Former Angels Manager Wants to Make Surprise Return to MLB

Former Los Angeles Angels manager Joe Maddon revealed what it might require for him to rejoin an MLB clubhouse.

The World Series champion has been absent from the sport of baseball since departing the Halos in 2022.

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During an appearance on the MLB Network Podcast, Maddon highlighted what it would take for a team to get him to come back to baseball.

"I'm not going to go out right now and and politic for the job necessarily," he said during the interview.

"But it would be somebody that has the same set of sensibilities, feels the game, and the game itself and the clubhouse and the team organization should be run in a way that's balanced.

"Meaning that coaches still have power. Your people that you hire have to feel empowered to do their job. And when they show up every day that they have an opportunity to make a difference. those are the kind of things that I'd like to see and I would love to be part of that."

What would it take to get @MaddHalos back in a Big League dugout?

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Any return to the diamond would likely occur on his terms, granting him complete control over how he manages the team, although few modern organizations operate that way anymore.

The front office and analysts play a crucial role in determining lineups, rotations, and player usage, which contrasts with the preferences Maddon requires to return to the big leagues.

"Yeah I want analytics," Maddon has previously said about the state of baseball.

"But I want a coach to be in charge of each position, and an analyst that answers to the coach, and not the other way around.

"It’s gotten to the point where the analyst component has become the superior in the conversation, and the coach has become the inferior. I want it to be the other way."

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At 71 years old, Maddon has spent 23 years leading in the dugout, accumulating 1,580 wins and 1472 losses, which results in a win percentage of .518. He has had two stints with the Angels, along with one each with the Chicago Cubs and Tampa Bay Rays.

Maddon successfully led the Rays to compete in the prestigious AL East, even clinching the division title several times.

He also was the manager to finally deliver a World series win for the Chicago Cubs.

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His last job as a coach was with the Angels, where he managed the team for three seasons before being let go in the midst of a twelve-game losing streak.

Since stepping away from baseball, the legendary manager has released a book titled "The Book of Joe: Trying Not to Suck at Baseball and Life."

For more Angels news, head over to Angels on SI.