CARY, North Carolina, USA – Mike Scioscia will take over as America’s third manager in the current Olympic cycle and will look to qualify for the Tokyo Games this summer.
The American Baseball Federation announced on Tuesday the hiring of the former Los Angeles Angels driver. Scioscia will lead a team of minor league players in a pre-Olympic tournament to be held in Florida next June.
Joe Girardi resigned as manager of the US national team in October 2019, after receiving coaching offers in the major leagues. Scott Brosius took over the leadership of the national team. Girardi was signed by the Philadelphia Phillies.
The United States has entered three outings since accessing Olympic baseball in November 2019, at the Premier12 tournament in Tokyo, when a home of Matt Clark in front of Brandon Dickson, the expeller of the Cardinals St. Louis, opened the bottom of the ninth inning. Efren Navarro picked Caleb Thielbar to lead the winning race in the 10th, and Mexico defeated the United States 3-2 to seal their first Olympic passport.
Scioscia, 62, amassed a record 1,650-1,428 as manager of the Angels in 2000-18, leading them to the 2002 World Series.
The United States will face the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and Nicaragua in Group A of the Tournament of America, the first two advancing in a super round against two teams in Group B, consisting of Canada, Colombia, Cuba and Venezuela. The winner of the super round will join Japan, Israel, Mexico and South Korea in the Olympic tournament, which will take place from July 28 to August 7 in Fukushima and Yokohama.
Only players who are not on the Major League Baseball’s 26-player list or on the injured lists may be called up to the America’s Tournament.
Teams finishing second and third will advance to the final tie in June in Taiwan, meeting with Australia, China, the Netherlands and Taiwan.
Baseball returns to the Olympic program after being excluded for the events of 2012 and 2016. Cuba won the gold medal in 1992, 1996 and 2004, the United States in 2000 and South Korea in 2008.
It goes without saying that baseball will be out of the program for the 2024 Paris Games again, but will be relocated to Los Angeles by 2028.