Angels News: Gio Urshela and Phil Nevin are Excited to be Reunited

They spent a lot of time together in New York.

It made a lot of sense when the Angels traded for utility infielder Gio Urshela. Not only did he fill a big need in the Angels’ infield, and fix some of the depth issues that GM Perry Minasian spoke about, but he also has connections to Angels manager Phil Nevin.

OFFICIAL: the Angels have acquired INF Gio Urshela from the Minnesota Twins in exchange for minor league RHP Alejandro Hidalgo. pic.twitter.com/fle2bi3fNS

— Los Angeles Angels (@Angels) November 18, 2022

Nevin was a third base coach with the Yankees when Urshela was on the team in 2019, 2020 and 2021. He was thrilled to have Urshela back on his team.

"The person is tremendous," Nevin said of Urshela. "An incredible teammate. Always got a smile on his face. Uplifting to the group. Makes people around him better. Really, just a tremendous individual."

The praise, however, was not one-sided. Urshela was very excited to be back with Nevin, and shared how quickly he reached out to him after the trade.

"Phil is a great guy," Urshela said. "He called me right away when I got traded to the Angels. I’ve known him for the last five years. He’s a good guy for me."

Urshela will fill a huge need for the Angels on the field. But it seems he’ll be just as important off the field and in the clubhouse, too.