In a stunning move, the Los Angeles Angels have chosen to fire their manager, Joe Maddon.
After their 12th straight loss on Monday night, a 1-0 defeat at the hands of the Boston Red Sox, Maddon was relieved of his duties yesterday afternoon.
Phil Nevin will be taking over for the time being, filling the role in an interim capacity.
The Angels lost their 13th straight game last night, falling to the Red Sox by a final of 6-5 in 10 innings.
Prior to last night’s game, Angels stars Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani sounded off on the Maddon firing.
Angels insider Patrick O’Neal revealed what they had to say in the tweet shown below.
Re Angels decision to relieve Joe Maddon, Trout said it’s “Tough, we have to play better.” Ohtani agreed the players need to be better and he thanked Joe for the opportunity.
All in all a tough day, but this is a business. And it’s about winning. I wish Joe the best! pic.twitter.com/0DZGKbIIOH
— Patrick O'Neal (@Patrick_ONeal) June 7, 2022
Trout, Ohtani Take Responsibility
It’s nice to see that the players are not blaming Maddon for their struggles, but rather taking responsibility for the way things have gone and acknowledging that the team needs to start playing better in order to remain in playoff contention.
Last night’s loss dropped the Angels into a second-place tie with the Texas Rangers in the AL West.
The Halos are 9.5 games behind the Houston Astros for first place in the division, but still remain only 2.5 back of the Red Sox for the final Wild Card spot in the American League.
The Angels could bounce back and win the final two games of their four-game set with Boston, which would put them back to within a half-game.
It’s not doomsday yet for the Angels, but the players know full well that their poor play is what ultimately got Maddon fired and that they need to be better going forward.
Again, it’s good to see them owning up to it, rather than hiding from it and casting blame in Maddon’s direction.
NEXT: MLB Insider Reveals How The Angels Will Move Forward At Manager