The Los Angeles Angels announced on Wednesday that Phil Nevin will return as manager for the 2023 season after agreeing to terms on a new one-year contract.
Nevin, 51, was appointed as the Angels' interim skipper in June, when the team fired Joe Maddon during a 12-game losing streak. Nevin has since led the Angels to a 46-59 mark, winning games at a 43.8 percent clip that would translate to 71 wins over a full season of Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani.
Prior to getting into coaching, Nevin had played in parts of 12 big-league seasons. He batted .270/.343/.472 (114 OPS+) in that time with 208 home runs and 15.9 Wins Above Replacement. Nevin was the No. 1 pick in the 1992 amateur draft.
While Nevin is remaining in place, the Angels could have a variety of moving parts around him, including at the ownership level and on the big-league roster. As CBS Sports wrote last month, it's at least possible that the Angels will tradeShohei Ohtani this winter before fielding a roster next summer full of recent draft picks:
Trading Ohtani would be painful, but the case is straightforward. He'll qualify for free agency after next season, and he's publicly expressed his desire to win. The Angels can offer him a ton of money, yet they won't be the only ones doing so; what they may not be able to offer him, what they haven't been able to offer him yet, is a real chance at securing a World Series ring. Perhaps Minasian can improve the roster enough this offseason to give the Angels a shot at glory next fall. The risk is that Ohtani will lose trade value the moment he plays a game with Los Angeles next season, as an acquiring team would no longer be able to recoup draft-pick compensation at year's end.
The Angels had been expected to be one of several teams seeking a new manager this offseason. The Miami Marlins and Chicago White Sox have both announced over the last week-plus that Don Mattingly and Tony La Russa will not return next season.
The Texas Rangers seem likely to hire someone new as well, while the Kansas City Royals, Toronto Blue Jays, and Philadelphia Phillies' plans for their managerial position all remain up in the air. The Blue Jays and Phillies could well follow the Angels' wingbeats and keep their interim managers, especially after making the playoffs.
