MLB rumors: Ex-Yankee to replace Mike Scioscia as Angels manager?

Los Angeles Angels skipper Mike Scioscia is the longest-tenured manager in major league baseball. He’s won six division titles and the 2002 World Series championship. The 60-year-old Scioscia’s 10-year contract expires after the 2018 MLB season.

Los Angeles Angels manager Mike Scioscia is expected to step down after the 2018 MLB season.

USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reports a former Yankee could be the front-runner to replace Scioscia:

Former All-Star third baseman Eric Chavez, a special assistant in the #Los Angeles Angels front office, has emerged as the favorite to replace Mike Scioscia as the Angels manager in 2019

— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) September 25, 2018

Chavez played for the Yankees in 2011 and 2012.

The third baseman saw action in a total of 171 games for the Yankees, hitting .274 with 18 home runs and 63 RBI.

Chavez, six-time Gold Glove winner, spent 17 seasons in the majors, coming up with the Oakland A’s in 1998 and finishing with the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2014.

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Scioscia, who turns 60 in November, is the longest tenured manager in baseball. He’s been the Angels’ manager since 2000, collecting 1,600 wins, six division titles, and a World Series championship in 2002.

But Scioscia doesn’t sound ready to walk away from the game, per the Associated Press:

The longtime skipper of the Los Angeles Angels has been widely expected to step down after the regular season concludes this week. His comments to KLAA-AM radio Monday night suggested he is open to returning for a 20th season in the Angels’ dugout, or perhaps a managing job elsewhere in baseball.

When asked directly if he wanted to keep managing, Scioscia said: “I’d like to.”

“We’ll continue to evaluate things this week,” Scioscia added. “I’ll speak with (Angels owner) Arte (Moreno) and speak with (general manager) Billy (Eppler), and kind of come to a decision. But I think that if you love something, you want to continue to keep doing it. If you can, great. And if it doesn’t happen, so be it. But I love the dugout.”

…

“I love managing,” Scioscia said. “I love the dugout. I love the challenge of getting the team and getting them going in the right direction. That’s something I thoroughly enjoy.”

But Scioscia’s lucrative 10-year contract ends this season, and the Angels have made the playoffs just once in the last nine years despite annual high-priced rosters. They haven’t won a postseason game since 2009, a stretch that covers the entire concurrent Angels careers of Mike Trout and Albert Pujols.

The Angels opened a season-ending homestand against Texas on Monday night. They will miss the playoffs for the fourth consecutive year.

Mike Rosenstein may be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @rosenstein73. Find NJ.com on Facebook.