Chicago Cubs Rumors: Joe Maddon looks likely to sign with the Angels

After an interview that went ‘very well’, former Chicago Cubs manager Joe Maddon is poised to return to his roots as manager of the Los Angeles Angels.

Barely more than a week has passed since Joe Maddon and Theo Epstein stood side-by-side at Busch Stadium , putting weeks of Cubs rumors to rest and announcing they had mutually decided to part ways. The Cubs went on to get lambasted by the Cardinals, ending a disappointing season in appropriate fashion.

Regardless of how the 2019 campaign played out, we knew it wouldn’t take long for Maddon to find a new club. According to MLB Network insider Jon Heyman, the three-time Manager of the Year is close to joining the Los Angeles Angels.

Maddon has longstanding ties to the Angels organization – the only professional club he ever played for. He spent more than three decades with the Halos and given all the varying factors at play, it was always hard to envision him going anywhere else. Really, San Diego was the only other destination I could see him entertaining – given their crop of young talent that draws comparisons to the 2015 Cubs.

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Obviously, we don’t have the details of any potential deal yet. But keep in mind Arte Moreno, the Angels owner, doesn’t shy away from long-term commitment. We’re talking about the guy who brought in Albert Pujols on a 10-year, $240 million deal, extended Mike Trout with a 12-year, $428 million contract and handed Mike Scioscia the reins for a decade before parting ways last year.

At 65, it remains to be seen how much longer Maddon will want to manage. But he never seemed to be out of gas in Chicago – so it’s not hard to envision him with the Angels for the next half-decade or more.

While the Cubs continue their own managerial interviews this week. Cubs rumors continue to swirl after they kicked things off by sitting down with Maddon’s own bench coach Mark Loretta last week. Meanwhile, the Angels undoubtedly hope the former Chicago skipper can bring some magic back to Angel Stadium of Anaheim.

Los Angeles reached the postseason just once in the last decade – with that coming back in 2014. Trout, a generational talent, has never even played in October, a travesty in and of itself. This season, the club lost 90 games – the first time that’s happened since 1999.

This year was marred by the tragic death of pitcher Tyler Skaggs and the organization, as a whole, will look to move forward in 2020. With two years left on the Pujols deal and plenty of questions on the roster, it will take some serious Maddon mojo if the Angels want to return to relevance next season.