Angels Managerial Candidates Are Disappearing Fast

The Los Angeles Angels are botching their latest managerial search again, but this time they’re doing it in slow motion. The Angels should have had firing Kurt Suzuki on their offseason to do list for right after the season, but for a variety of reasons that didn’t happen. 

Meanwhile, managerial candidates are quickly disappearing from the baseball landscape, and the Halos are increasing the risk that they’ll be left holding the bag again.

The most significant candidate to disappear was former Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora. Cora was strongly connected to the New York Mets during the season, but he became more available and viable when the Mets decided to hire interim manager Andy Green, which is a classic mistake that bad teams often make. 

Cora had the managerial chops to handle a team like the Angels. He’d related well to veterans like outfielder Mike Trout and shortstop Zach Neto, and Cora is generally regarded as good when comes to developing young talent, although he did earn some black marks in Boston for having a dog house and burying some younger players who suddenly improved when he was gone. 

But Cora decided to sit out the 2027 season, which was a smart move on his part. Few savvy veteran managers would want to come into a situation like the one the lockout will create, which likely involves facing a new roster and a shortened spring training to put their program in place. It’s a recipee for failure, and that’s not Cora’s m.o.

We still don’t know if Cora ever seriously considered the Angels job or would have, but he’d be looking at a new unknown owner on top of everything else, and seeing Suzuki still in place would undoubtedly tilt his decision negative. 

The other name that disappeared this week was Don Mattingly, who re-upped with the Philadelphia Phillies on a two-year deal after serving as an interim manager. Mattingly would never be a serious candidate for the Angels job given his advanced age and the extent of the rebuild in Anaheim, but his disappearance represents a signal for the Halos. 

Specifically, they need to clarify their managerial situation. That means having new ownership make a decision about Suzuki, who should be a no-go after losing 100 games but is still in the picture, probably because current owner Arte Moreno didn’t want the bad optics that would come with firing yet another manager. 

Meanwhile, viable candidates continue to disappear. If new ownership really is serious about building a winner in Anaheim, it’s time for Stan Kroenke and his sports group to step in and clear the decks for someone new.