By Bob Zayas
11/11/19
As the 2019 MLB Season was winding down and the Chicago Cubs were not doing well, I started to get a distinct feeling that Maddon was not going to be around Chicago much longer. It is fairly typical that as teams don’t do well the manager usually takes the brunt of the poor play. But, Maddon? I guess maybe I just didn’t want to see him go especially after he led the 2016 Cubs to their first World Series win in 108 years! But regardless, he’s off to California where he'll be the new manager of the Los Angeles Angels.
Maddon’s baseball career started in 1975 with the California Angels. He was a catcher and never advanced higher than Class A ball. In his minor league career he hit .267. After four years he began his coaching career with the Angels organization. Maddon is known for his patient approach to young players’ development and his overall laidback demeanor.
In 2006, Maddon was hired as the manager of the Tampa Bay Rays. By 2008, he had led them to their first American League Eastern Division title and an appearance in their first World Series. Although they lost the series to the Philadelphia Phillies, Maddon won the American League Manager of the Year award. He would go on to win this award in 2011 and 2015. His career winning percentage as a manager is .540.
So, with his baseball career beginning on the West Coast, Maddon heads back there with his new three-year deal as 2020 manager of the Angels. Good Luck, Joe…we’ll miss you in Chi-Town.
Source: Wikipedia
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