10 Reasons why the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim winning the World Series would be good for baseball

My series of Why Each Team's Potential World Championship Would Be Good For The Game moves on with the California Angels.



OK Fine, The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

It's a stupid name. A great organization but a stupid name. There. I got that out of the way. And I won't make any more references to the silly name.



The organization is a damn good one and they could very well have a big time contender for years to come. I picked them to win the West and the pennant at the beginning of the season on the strength of their starting pitching. However their recent 5 game slide has put them a full week behind the Texas Rangers.



If the slide continues, I won't be able to include them as a contender. So let's knock this out.

10 Reasons why the

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim

winning the 2011 World Series

would be good for baseball

1. Mike Scioscia's Hall of Fame resume would be undeniable



I would argue that Scioscia is the best manager in baseball today. Maybe even a notch about LaRussa and Leyland. He took over an Angels team in 2000 that had never won a playoff series.



By 2002 they were the World Champions. Players have come and gone but the Angels returned to October baseball as Division Champions in 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008 and 2009 and made it to the ALCS in '05 and '09.



He already has as many World Series titles as Leo Durocher and Earl Weaver. If he wins again, then he will have a completely different roster than the 2002 Champs. His resume is already impressive. Another title (plus the fact that he already has 12 years under his belt and doesn't seem close to retiring) would mean he would join his mentor Tom Lasorda in Cooperstown.

2. It would break Bobby Abreu's bad luck streak



Bobby Abreu has logged in 15+ solid and sometimes spectacular big league seasons. The former All Star, Silver Slugger and Gold Glove winner played 8 1/2 seasons in Philadelphia but was traded away before they won the World Series in 2008.



He spent a few more years with the Yankees but was in an Angels uniform when they won the 2009 World Series. He's played in the post season with three different organizations (the Astros, Yankees and Angels) and has yet to play in the World Series.



He has earned a long October.







3. A ring for Torii Hunter



I like Torri Hunter. There are a lot of reasons to like Torii Hunter. He plays with passion. He plays with respect for the game and its past.



And in his prime, he was the most dynamic defensive outfielder not named Jim Edmonds and could hit too.



He's outspoken and colorful, but isn't it nice to have a star who isn't bland?



And he sets up tons of college scholarships through his foundation. Do we really want him to finish his career RINGLESS?





4. The Age of Ace Pitchers will move to the American League



We could be in an age of having 1-2 ace tandems in for contending teams. Halladay-Lee, Lincecum-Cain, Lester-Beckett etc. You are hard pressed to find a better 1-2 punch than Jered Weaver and Dan Haren. Throw in Ervin Santana and the Angels would have probably the most lethal 1-2-3 of any American League staff.



Plus these aces winning would take away some of the sting of 2006. Dan Haren was a member of the Cardinals who was dealt away in 2005 for Mark Mulder. The Cardinals won the World Series that year but Mulder was injured and Haren was in Oakland. Mulder was replaced by Jeff Weaver, Jered's brother. Jeff was cut by the Angels to make room for Jered. It would be nice to see the Weaver brothers compare rings.







5. Old and Young Angels would be rewarded



The picture to the left shows 35 year old Torii Hunter high fiving 19 year old Mike Trout. This team can be a wonderful bridge between veterans fighting for their first title and young kids hoping to get their quest for a title over with early.



Vernon Wells, Abreu, Hunter and Joel Pinero know their window is closing. Players like Weaver, Trout, Tyler Chatwood, Jordan Walden, Peter Bourjos and Mark Trumbo all hope to be fixtures in Anaheim for a while. This year could be a wonderful bridge for two eras of Angels baseball.











6. FINALLY some tourists would discover Anaheim!



Seriously. I feel so badly for the Chamber of Commerce of Anaheim.



Without the Angels, why would any tourist come to Orange County. If only there was SOMETHING in Anaheim that could draw in tourism without being solely dependent on the fate of the Angels.



We've got to brainstorm about that.





7. It would be further humiliation for Frank McCourt... which is a good thing



The Dodgers actually play in Los Angeles and they have the deep rooted love and devotion of the city (even though they arrived in Los Angeles only 3 years before the Angels were formed.)



But with the Dodgers in disarray, losing in front of empty seats, dumping players and needing to be bailed out by baseball, one of the marquee franchises has become a laughing stock.



Having them not only endure this disastrous season but seeing their nominal neighbor win it all would only help getting McCourt and this whole mess out of the game.



As entertaining as it has been, it has run its course.









8. Arte Moreno is a great owner and great owners should have a title.



Moreno took over the Angels after they won the World Series under Disney. So he took over a quality team. But what has happened under his leadership is stability in management, a quality product on the field and class in the organization.



They have developed good players, traded and signed others and consistently contended. And their owner clearly cares to not only win but make the Angels a proud organization.



You think that's par for the course? Why not drive up the 5 and visit Chavez Ravine, then get back to me.



Like Mark Cuban in basketball, owners who really care and put their guts in the team deserve a title.





9. It's best that all teams that won in the Steroid Era win another title soon.



Look, we all had fun during The Steroid Era, but it would be best for the game that it goes away as soon as possible.



The teams that won during the peak would all be better off if they pick up another title so their last October heroes weren't sitting under a black cloud.



When 2002 World Series MVP Troy Glaus' name came up in the steroid investigations, a Giants friend of mine said "See! We should have won if they weren't juicing!" I pointed out that the Giants had Barry Bonds.



Seriously... let's put it all behind us.



10. Maybe another title will FINALLY make the Angels one of the cool marquee baseball franchises



A few years ago, I wrote about how everything was underrated with the Angels.



From Rod Carew and Nolan Ryan building up their Cooperstown credentials to Don Baylor and Fred Lynn launching homers to Reggie Jackson's last October hurrah and Jim Freaking Abbott, the Angels have always provided some great moments and likable stars. And they had Gene Autry owning the team and loving them until the day he died. (Why isn't the stadium called "Gene Autry Park?")



Maybe their lack of championships despite having star players hurt them in getting national exposure. Maybe playing in Orange County instead of in the city has given the Angels an aura of being a suburb franchise and not a cool city team.



But they ARE a model team and have given their fans lots of great baseball. They should be mentioned as one of the top tier teams. Maybe tying the Red Sox and Yankees with World Series titles this century will do just that!





Now as a Red Sox fan, I've never been a big Angels fan. But there is no denying lots of positives would come about from an Angels title.



If they lose a few more games, it would make this whole post moot. Then again, because I picked the Angels, I suppose I should be kind of rooting for them.



If you liked this then go ahead and read the entries for the other teams.



CHICAGO WHITE SOX

NEW YORK YANKEES

ST. LOUIS CARDINALS

Sully Baseball celebrates Mike Scioscia’s WTF expression

I see a lot of Angels games because I live in Los Angeles county (unlike the Los Angeles Angels.) And I see a lot of cut aways to the Angels dugout when something goes slightly wrong with the Halos.

His expression tends to be truly awesome… a combination of confusion and disgust.

Scioscia is the best manager in the game, so when he is giving the WTF, it is with good reason.

The Third Place Angels have clinched the West

How can I look at a team that is currently in third place and sub .500 and say they are a lock for the post season?

Easily.

First of all I picked the Angels to win the West... which they have done in 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008 and 2009.

They are in a division with the recently swept Rangers (who always fade in the summer when heat overtakes their pitching), the A's (who have dropped 5 in a row since taking a share of first place and have been playing above their heads all year) and the Mariners (whose clubhouse seems more tense and divisive than District 9).

If any one of those three teams went on a tear in the first month and a half of the season, I would say the Angels would be in trouble.

But none of them did. And now Mike Scioscia has shook up the line up and they have responded with a better offensive attack. And now their pitching is turning around.

Even Joe Saunders, a person I mocked last week, has started to show off the stuff that made him an All Star.

So it won't be long before the Angels emerge as the team from a mediocre pack. They could be the only team of this bunch to finish about .500 when all is said and done.

You missed your shot, AL West.

With Lakcey's departure, Mike Scioscia's Cooperstown bid starts for real

Lackey is gone… so is Figgins… and there goes the final two players from the 2002 World Champion Angels.

With the arrival of Hideki Matsui, that also means the end of Vlad Guerrero’s run in Orange County. (Not Los Angeles… Guerrero never played in Los Angeles.)

The Angels must be in a state of shock… and one that Jason Bay can’t revive them from. Oh they will still be a competitive team, but their wonderful run in the 2000s (6 post season appearances, 5 Division Titles, 3 trips to the ALCS and the 2002 World Championship) looks like it might be drying up.

They had a mess of young talent but they also held on to some players for just too long. (I wonder what the Dallas McPherson’s of the world could have fetched at the trade deadline when thttp://i2.cdn.turner.com/si/2009/writers/jon_heyman/10/18/sunday.scoop/mike-scioscia.jpghey always seemed to stay pat.)

Mike Scoscia has had a borderline Hall of Fame career as a manager as it is now.

If he brings another Angel team to the World Series, it will have 100% turnover from his first title team.

If he does THAT, then his place in Cooperstown is secure.

Hey Angels... Hey Rangers... WTF!

Rarely does a game merit a double WTF,  but the ending of last night's Angels/Rangers game does.

First WTF goes to Mike Scioscia.

Look, I've praised the Hell out of Mike. But your team just had a furious comeback in the 9th inning to tie the game, you had two outs in the bottom of the 9th and had the chance to send it into extra innings.

With the winning run on second and two outs you had a choice:

1. Walk Hank Blalock, who had already homered in the game, and pitch to Julio Borbon who has 5 career at bats.

2. Pitch to Hank Blalock.

I listened to both the Angels and the Rangers broadcasts on my XM. BOTH were saying that clearly Scioscia was going to walk Blalock.

Nope... first pitch... walk off homer... suddenly the AL West lead was 1/2 a game.

I can't even begin to guess a defense for pitching to Blalock. Scioscia wasn't asleep.

If the Rangers win the division by a game over the Angels, I will bring this game up again.

Meanwhile. Rangers... WTF. 

Are you wearing blue or are you wearing red this year?

And why do your home uniforms just say "TEXAS"? Did someone lose the home uniforms?

Nice job Bob Davidson

Bob Davidson, the home plate umpire of yesterday's Angels/Rangers game, tossed John Lackey after two pitches.

Yeah both of the first two pitches nearly hit Ian Kinsler, but seriously... did he think he was head hunting?

With Lackey fresh off of the DL, did he think the Angels' plan was "Hey, get your two pitches in and then we'll have the bullpen get 27 outs"?

Way to read the situation, pal!

Angel fans... enjoy the Scioscia era

When Joe Torre brought his Hall of Fame resume to the Dodgers, people were expecting him to bring his professional style of championship baseball to Los Angeles.

The strange thing is that style was already in Los Angeles.
Well… maybe not quite Los Angeles, but in Los Angeles of Anaheim.

(Please just go back to calling them the California Angels!!!)

Don’t laugh but Mike Scioscia is quietly putting together a case Cooperstown already. He’s not there yet, but assuming he won’t blow a 15 1/2 game lead in 37 games… his first 9 years will include at least one World Series title plus 4 more division titles.

Not a bad start.

And when you look at the team, they are built very similarly to the Joe Torre Yankees.
The Torre Yankees had a home grown core (Jeter, Rivera, Bernie, Posada, Pettite) and the 2002 Angels were almost entirely the product of its farm system.

Both teams had good but not great starting pitching, a solid bullpen, and had a lights out closer who earned a World Series ring first as a devastating set up man. (Rivera for Wetteland, Rodriguez for Percival.)

And both had a manager who were All Star catchers in the National League who brought a National League style of play to the AL.

And at this writing, you would have to consider the Angels to be the favorite to win the AL Pennant.

I hope you Angel fans appreciate it. Yeah Arte Moreno opens his wallet up and brings in the Vlad Guerreros and Torii Hunters of the world.

But he plays the free agent market correctly… the core of the team is in place. He isn’t hoping to save the team with wild spending (see Tom Hicks and Alex Rodriguez.)

So here we are… it’s August 21, 2008 and Scioscia can basically line up his playoff rotation. There’s more than a month to play and the Angels will be rested, ready and dangerous.

And Mike Scioscia will have the Angels ready to make their claim for “Team of the Decade.”

Keep in mind before he became manager the Angels had won a grand total of zero post season series and were best known for a few monumental October face plants (1982, 1986 and 1995.)

So, Angels fans… and I have met a few of you… let me ask you:

Are you appreciating it?

Hey Big A Baseball, have the memories of Donnie Moore and the charging 1995 Mariners all gone away?

How about you Gilbert Quinonez? Do you realize that the Angels finally have the edge of “best manager in town?”

Let me ask you, Rally Monkey. Do you just love Arte Moreno for making the Angels players for every big name out there?

Halos Heaven, you better not be jaded.

Hey Angels Win, who would you rather beat up this October? The Red Sox or the Dodgers? I guess why not both.

And finally, Anaheim Angels All The Way… do you call them the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim or do you just call them the California Angels.

Either way, you’ve got some time to kill…
The playoffs are a given now… another typical Scioscia year.

WHO SHOULD I ROOT FOR? Part 3: THE AL WEST

I picked the Los Angeles California Angels of Anaheim in Orange County to win the World Series... and the way they beat both the Red Sox and Yankees recently makes it look like a solid pick.

However the Wild Card leading Seattle Mariners somehow someway has tied the Angels in the loss column!

With a big 3 game series next week between the two teams looming next week, it's time for me to figure out what team to root for.

First Criteria: Which city's fans have suffered more? Seattle, a city of half a million, has not had a champion since the 1979 Supersonics.

Anaheim, a suburb of Los Angeles, has been home to a World Series champion and a Stanley Cup champion this decade...

While the fans have to suffer having a hockey team named after an Emilio Estevez movie, it's not so bad because nobody there follows hockey.

ADVANTAGE: MARINERS


Second Criteria: Which team had more superstars play in their prime there?
Nolan Ryan had his best years there, including 4 no hitters.

Rod Carew also had some great years in Anaheim (but none that would match his 1977 MVP season with the Twins).

Vlad Guerrero is putting up great numbers there (but then again he also put up great numbers for more years in Montreal!)

Most of the Angels stars have been solid players (Don Baylor, Bobby Grich, Garret Anderson, Troy Glaus) or stars who had better years for other clubs (Reggie Jackson, Fred Lynn, Lee Smith, Bob Boone.)

Has there been a trio of recent superstar teammates in their prime better than A-Rod, Junior and Big Unit?

ADVANTAGE: MARINERS














Third Criteria: Which team has the cooler manager

Mike Scioscia is quietly putting together a resume with some more years, a few more division titles and another Championship might be Hall of Fame worthy.

I would know who Seattle's John McLaren was if he came up to me and said "Hi, I'm John McLaren."

He replaced Mike Hargrove who suddenly quit in the middle of a winning streak. It's too bad he's no longer there. He was hosed when Cleveland fired him

ADVANTAGE ANGELS

Fourth Criteria: Stranger left handed starter

The Mariners had 6'10" freak of nature Randy Johnson who can destroy a bird with his fastball. One of the great pitchers of all time.

The Angels had Jim Abbott. He had one hand!
And went straight from college to the majors... and won 18 games for the Angels... later he threw a no hitter with the Yankees.

I know he was only an All Star for a few years... but remind yourself... HE HAD ONE HAND!

ADVANTAGE: PUSH

Fifth Criteria: Which team has given this Yankee hater more pleasure in October?The 1995 Division Series was one of the best post season series ever. And it ended on the 11th inning when Edgar Martinez drove in the tying and winning runs. While I know some Yankee fans still lament that series (Mainly for Don Mattingly, whose Ringless career ended with Griffey sliding across home plate), the loss lead to the hiring of Joe Torre. Oh yeah the Yankees came back to beat the Mariners in the 2000 and 2001 ALCS.

Meanwhile the Angels beat the Yankees in the 2002 and 2005 playoffs... two of the most shocking defeats of the Joe Torre era. Also the Angels are the only team to have a winning record against the Torre Yankees. Bliss for the Yankee hater.

ADVANTAGE: ANGELS

Sixth Criteria: Which team had a more embarassing cap?












The Mariner trident was cool, but the star around it was silly.
The Angels cap from the late 1990s early 2000s with the wings is one of the all time worst.

SLIGHT ADVANTAGE: MARINERS


Seventh Criteria: Which team was better represented in The Naked Gun?
The climax of The Naked Gun took place when Queen Elizabeth joined Riccardo Montalban at an Angels/Mariners game. Read that sentence again to appreciate the genius of the first Naked Gun movie.

Reggie Jackson made an appearance as the mind controlled assassin (again... genius) while the only real ballplayer on the Mariners was Jay Johnstone, who never even played for the Mariners.

Strangely, they shot the scenes at Dodger Stadium instead of Anaheim. Why not drive to Anaheim or make it a Dodger game?

Oh well.

ADVANTAGE: ANGELS

Seven criteria and still no winner.

Time for a COMPLETELY ARBITRARY TIE BREAKER!!!!

The Angels new name is stupid!
Until you figure out where you are from, call yourself the California Angels.

THE WINNER: THE MARINERS!!!

So I'll be rooting for the Mariner Moose over the Rally Monkey!
Disneyland over Grunge Rock!

But truth be told, the Yankee hater in me wants them both in the playoffs!

The Red Sox aren't playing either of them for the rest of the season...
GO MARINERS IN HEAD TO HEAD GAMES... GO ANGELS AND MARINERS FOR THE PLAYOFFS!

Everything about the Angels is underrated

The coolness of the Angels is underrated. They've had some of the biggest names in baseball over the past 4 decades pass through town.
Reggie Jackson, Rod Carew, Nolan Ryan, Fred Lynn, Don Baylor, Bert Blyleven, Lee Smith, Bobby Grich, Doug DeCinces, Mark Langston and Vladimir Guerrero all had All Star years in Anaheim.

They had Jim Abbott, a one handed pitcher for God sake!



The Angels are also as strange as they are cool. They've had 3 city names since the 1996 season (California Angels, Anaheim Angels and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim) yet they have never moved from the Big A.

The Naked Gun had its climax at an Angels game, Tony Danza once played an Angels pitcher and its most recognizable tradition is the Rally Monkey.

For years their reputation of collapsing was also underrated.
They blew the 1982 Best of 5 ALCS to Milwaukee despite having a 2-0 lead.
They blew the 1986 Best of 7 ALCS to my Red Sox when manager Gene Mauch made one of the great panic moves of all time and yanked a dominant Mike Witt in the 9th, only to have Donnie Moore serve up Dave Henderson's homer.
And in 1995, they were in first by 11 games in August only to lose a one game playoff to Seattle.

And their owners have been underratedly colorful.
Between the singing cowboy Gene Autry and the flamboyant and free spending Arte Moreno... the Walt Disney Company was the LEAST interesting ownership group!

They also won a World Series (one my dad, a huge Giants fan would rather forget) with an underrated farm system.

In an age where people claim the World Series must be bought, the Angels won it all in 2002 with an entirely homegrown outfield, 2 home grown catcher and a home grown slugging World Series MVP thirdbasemen. 3 out of their 4 starting pitchers, their All Star closer, their phenom set up man, their lefty specialist and two middle relievers were also products of their farm system. Plus, while their middle infielders were drafted by other organizations, they spent their rookie years in Anaheim.

They had 16 players who came up through their system and 3 more picked up as minor leaguers on a team that won the World Series. The Red Sox and Yankees WISH their farm could produce like that.

I'll tell you something else about the Angels that is underrated: Their impact on baseball this decade.

Tonight's 18-9 pounding of the Yankees on the heels of splitting 4 in Fenway should serve notice that the ALCS won't necessarily be latest chapter of Red Sox vs. Yankees.

A lot of people, including yours truly picked the Angels to win it all. And the fact that they can pitch, they can close and they can manufacture runs and neither the Red Sox nor the Yankees really scare them... it doesn't feel like such a bad pick.

And if they win it all, that would mean the underrated Mike Scioscia would have lead the Angels to 4 playoff appearances in 6 years including 3 trips to the ALCS and 2 titles.

Folks, in this day and age where no team can repeat... that could make the Angels the team of the decade!

And it would have all been happening without us even noticing.
Who would have thought a potential dynasty would be underrated?

Now if only they could decide the name of their team!