The Angels are turning the page after one season with Kurt Suzuki in the dugout.
On Tuesday, the club declined Suzuki’s managerial option after a 62-100 season, a move that effectively ends his run as the team’s manager. The organization also reportedly offered him a role as a special assistant, while the search now shifts toward finding a new leader for the 2027 season.
Suzuki’s appointment was a bold one from the start. He was hired on Oct. 22, 2025, to replace Ron Washington and arrived in the role after working in the front office, not from the usual coaching ladder. He had no prior professional or collegiate coaching experience before taking over the Angels.
That made his route to the job unusual, but his baseball background was long and deep. Suzuki spent 16 seasons in the majors with the Athletics, Washington Nationals, Minnesota Twins, Atlanta Braves and Angels, and he finished his playing career in Anaheim. He played his final two seasons there in 2021 and 2022 before retiring.
His time behind the plate gave him the kind of daily feel for pitching, game management and clubhouse communication that teams often value in a manager. And his resume included one especially notable line: a World Series title with Washington in 2019.
Before moving into the dugout, Suzuki had spent three years as a special assistant to former general manager Perry Minasian. That familiarity with the organization helped bring him into the job, even if the leap to managing a big league club was a major one. He also became the first Hawaii-born full-time manager in major league history.
Now the Angels’ next decision comes with bigger organizational change on the horizon. Stan Kroenke’s planned purchase of a controlling stake in the franchise from Arte Moreno is reportedly valued at $4 billion, including the team’s regional sports network. The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2027, pending approvals.
That means the club’s managerial search will unfold with a new ownership group waiting in the wings. The Angels are coming off a 100-loss season, and the next manager will be charged with helping set the tone for 2027 and beyond.
For Suzuki, the offer to remain as a special assistant could keep him tied to the organization in a different capacity. For the Angels, the search is on.
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