The Los Angeles Angels have the worst record in the majors and they are run by the worst owner in baseball in Arte Moreno.
They also have the longest current playoff drought, which means even the Pittsburgh Pirates have been part of the postseason fun since the Angels last were involved in 2014. The last playoff victory? Try 2009.
The Angels gave out one of the worst contracts in baseball history by signing third baseman Anthony Rendon to a seven-year, $245 million deal in 2020 and he played in just 257 games for the club. They made another horrific decision by not dealing Shohei Ohtani prior to the 2023 trading deadline.
Not trading a huge talent heading out the door to free agency for a bushel of prospects set the stage for the team’s poor 17-34 record this season. The Angels have been outscored by 69 runs, the largest differential in the majors.
Los Angeles has dropped 89 or more games in each of the past seasons. The Angels have no future and no present to go with their very unproductive recent past that includes 10 straight losing seasons.
Fans have noticed as they broke out “Sell the Team” chants at Moreno this week.
Angel Stadium once had “Kids in the Outfield” but it’s now home to men who can’t play.
It’s also largely empty and very quiet – unless fans of the visiting team flock to the ballpark.
It was very loud last August when Pete Crow-Armstrong hit a tiebreaking homer in the top of the ninth inning to help the Chicago Cubs notch a 3-2 victory. Cubs fans were everywhere and it was like Wrigleyville near the Chicago dugout.
Of course, late August is a time when there’s no reason for the locals to head to Anaheim with the playoffs out of sight. Playoffs is Fantasyland.
And it will be the same thing this summer with the Angels regularly sinking under first-year manager Kurt Suzuki and possibly saying good-bye to sixth-year general manager Perry Minasian after the season if not earlier.
The Angels have dropped nine of their last 10 games heading into Friday’s home contest against the Texas Rangers.
The victory during that stretch was of the amazing variety.
The Angels were being no-hit entering the ninth inning by Oakland Athletics right-hander J.T. Ginn on Monday night. Adam Frazier broke up the no-no with a single and Zach Neto followed by delivering a walk-off, two-run homer.
The celebration was intense and crazy but at least nobody broke their leg like Kendrys Morales did in 2010 after his walk-off grand slam to beat the Seattle Mariners.
This time, it’s just broken spirits. The victory snapped a six-game slide but momentum didn’t follow.
The Angels allowed 14 runs on Tuesday and then lost in extra innings on Wednesday and Thursday. Frazier, the second baseman, couldn’t get the ball out of his glove Thursday on a no-doubt inning-ending, double-play ball and that allowed the A’s to take the lead.
Frazier is one of several Angels who should be shipped by the trading deadline. Others include third baseman Yoan Moncada, outfielders Josh Lowe and Jorge Soler, catcher Travis d’Arnaud, left-handed starters Yusei Kikuchi and Reid Detmers and right-hander reliever Kirby Yates.
The Angels ought to revisit discussions with face of the franchise Mike Trout, who turns 35 in August, and see if he’s ready to go. It’s certainly a slippery slope for an 11-time All-Star in his 16th season with the organization.
But the team’s last winning season came in 2015 when Trout was the undisputed best player in baseball.
Trout no longer resembles that version of himself. He won three American League MVP awards, finished second four times and finished fourth once in the eight-season period from 2012-19.
Midway through this decade, he’s just another guy who plays outfield. He’s no longer a difference-maker and is highly injury prone. The 130 games he played in last season are the most this decade.
Trout is batting .233 with 12 homers and 25 RBIs in 50 games this season.
Basically, the Angels need a full-on facelift. This isn’t an easy fix – that opportunity was there in 2023 and the club failed to act.
And this is the big mess that’s left.
