Browsing: Ray

Baseball

Ron Washington, Ray Montgomery won’t return to Angels in 2026 (source)

ANAHEIM — The Angels will have a new manager in 2026.

Manager Ron Washington, who was placed on medical leave on June 27 and underwent a quadruple bypass heart surgery on June 30, will not have his option picked up, while interim manager Ray Montgomery also wonâ€t be his replacement, a source told MLB.com on Tuesday.

The Angels, however, have yet to make an announcement about the decision to move on from Washington and Montgomery as manager, which was first reported by The Athletic.

Washington, 73, was hired by the Angels prior to the 2024 season and the Angels went 63-99 in his first year at the helm. They improved on that mark this season under Washington, going 36-38 before he was placed on leave.

Montgomery, who had served as bench coach since 2022, took over as interim manager and went 36-52. The Angels suffered a slew of injuries late in the season and went 13-28 over their final 41 games.

The Angels have a pair of internal candidates who have no Major League or Minor League managing experience, but they have expressed a desire to manage in the big leagues. Former Angels Torii Hunter and Albert Pujols are both special assistants to general manager Perry Minasian.

Hunter said in late August that heâ€d manage if the right opportunity came up and joined the Angels on a few of their final road trips and their last homestand while spending time in full uniform in the dugout.

Another potential candidate with a tie to the organization is former longtime Padres and Rockies manager Bud Black. Black was the Angels’ pitching coach from 2000-06 before going on to manage in San Diego from 2007-15 and Colorado from 2017 until being fired this past May.

Former Marlins manager Skip Schumaker is also from the area, attending nearby Aliso Viejo High School. He managed in Miami from 2023-24, winning NL Manager of the Year honors in ‘23. Heâ€s currently a senior advisor to the Rangers.

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Bully Ray Feels Departing WWE Star Wasn’t Passionate Enough About Wrestling

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Bully Ray recently commented on the departure of a WWE star, suggesting that a lack of passion and drive for professional wrestling may have played a role in their decision.

Jazmyn Nyx was a member of the Fatal Influence faction alongside NXT Womenâ€s Champion Jacy Jane and Fallon Henley, and was recently written off television. While the on-screen explanation was a backstage attack, reports revealed the real reason was her decision not to renew her WWE contract. She later revealed that, financially, the deal didnâ€t make sense for her long-term plans, leading to her exit.

Although Nyxâ€s reasoning appeared logical, WWE Hall of Famer Bully Ray (formerly Bubba Ray Dudley) argued that passion, or the lack thereof, was another major factor in her decision to leave.

Bully Ray’s Reasoning For Comments On Jazmyn Nyx’s WWE Departure

Speaking on the latest episode of Busted Open Radio, the former WWE Tag Team Champion stated that if she had trained in a wrestling school before her in-ring career began, she might have developed more of a passion for it, as most wrestlers are willing to go through the grind to achieve their dream.

He explained that when a talent is recruited from a different field of sport, such as soccer, like Jazmyn Nyx was, the level of commitment often isnâ€t the same. He provided the example of Stephanie Vaquer, who has previously expressed what wrestling meant to her and how much she was willing to sacrifice to pursue her dream.

According to Ray, Nyx possibly lacked this hunger, which ultimately led to her leaving the Stamford-based promotion:

If Jazmyn Nyx would have trained at a wrestling school, wrestling would have been her passion and her dream. She most likely would have stayed put and grinded it out. There’s one thing about wrestlers, they will accept the grind to chase the dream.

But when you get pulled in from soccer, MMA, football, or whatever, it’s not the same. You don’t have that burning sensation, that burning passion. Like Stephanie Vaquer, who told me that wrestling was her nourishment when she didn’t have enough food to eat.

That doesn’t burn in Jazmyn Nyx. It’s not that same mental state, not that same pit-of-your-stomach grind where you need to do it, you need to make it.”

You can hear Bully Ray’s comments in the clip below, which was shared by Busted Open Radio on their X/Twitter account:

Stay tuned to ITR Wrestling for the latest news, updates, and rumors from WWE and more.

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WWE

Bully Ray Says The Rock ‘Doesn’t Need Wrestling Anymore,’ Pitches Idea For WWE Send-Off

The Rock sings a song on

WWE

Whether The Rock returns to WWE anymore or not is anyone’s guess at this point, despite what appears to be unfinished business and/or abandoned storylines still floating out there in the universe. According to “Busted Open Radio’s” Bully Ray, “The Final Boss” simply doesn’t need wrestling at the moment, focusing on Hollywood matters, but he does envision a final goodbye, tied to John Cena’s retirement tour.

“I don’t think The Rock would want to cloud anything up in Hollywood right now by coming back to pro wrestling,” Bully said. “I think he’s got his career back to where he wants in Hollywood, thus doesn’t need wrestling right now to serve whatever purpose he needed it to serve in the past for him.” Seeking some closure, however, more so than wrapping up any loose ends he may have left from his last run, Bully wants The Rock to close the book on things symbolically, with an appearance after Cena’s final match.

“There is some spilled milk to still clean up,” he said. “I know other people have cleaned it up and still continue to clean it up but I’d love to see him come back and do it himself.” In this scenario, Rock wouldn’t be putting a bow on his career with a final match of his own, but rather in a joint farewell of sorts, after Cena wraps up his own WWE run—against an interesting opponent.

“I’m talking about this: Here’s my off-the-top-of-my-head scenario. Last match: Dom versus John.”

Thank you Cena (and Rock?)

The Rock faces off with John Cena at WrestleMania 40

WWE

Highlighting Cena’s final run so far was capturing a record 17th WWE Championship at WrestleMania 41. But one title he’s never held in his career is the Intercontinental Championship, currently held by “Dirty” Dominik Mysterio. In Bully’s proposal, that’s the angle that they’d lean into heavily to set up the big double-goodbye.

“IC Championship on the line,” he envisioned. “Holy s***! Will John win the IC Championship on his last night in the company? The only championship that he’s never won before, right? I’m interested.” Keeping in line with the age-old wrestling tradition of going out staring at the lights, Bully doesn’t see Cena winning here, but rather falling to Mysterio after the champ uses some very familiar underhanded tactics. “Get to the finish of the match,” he added, “lie, cheat, and steal, just like Uncle Eddie [Guerrero taught him] and he beats John Cena.”

With the match finish now in the rear view, and a victorious Mysterio now having exited, this is where Bully sees the surprise appearance from The Rock taking place, just as Cena is getting his flowers from the fans and thank yous are put forth in both directions. “Right in the middle of the ‘Thank you, Cena!’ chants, [Rock’s music hits]. Boom! The place will s*** itself.”Â

Bully’s final visual, then, would play out like so: “Out comes The Rock and there’s your face to face. Rock takes John’s wrist and he lifts it in the air one final time and The Rock leaves, end of story.”

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit “Busted Open Radio” and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.

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Bully Ray Suggests John Cena Could Grant ‘Wish’ To Current TNA Star During Final Run

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Throughout his career, John Cena has earned a reputation as one of the most giving participants for the Make-A-Wish Foundation, paying visits to countless children dealing with serious illnesses. Speaking on “Busted Open Radio,” Bully Ray suggested a different kind of wish that Cena could grant ahead of his WWE retirement in December.

“What better person to grant a wish to than Joe Hendry?” Bully said. “This guy has been wishing for a match against John Cena for over a year now. He said that he fully believes in manifesting and if [he] manifests it enough, it will happen. I would like to see that happen.”

While he’s currently contracted to TNA, a recent report indicated that Hendry will likely soon start winding down there in preparation for a full-time move to WWE. Although Bully would like to see the match happen, when asked if he would book Cena vs. Hendry if he was in charge, he admitted that he likely wouldn’t do it with so few Cena appearances left.

“In reality, no, but it would be nice, because it would make sense,” Bully continued. “I love the fact that John has granted so many wishes to children, right? How about granting a wish to a professional?”

Along with Hendry, Bully named Bron Breakker, Dominik Mysterio, and GUNTHER as three other wrestlers he would like to see Cena wrestle before he calls it quits. Cena has only five announced appearances left before he hangs up his boots, and based on the way his match against Brock Lesnar went at WWE Wrestlepalooza, it’s likely that one of those final appearances will consist of a rematch against his longtime rival.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit “Busted Open Radio” and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.

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Bully Ray On WWE WrestleMania 43 Announcement: ‘It’s Just Business’

Bully Ray speaks during the SririusXM Busted Open Wrestlemania party at Intrigue at Wynn Las Vegas on April 19, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

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Last week WWE announced that WrestleMania 43 will emanate from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in 2027, nine years after the company first started running shows in the country. It was also reported last week the Saudi government is paying WWE a “mind blowing” amount of money to host “The Showcase of the Immortals.” The money, and the initial deal signed back in 2018, are why WWE Hall of Famer Bully Ray said on “Busted Open Radio” that WWE taking WrestleMania to the country is just business, no matter how upset the fans in the comments of the announcement telling WWE “you sold out” were.

“Because to me, it’s business,” he said. “I always talk about the scope of the playing field and the reason why the term ‘the scope of the playing field’ or ‘the scope of the contract,’ I always bring these words up because they really stuck out in my mind when I read my first WWE contract, and the contract read, ‘the scope of the contract is the world… ‘ They’re going to Saudi Arabia. Are we really shocked? Everybody’s like, ‘Oh my god. I can’t believe they’re doing this! I can’t believe they’re going to do business over there!’ Clutching the pearls and yelling and screaming and b******* and moaning. They’ve been going for five frickin’ years already.”

The Hall of Famer said that fans chanting “you sold out” in sold-out crowds at WWE shows aren’t going to make a difference. He said WWE isn’t going to care about social media posts, either, and if fans want to truly show WWE how upset they are, the time to show it isn’t after WrestleMania 43.

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit “Busted Open Radio” and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.

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