Angels aren’t going to rush general manager search

Angels president John Carpino and manager Joe Maddon held a conference call with reporters on Wednesday, with the most pressing topic at season’s end the club’s search for a new general manager.

Billy Eppler was fired on Sunday after the completion of his fifth losing season in five years on the job. As for his replacement, the Angels aren’t rushing into it.

“We’re really just beginning that process with Arte, getting a large list together, and then trying to narrow it down,” Carpino said. “Ideally, to have someone in place, just call it by Thanksgiving would be a good timeframe for us. But we’re going to go through the process and interview as many candidates as it takes to get the right person for the job.”

Last off season, the only notable Angels transaction before Thanksgiving was claiming Mike Mayers off waivers, adding who was the club’s best reliever in 2020. Dylan Bundy was acquired on Dec. 4.

Should any roster moves be required before the Angels have a new general manager in place, assistant general manager Jonathan Strangio is currently heading the baseball operations department. Carpino also mentioned that special assistants Bill Stoneman and Tony La Russa are around to assist in the GM search.

Carpino didn’t want to comment on whether the club is looking at internal candidates for GM in addition to external options — Maria Torres at the Los Angeles Times profiled five potential options for the position, including Dave Dombrowski, earlier this week — though he did say he was open to different styles.

“We’re open to anyone’s idea on how to make this organization better. That’s all we strive for,” Carpino said. “We’re not winning games, so something is not right in our organization. We have to look at it, and you have to look in the mirror to find out, okay, what’s happening here that’s causing us not to be playing this weekend, or deep into October?”

Notes

• Carpino said there would be layoffs soon. “We’re still going through that. I’ve been working with the baseball operations department, and fine tuning that list, and just looking at everything,” he said. “But unfortunately, yes, that’s the situation that we’re in like a lot of other teams, like a lot of other businesses.”
• Angels owner Arte Moreno will be heavily involved in baseball decisions once a new GM is hired, continuing the status quo. “For him not to have a say in his investment, or knowledge on it, I think it’s fair that he has discussions and communication with the general manager,” Carpino said. “In my opinion, he deserves to be a part of the process. He’s the owner.”
• Maddon said collaboration is the most important thing he’s looking for in a GM, and that he had that relationship with Eppler. “It’s a partnership. You have to you have to have a very good personal relationship,” Maddon said. “Both sides need to be direct with one another in order to make this whole thing work.”