In becoming the Angels' manager at age 36, Fregosi was presented with a solid team nucleus of Ryan, Baylor, Downing, Bobby Grich, Carney Lansford, Frank Tanana and longtime owner Gene Autry, compiling a record of 62–55 in 117 games, and tying for second with Texas behind the Kansas City Royals. In 1979, with the addition of Rod Carew, he led the Angels to an 88–74 record, surprising the Royals and winning the first title in the club's 19-year existence. But they didn't have enough to get by the Baltimore Orioles in the 1979 American League Championship Series, losing Game 1 in 10 innings and dropping a 9–8 slugfest in Game 2; the Angels captured a 4–3 win in Game 3, scoring twice in the bottom of the ninth on an error and a Larry Harlow double, but were knocked out in an 8–0 Game 4 loss. After Ryan's departure to the Houston Astros at the end of the season, the team's pitching faltered in , and the club dropped back into sixth place in their division; Fregosi was replaced in the first half of the season. Fregosi's record was 237 wins and 248 losses in the regular season and one win and three losses in the postseason.