Angels GM Billy Eppler mum on Joe Maddon after series of moves

The decision to fire Brad Ausmus after only one season was reached "collectively," Los Angeles Angels general manager Billy Eppler said, contradicting a widely held belief that it was an owner-driven choice at least partly inspired by the possibility of wooing Joe Maddon.

Eppler spoke via conference call Tuesday, one day after he abruptly dismissed Ausmus as his manager and less than one hour after he announced that bench coach Josh Paul and pitching coach Doug White also had been let go. Eppler said he will go over managerial candidates with owner Arte Moreno and president John Carpino later Tuesday and did not provide any hint that the job is Maddon's to lose.

"We have a hiring process to go through, so I think it's premature to say anything contrary to that," Eppler said. "We're gonna collect names this afternoon and particularly plan on sitting down with a number of candidates. I would not handicap it any other way at this moment in time."

Eppler thanked Ausmus for "his leadership, his consistency, and his professionalism" and said he succeeded at "making people around him better" and "creating a positive culture." Eppler also stressed that Ausmus was "not solely responsible" for the Angels' 72-90 record, pointing to the offseason acquisitions -- namely, Matt Harvey, Trevor Cahill, Cody Allen and Justin Bour -- who did not pan out.

"That," Eppler said, "lies on me."

Asked directly about Ausmus' shortcomings, Eppler remained vague.

"I would just say that, at this juncture, our results fell short of expectations," he said. "We felt it was in the best interest of the club to add a new voice. Again, the responsibility here is a shared responsibility. But it just put us in a position where we are going to seek a different voice."

The Angels, coming off their first 90-loss season in 20 years, have recorded four consecutive sub-.500 seasons for the first time since the 1970s and still have made only one playoff appearance since 2009, a seemingly unfathomable circumstance considering they've had the game's best player, Mike Trout, for eight years.

Eppler, too, appears to be in a precarious place, entering the fifth and final season of his contract without the man whom he hand-selected to replace Mike Scioscia last fall. Moreno, it seems, will have more say in the managerial search this time around.

There is clear mutual interest between the Angels and Maddon -- who parted ways with theChicago Cubsafter five season -- but the San Diego Padres, San Francisco Giants, Pittsburgh Pirates and Kansas City Royals also have openings, and other teams might, too. Bruce Bochy, Joe Girardi, Buck Showalter and Ron Washington are among the other big names available, but Eppler said it's "a little early" to say the Angels prefer an experienced manager.

No further coaching changes are expected until a new manager is hired.

Paul had just concluded his second season with the Angels after spending several years with the New York Yankees, Eppler's former employer. White came from the Houston Astros organization and was in his first season as a major league pitching coach. He brought a creative approach, but under White's watch, the Angels' starting pitchers sported the second-highest ERA in the majors.

The Angels are expected to buy out the two remaining years of White's contract and do the same with Ausmus, who was believed to be making less than seven figures. Ausmus was informed that he was let go on Monday morning, but Eppler said the decision "weighed on us for a while." The list of potential candidates "did not" carry influence, Eppler added.

"Our results this year fell short of expectations," Eppler said, "and collectively we felt it was in the best interest of the organization to go a different direction."