Albert Pujols remains Angels’ ‘first choice’ in manager search

It appears more and more likely that the Angels are ready to hand over the reins to a legendary slugger.

Albert Pujols is the Angels’ “first choice” to become their next manager following a “positive meeting” with general manager Perry Minasian on Thursday, The Post’s Jon Heyman reported Saturday.

“They still need to work out [a] contract,” Heyman wrote to X, “but Pujols is expected to be given [a] choice of coaches if they can finalize the $.”

The Athletic reported earlier in October that Pujols, 45, was viewed as owner Arte Moreno’s top candidate for the manager job after the Angels announced they weren’t picking up Ron Washington’s option for the 2026 season. 

The three-time National League MVP who crushed 222 of his 703 career home runs across 10 seasons with the Angels.

Pujols has coached in the Dominican Winter League and for the Dominican National Team in the World Baseball Classic, but has yet to manage at the major league level. 

The future Hall of Famer would be thrown into the fire if tasked with course-correcting the Angels. 

Los Angeles hasn’t sniffed the playoffs since 2014, when Pujols, in his third year with the team, smacked the team’s last postseason homer.

The Angels went a brutal 72-90 in 2025, leading the club to part ways with Washington and interim manager Ryan Montgomery, who led the team after the 73-year-old skipper underwent quadruple bypass heart surgery in June.

Washington, a legendary manager who captured back-to-back American League pennants with the Rangers in 2010 and 2011, was dismissed not because of his health but due to a product of disappointing play.

The Angels have not had a winning season since 2015.

“You know, when you’re a competitor, and you’re in charge, none of that stuff comes into play,” Washington told The Athletic. “Sometimes you’ve got to make chicken salad out of chicken s–t.”