The Los Angeles Angels are hoping to change the fortunes of their organization with new manager Ron Washington, and no matter what happens with Shohei Ohtani, Washington wants his team to return to what they were in the 2000s, which was a one of the better teams in the league.

“The way I would address that is let's not talk about the last five or six years when the Los Angeles Angels were struggling,” Ron Washington said, via Bob Nightengale of USA Today. “Let's talk past that when they were the team that everybody was trying to run down. That's what I want to think about because we do have the personnel to go out and compete every night.”

With Shohei Ohtani's potential departure in free agency and Mike Trout entering the later stages of his career, many assume that the Angels will be entering a rebuild, but Washington pushed back on that notion.

“There ain't no rebuild here,” Washington said, via Nightengale. “I'm not thinking about the division right now. I'm thinking about preparation, getting prepared for a season. Once we get prepared and ready for the season, I'm ready for whatever comes in front of us. My players will be ready for whatever comes in front of us. … We're going to be fine, and that's the only way I'm thinking right now.”

Washington previously managed the Texas Rangers, and led them to World Series appearances in 2010 and 2011. The Rangers never got over the hump, but Washington is a respected leader. He was credited for a lot of the Atlanta Braves' success in recent years.

It will be interesting to see how the Angels fare with Washington leading them.