The Angels have selected former big-league catcher Kurt Suzuki as their next manager, a source said Tuesday.
Suzuki, 42, was working as a special assistant to general manager Perry Minasian. This will be his first job as a manager.
The Angels have not made an official announcement about Suzuki’s hiring yet.
Suzuki, a product of Cal State Fullerton, spent 16 years in the majors, ending his career with the Angels in 2022.
Suzuki becomes the Angels’ fifth full-time manager since Mike Scioscia stepped down following the 2018 season. The team has since by managed by Brad Ausmus, Joe Maddon, Phil Nevin and Ron Washington, with Ray Montgomery serving as an interim manager while Washington was on medical leave in the second half of this season.
The Angels also considered Albert Pujols and Torii Hunter, who also are both on the Angels’ payroll. Pujols has a personal services contract that runs for another seven years. Hunter is a special assistant to the GM, the same role that Suzuki filled.
Suzuki was also interviewed for the San Francisco Giants’ managerial opening.
Although Suzuki has never managed at any level, he is following in the footsteps of Cleveland Guardians manager Stephen Vogt. Vogt, also a former big-league catcher, spent one season as the Seattle Mariners’ bullpen coach in between his playing career and getting the Cleveland managerial role. He led the Guardians to back-to-back division titles, and was named American League Manager of the Year after his first season, in 2024.
The Mariners hired Dan Wilson as their manager during the season last year. He had worked in the minor leagues, without ever having a managing job. The Mariners won the division this year and lost in Game 7 of the American League Championship Series on Monday night.
Suzuki’s success or failure is more likely to come down to the roster he has than his experience, or lack thereof. The Angels were 72-90 last season, finishing toward the bottom of the majors in pitching and run production.
Suzuki grew up in Hawaii before coming to Southern California to play college baseball. He was drafted in 2004 by the Oakland A’s, and he spent the first six years of his career there, before playing for the Washington Nationals, Minnesota Twins, Atlanta Braves and Angels. Suzuki had multiple stints with several teams.
Suzuki won a World Series titles with the Nationals in 2019.
Suzuki was with the Braves when Angels GM Perry Minasian was the assistant general manager there. Minasian then brought Suzuki to the Angels to finish his playing career, and he immediately began working in the front office upon his retirement.
Suzuki will now take on the challenge of getting the Angels back to contention after a miserable decade. The Angels have not made the playoffs since 2014, and they haven’t had a winning record since 2015.
By hiring Suzuki, the Angels have an opportunity to maintain some continuity. The current players and coaches are all familiar with him. He was in camp throughout spring training, and he was also around the big-league team periodically during the season. Suzuki also made visits to Angels minor-league affiliates.
Minasian said shortly after the season that all the Angels’ coaches were free to look elsewhere for jobs, but any of them could return, depending on who they selected as manager.
Montgomery has been invited back in some capacity, but he was waiting on the managerial hire to decide if he wanted to return.
Suzuki will now be managing several players who were recently his teammates, most notably Mike Trout. After Suzuki played his final game in 2022, Trout had nothing but praise for Suzuki.
“Just a true professional,” Trout said in 2022. “I got to play with him the last couple of years. I’ve never really seen him mad. Always brought that smile. Always brought that energy. Just an unbelievable teammate. A lot of people don’t see it, because they’re not in the clubhouse, but what he brings to the clubhouse, what he means to the younger guys, the young catchers, even myself. Just seeing how he handles himself and brings that energy and positivity to a ball club, you can’t teach that.”
When Suzuki announced his retirement, he said he was open to continuing to work in baseball, but first wanted to spend some time at home with his family. His kids are now 14, 11 and 9.