- Angels manager Ron Washington visited his team for the first time since he had quadruple heart bypass surgery.
- Washington, 73, said he was concerned about his health during the Angels’ trip to New York June 16-19.
- Washington returned to Anaheim, California, with the team and was admitted to a local hospital on June 23. He was diagnosed with blockage in his arteries, which led to the bypass surgery.
Ron Washington was back where he belonged Monday.
In a baseball uniform, and in the Los Angeles Angels clubhouse.
Washington, who has been on medical leave as manager of the Angels since June 27, returned to see his team for the first time since he had quadruple heart bypass surgery.
Washington, 73, said he was concerned about his health during the Angels’ trip to New York June 16-19. His ankles were swollen, and he alerted the Angels’ training staff, which had him checked by New York doctors who wanted to keep him in New York.
Washington elected to return to Anaheim, California, with the team and was admitted to a local hospital on June 23. He was diagnosed with blockage in his arteries, which led to the bypass surgery.
He was discharged on July 7 and returned home to New Orleans.
“It just happened so fast,’’ Washington said at a news conference on Aug. 25 at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas, “I didn’t have a chance to say much to anyone.’’
Washington, however, remained in great spirits and was always confident, in messages and conversations with USA TODAY Sports during his absence, that he would return in full health. He has stopped smoking and is eating healthier, and said he should be fully recovered by December.
He plans to return to Anaheim to be with the team in September, and expressed again Monday that he definitely wants to continue managing the Angels. Washington is in the final year of his two-year contract and the Angels have a club option for 2026.
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