Mike Napoli would be a great addition to the Angels' coaching staff or front office

Mike Napoli is a free agent yet again. This time as a coach.

Napoli's playing career ended after the 2018 season, and his coaching career began almost exactly one year later. His old teammate-turned-big league manager, David Ross, brought in Napoli as the Chicago Cubs' quality assurance coach. Napoli became their first base coach soon after. Craig Counsell became the Cubs' new manager in 2024, and as the highest paid manager ever he has a lot of say in his coaching staff. He likely had a lot to do with Napoli's firing at the end of September. The Cubs made more outs on the base paths than most other teams last year, and Napoli was never quite known for his prolific baserunning as a player. He was more known for trotting around the base paths at a leisurely rate.

The past few years, Perry Minasian and Joey Prebynski (the Angels' director of player development) have prioritized bringing in former Angels legends back into their former facilities to impart their wisdom and help steer the boat in the right direction. Players like Albert Pujols, Vladimir Guerrero Sr., Torii Hunter, Troy Percival have taken on roles with either the coaching staff or front office. Many more former Angels drop by Spring Training or during the regular season as resources for the players, coaches, staff members, and front office.

It remains relatively unclear what kind of coach Napoli is, but he seemingly prioritizes good vibes in the locker room and hard work. Given how his role as a quality assurance coach with the Cubs entailed a lot of roaming around and touching on different aspects of the game with the players, a minor league advisory role with the Angels' front office could be a perfect fit for Napoli. He can continue assuring quality of work in all facets of the game for his former team's affiliates. Napoli could also join Torii Hunter and Kurt Suzuki as a special assistant to the GM, a more luxurious role.

The Angels drafted Napoli, gave him his first promotion to the big leagues in 2006, and rostered him for the first five years of his career. Napoli began as a catcher, but began his move to first base during his last year with the Angels in 2010. Statistically, his best years were with the Angels. The slugger hit 92 home runs, drove in 249 RBIs, and accumulated an 11.1 bWAR in only five years with the Angels.