to the Los Angeles Angels managerial vacancy since the final pitch of the regular season.
The Los Angeles Angels parted ways with manager Brad Ausmus at the end of the season, the end of his first season on the job. Joe Maddon, the former manager of the Chicago Cubs is the heavy favorite to replace him for a number of reasons.
The first reason is Maddon’s history with the club. Before he went to Tampa to coach the Rays, he spent 31 seasons with the Angels. The other factor is his results speak for themselves.
Take for example his first season with the Tampa Bay Rays, they went 61-101, then 66-96 before righting the ship and going 97-65 in 2008 and a place in the World Series.
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Now the Rays never made it to the World Series again under Maddon, but his influence on that club was a lasting one. After that 66-96 record in 2007, the team only had one other season under .500 and that was Maddon’s last season in 2014. His record with the Rays was 754-705.
After that the Chicago Cubs and Theo Epstein were able to get him as part of the World Series chase. He delivered after only two seasons in the Windy City, winning the World Series in 2016, ending their long championship drought.
He finished in Chicago with a record of 471-339 after 5 seasons. When the Los Angeles Angels job came open almost everyone has basically assumed Maddon will be the next manager. While it may not be that cut and dry, he has been contacted by several other teams, one of which is the San Diego Padres.
Of the those two California teams, I have to go with the Padres as being the more intriguing job. They have so much young talent in Fernando Tatis Jr., Manny Machado and the No. 1 farm system in all of baseball.
Depending on how management is in San Diego, I would say take that job. They have a roster similar to the Cubs when he took over and won the World Series.
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I have a feeling though the allure to return to his former organization will be too strong, plus the opportunity to manage the best player in the game, Mike Trout, will be too much for Maddon to turn down. I expect them to name him the manager by the end of this week or next week.