10:10 am: The Angels have confirmed Maddux will be their new pitching coach, Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register reports.
9:38 am: Pitching coach Mike Maddux will not return to the Rangers in 2026 and will instead be hired on new Angels head coach Kurt Suzuki’s staff in Anaheim, DLLS Sports’ Jeff Wilson reports. The Angels have not officially announced the hire, but Wilson added that the Rangers have confirmed they are unable to reach a new deal with Maddux. Texas reportedly allowed its division rival to talk to Maddux, but even after the Halos inquired about his availability, Texas made an offer to retain him. Presumably, Maddux will become Suzuki’s pitching coach.
Rangers president of baseball operations Chris Young told Wilson that his club is “eternally grateful” to Maddux, who “played a major role” in the team’s first World Series win in the 2023 season and oversaw the Texas pitching staff in 2025. Last season, Rangers starters led the league with a 3.41 ERA. Their bullpen’s collective earned run average of 3.62 ranked fifth in MLB, despite being almost entirely composed of last offseason’s short-term free agent acquisitions.
After the season, Young expressed interest in retaining Maddux, whether it was a new contract as pitching coach or another position within the organization. Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News added that the team did discuss other roles besides offering to return as pitching coach. Instead, he will head west to join his fifth team in his long coaching career.
Maddux, who turns 64 in August, had a long career as a major league pitcher but was even more notable as one of the most prolific pitching coaches in the league. He pitched for nine teams in 15 major league seasons, posting a 4.05 ERA in 861 2/3 innings while serving as a starter and reliever.
Although Maddux had a long career, he has been a major league manager for even longer now. He has been a major league pitching coach for the past 23 seasons, starting with a six-year stint in Milwaukee from 2003-08. Maddux then began the first of his two stints at Texas, serving as pitching coach in Arlington from 2009-15, primarily under Ron Washington (who had just stepped down as manager of the Angels). He then served as pitching coach for the Nationals for two years in Washington, D.C., and five years as pitching coach in St. Louis. Maddux returned to the Rangers in 2023, Boch’s first year on the job, and led the team to the World Series title that year.
There will be more to come.
