Angels' Ron Washington Reveals Detailed Timeline of Health Issues Leading to Heart Surgery

Angels manager Ron Washington (37) looks on during batting practice prior to the game against the New York Yankees at Angel Stadium on May 26. | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Ron Washington was placed on medical leave by the Angels on June 20 and hasn't managed the team since. But it wasn't always obvious to the 73-year-old that he would need to miss the remainder of this season to attend to his health — or that he would need open-heart surgery just to survive.

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Speaking to reporters in detail about his health concerns for the first time Monday, Washington revealed he underwent a quadruple bypass eight weeks ago.

According to USA Today, Washington first grew concerned about his health during the Angels’ trip to New York June 16-19.

Writes Bob Nightengale:

"His ankles were swollen, and he alerted the team's training staff, which had him checked by New York doctors who wanted to keep him in New York. Washington elected to return to Anaheim, California, with the team and was admitted to a local hospital on June 23. He was diagnosed with blockage in his arteries, which led to the bypass surgery. He was discharged on July 7 and returned home to New Orleans."

Washington added context for how quickly his situation escalated, via Jeff Fletcher of the Southern California News Group:

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“The first day I was in the hospital, and they took tests, everything was fine,” Washington said. “I thought I was passing it with flying colors. And then when they finally decided to do the angiogram, which was an in-depth look into my heart, they found out that I had some blockage, and the blockage was in the valves. It wasn’t where they could do stents or balloons. So they said they had to do the bypass.”

In the same press conference Monday, Washington expressed optimism that he will return to the bench in 2026.

“If Perry will have me back, I’m certainly willing to come back and finish what we started.”

— Erica Weston (@EricaLWeston) August 25, 2025

"If Perry will have me back, I'm certainly willing to come back and finish what we started," Washington said, via Erica Weston of FanDuel Sports Network West.

After several years coaching in the minors, Washington got his first major league job with the Oakland Athletics as a first base coach from 1996-06. He got his first managerial job with the Texas Rangers in 2007, and brought them to two World Series before he resigned in 2014.

Washington returned to the A's in 2015 as an infield coach, then moved to be their third base coach in the same season. Washington left Oakland once more after 2016 to join the Atlanta Braves as a third base coach, where he won his first World Series in 2021.

The Angels hired Washington to replace Phil Nevin after the 2023 season. They went 63-99 in his first season, the worst record in franchise history.

In Washington's second year as manager, the Angels were off to a 36-38 start when bench coach Ray Montgomery took over for Washington on June 20. Including Monday's 4-0 win over the Rangers, the Angels are 26-31 under Montgomery since Washington left the team.

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