The Los Angeles Angels announced Wednesday that they declined Kurt Suzuki’s contract option and will wait for a new manager for the 2027 season.
While Suzuki could not manage the team next season, he could remain with the organization in another role, interim general manager John Mozeliak said in a statement.
Suzuki’s tenure as manager of the Angels lasted only one year. He led the team to a 62-100 record, good for last in the American League West.
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Suzuki’s quick release was always a possibility. After the news about the rental fee, the Angels were told to offer Suzuki one year, which he accepted. At the time, he said the decision was made that Suzuki’s former general manager Perry Minasian could be on the same contract timeline.
Minasian was fired in June and the team brought in Mozeliak to serve as interim GM for the remainder of the 2026 season. Despite releasing Minasian, the Angels opted to keep Suzuki for the rest of the season.
In August, coach Mike Maddux and two pitching assistants were fired a few months after joining the organization. Weeks later, Arte Moreno sold the Angels to Los Angeles Rams owner Stan Kroenke for a reported $4 billion.
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That sale — combined with Suzuki’s contract and 2026 events — gave the Angels a chance to clean house before the 2017 season.
The team took that chance and will now need to find a new general manager and manager before the start of next season. While that proved to be the most difficult part of the franchise in previous years, the sale to Kroenke resulted in the Angels landing one of the team’s top spots, a huge change since Moreno’s teams.