Chipper Jones expounds on the impact Ron Washington had on Atlanta Braves staff.

When a team wins prolifically as the Atlanta Braves do, lesser organizations are going to want to poach their top talent. Usually this happens by signing away marquee players in free agency, but sometimes top assistant coaches get elevated to sitting in the big chair somewhere else. This is exactly what happened when the Los Angeles Angels hired third base coach Ron Washington.

Washington is every bit the baseball lifer. He was part of Art Howe’s Oakland Athletics coaching staff, the one that was portrayed in Moneyball. Washington then became arguably the most successful skipper in Texas Rangers history, winning back-to-back AL pennants in 2010 and 2011. Although he did not win a World Series in Arlington, he helped Atlanta win its first title in 26 seasons back in 2021.

Washington already had a great baseball legacy from his coaching days in Oakland and Texas prior to coming to Atlanta. Not to say that he reinvented himself in Atlanta, but reaffirmed to everyone what he is all about and who he has been. Few coaches across the majors truly love the game of baseball like Washington does. It is why I fully expect that the Angels will be ultra-competitive in a year or two.