Angels Abruptly Fire 3 Coaches at Midseason

The Angels' pitching staff has a 4.53 ERA and the most walks in MLB

Angels pitching coach Mike Maddux (88) third baseman Denzer Guzman (23) second baseman Vaughn Grissom (5) shortstop Zach Neto (9) first baseman Nolan Schanuel (18) meet with pitcher Reid Detmers (48) and catcher Logan O'Hoppe (14) during the third inning at Angel Stadium on July 3. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Angels abruptly cut ties with three coaches — pitching coach Mike Maddux, bullpen coach Dom Chiti and assistant pitching coach Darryl Scott — in a midseason shakeup to manager Kurt Suzuki's coaching staff.

The three were all working on one-year contracts that expire at year's end.

The firings are the latest surprise under interim general manager John Mozeliak. Tim Leveque was named interim pitching coach and Michael Wuertz was named interim bullpen coach.

The Angels' pitching staff has a 4.53 ERA and has issued the most walks in MLB. Overall the Angels bullpen is threatening a record for futility this season.

“After spending time discussing with Kurt where we are as a coaching staff and where we want to go in the future, we felt it was best to make a change,” Mozeliak said in a press release. “With seven weeks remaining, we plan to use this time to evaluate what additional steps are needed to elevate our entire pitching program and best position us for success moving forward.”

Angels name Tim Leveque pitching coach

Mar 1, 2021; Jupiter, FL, USA; St. Louis Cardinals Tim Leveque poses during media day at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium. Mandatory Credit: MLB Photos via USA Today Sports | USA TODAY Sports

Leveque, 45, joined the Angels this season as Double-A Rocket City’s pitching coach after working under Mozeliak for the previous 20 seasons in the St. Louis Cardinals organization.

Leveque was a pitching analyst in the Cardinals' scouting department in 2025, after working the previous nine years as senior minor league pitching coordinator, overseeing pitcher development throughout the system.

Earlier in his career, Leveque served as a pitching coach at multiple Cardinals affiliates. He began his professional baseball career as a video intern with Milwaukee in 2005.

A Northridge, California native, Leveque was selected by Detroit in the 29th round of the 1999 Draft, but elected to attend the University of Michigan, where he pitched from 2000-03, and never pitched professionally.

Angels name Michael Wuertz interim bullpen coach

Oct 22, 2022; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Los Angeles Angels pitching coach Michael Wuertz for the Scottsdale Scorpions during an Arizona Fall League baseball game at Phoenix Municipal Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports | USA TODAY Sports

Wuertz is in his 11th year in the Angels organization. He was serving as the Angels' minor league assistant pitching coordinator following five seasons as the pitching coach with Double-A Rocket City.

Wuertz previously worked with advanced Class-A Inland Empire (2016-17, 2019) and rookie-Level Orem (2018) as a pitching coach to begin his tenure with the organization.

Before going into coaching, Wuertz pitched eight MLB seasons with the Chicago Cubs (2004-08) and Oakland Athletics (2009-11), going 21-11 with a 3.71 ERA in 426 career games.

A native of Austin, Minnesota, Wuertz was selected by the Cubs in the 11th round of the 1997 Draft.

Maddux voluntarily left the Cardinals after the 2022 season, after spending the previous five seasons as pitching coach while Mozeliak was St. Louis' GM. He has also worked as a pitching coach with the Texas Rangers (2009-15, 2022-23), and Washington Nationals (2016-17).