If I bought the Angels
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Like most Angel fans, I was excited to hear the team might be sold. We hope a new owner can restore our beloved Halos to their winning ways and stop wasting generational talents like Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani.
There is no way I could ever buy a baseball team. That’s a hobby for billionaires. But let’s say I won a few hundred lotteries and came up with enough cash to buy the Angels. Here’s what I would do with them.
Keep them in Anaheim.
We know the basic rule of real estate: location, location, location. Same is true with a sports team, especially because real estate is part of the deal. Angel Stadium is at a prime location. It is at the intersection of several major freeways, next to a major transit hub, across the street from the Honda Center, and just a short ride from one of the world’s biggest tourist attractions, Disneyland. And Angel Stadium has a large parking lot that is primed for development. With Southern California real estate at a premium, the Angels’ location alone is a big enough reason to keep them there.
There’s also the fan base. People talk about the “LA metro area,” but Orange County by itself has an active, affluent fan base. We’ve been supporting the Angels for decades before Arte Moreno slapped “Los Angeles” on the name. If we can support the Ducks, we can certainly back the Angels. Speaking of which…
Change the name back to Anaheim Angels.
Nobody cares what they were called in the Pacific Coast League or when they played at “Chavez Ravine.” They have not been the “Los Angeles Angels” since 1966. They are an Orange County team. Sure, the name “California Angels” has a nostalgia factor. But California is a big state. It can just as easily refer to a part of the state that names its basketball team “Golden State.” But everyone knows where Anaheim is. And remember, they were the Anaheim Angels when they won the World Series.
Renovate Angel Stadium for comfort, not glamour.
Angel Stadium needs renovations, but it’s hardly the badly aged dump people make it out to be. (If you want to see a dump, go to Washington’s FedExField, the worst stadium in the NFL. Water leaks, collapsing railings, horrible traffic — and…