Every sport evolves with each passing generation -- from the
size and athleticism of players to game strategy.
Baseball’s evolution, however, is both historic and unique given
the pre-integration and dead ball eras. For the former, full
segregation took place from 1887-1947. Full integration, which
was a gradual process, came in 1959. The Deadball Era was a
period in the early 20th century when baseball was
characterized by low scoring and emphasis on pitching.
There was the Steroid Era, which has no definite start time though
it is generally assumed that the era ran from the late 1980s until
the late 2000s. This era was defined by shattered home run
records leading to exorbitant salaries.
The Los Angeles Angels came into Major League Baseball in 1961
as an expansion team. They were known as such until 1965
before being rebranded as the California Angels (1965-1996).
They were known as the Anaheim Angels from 1997-2004 before
going back to their roots as the Los Angeles Angels.
The franchise has frequently toiled in local obscurity behind the Los
Angeles Dodgers, the NBA’s Los Angeles Lakers, college
football’s USC Trojans and college basketball’s UCLA Bruins. The
Angels, however, have had their moments. The first being their
2002 seven-game World Series victory over the San Francisco
Giants. The franchise has also won nine American League West
titles.
Today, I formed an Angels Dream Team in a 26-man roster format.
For openers, to make this roster, four years as an Angel are
required. No exceptions. With the free agency era, I’m not going to
cheapen this roster with 1-3 year rentals.
I’m forming a 12 man pitching staff, five starters and seven relievers.
For the latter, I want at least one lefthander in the bullpen. For
position players, I am taking what I believe is the best of the best
regardless of era. For the bench players, it’s the best of the rest with
versatility being heavily considered. Merit achievements such as
Hall of Fame, All Star appearances and Gold Gloves are considered
but not guaranteed. General impactfulness on the franchise is also
considered.
Generational reminders
If you played on a playoff team, there is no guarantee of landing on
this roster. If you played during a bad season, that does not deter
you from being on this roster. Off the field baggage is not a deterrent
to landing on this team, nor is any Steroid Era affiliation. This is
baseball, not the Boys Scouts.
Starting pitchers
Nolan Ryan, Jered Weaver, Mike Witt, Chuck Finley, Frank Tanana
Ryan came to the Angels in a trade from the New York Mets and at
the time was viewed as being inconsistent and lacking control. When
he became an Angel, Ryan began making the transition from thrower
to pitcher. The Hall of Famer’s resume could cover enough ground
from San Diego to Eureka but the Reader's Digest version is that
Ryan is the Major League all-time leader in strikeouts and no hitters.
Five of Ryan's eight All-Star appearances came with the Angels.
Weaver's 150 wins in an Angels uniform ranks second behind
Finley's 165. Weaver spent all but one of his 12 Major League
seasons with the Angels and was a three-time All-Star. He also led
the American League in wins in 2012 and 2014 led the Major
Leagues in strikeouts in 2010. Redwood trees are normally in the
Northern part of the state the six-foot-seven Witt provided the Angels
such a presence as well. Witt pitched 10 of his 13 Major League
seasons with the Angels with his best coming in 1986 when he
recorded a 2.84 ERA and 208 strikeouts. Witt was a two-time All-Star.
Finley is the franchise's all time leader with 165 career victories.
Finley pitched a total of 14 years with the Angels and was an All-
Star on five occasions. Finley has also drawn consideration for the
Hall of Fame. Tanana and Ryan anchored the Angels pitching staff
throughout the 1970s. Their presence led to a saying of “Tanana
and Ryan and two days of cryin.’” Tanana was a three-time All-Star,
Major League strikeout leader in 1975 and American League ERA
leader in 1977.
Bullpen
Closer -- Troy Percival
Francisco Rodriguez, Scot Sheilds, Bryan Harvey, Brenden
Donnelly, Dave LaRoche, Bob Lee
Percival pitched 10 seasons with the Angels and is the franchise's
all time leader in saves with 316. Percial was a four-time All-Star
and a critical part of the Angels 2002 World Series team. Rodriguez
was originally a starting pitcher but transitioned incredibly to
becoming a reliever. Before becoming the Angels closer, he was
the setup man for Percival. Rodriguez established a Major League
record 62 saves in 2008 and recorded 208 saves in an Angels
uniform on the way to becoming a three-time All Star with the
franchise. He too was a crucial reason for the 2002 World Series
title. Shields pitched 10 seasons with the Angels and while he never
earned any All-Star recognition, he was a vital member of their
bullpen including the 2002 World Series. Only Percival has pitched
more games in franchise history than Shields. Harvey's 126 saves
rank him third in franchise history. He was an Angel for five seasons
and led the Major Leagues in saves in 1991. One of his two All-
Star appearances came in an angels uniform before becoming a
Florida Marlin.
Similar to Shields, Donnelly was unheralded in large part because
he pitched in a setup role but he was no less valuable to the Angels
2002 World Series. Donnelly was an All-Star in 2003. LaRoche
pitched a combined six seasons with the Angels with his best
campaign coming in 1977, when he earned an All-Star bid. Moore
is best known for giving up the home run to Dave Henderson and
Game 5 of the 1986 ALCS. Moore, however, was particularly
impactful the first two years of his four with the Angels as their full-
time closer. Moore was an All-Star in 1985 and compiled a 2.75
ERA during his time with the Angels.
Infield
Catcher -- Bob Boone, First base -- Rod Carew, Second base --
Bobby Grich, Third base -- Troy Glaus, Shortstop -- Jim Fregosi
The Angels acquired Boone in a trade from the Philadelphia Phillies
in 1982. Despite being 34 years old at the time of the trade, Boone
had a very productive seven years with the Angels, winning four
Gold Glove Awards and an All-Star appearance in 1983. Boone
also helped the Angels win division titles in 1982 and 1986. Though
Carew spent most of his career with the Minnesota Twins, he
remains an excellent performer in his seven seasons with the
Angels, six of which were All Star campaigns. On the way to a Hall
of Fame career, Carew joined the 3,000 career hit club. Grich was
the first player inducted into the Angels Hall of Fame in 1988 and a
case could be made that he belongs in the Major League Baseball
Hall of Fame. Grich played 10 seasons with the Angels and helped
them win two division championships and reached three All Stars
during his time with the franchise.
In his third season of seven with the Angels, Glaus enjoyed a
breakout season in setting a franchise-record 47 home runs in 2000.
Glaus was a three-time All-Star and two-time Silver Slugger Award
winner with the Angels. He was a key reason they won the 2002
World Series and was the Series MVP. Other than Mike Trout,
Fregosi might be the best position player in franchise history. He was
the last one to retire as an original member of the Angels. Fregosi
was a six-time All-Star and was also a Gold Glove Award winner in
1967.
Outfield
Leftfield -- Garret Anderson, Centerfield -- Mike Trout, Rightfield --
Tim Salmon
Anderson is the only angel in franchise history the compiled 2000
hits with the team. Anderson spent 15 of his 17 Seasons with the
Angels and was a three-time All-Star into time Silver Slugger Award
winner. He was also an integral reason why the Angels won the
World Series in 2002. Trout is both one of the best players in his
generation and the best player in franchise history. Trout is entering
his 11th Major League season and is an eight-time All-Star, three-
time American League MVP, eight-time Silver Slugger Award winner,
member of the 30-30 club in 2012 and RBI leader in 2014. Salmon
was a career Angel playing all 15 years of his Major League career
with the franchise, including the 2002 World Series team. Though
he never made an All-Star appearance, Salmon was a household
name and a consistent performer. He was the American League
Rookie of the Year in 1993 and compiled a .282 career batting
average with 1,016 RBIs.
Bench
Benji Molina, Wally Joyner, Howie Kendrick, Doug DeCinces,
Vladimir Guerrero, Darin Erstad
Molina originally entered the Major Leagues as a good fielder but
limited hitter but eventually morphed into a pretty offensive player
compiling a .274 career batting average. Molina also won two Gold
Gloves and helped the Angels to their 2002 World Series title.
Joyner, who was nicknamed “Wally World,” as a spin-off from
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation, burst onto the scene in
1986 when he was runner-up to Oakland’s Jose Canseco for
American League Rookie of the Year. Joyner was an All-Star in
1986 and a very solid performer every other season with the
Angels. Erstad makes this team on versatility alone. Erstad played
first base and also left field. Erstad was a two-time All-Star and
three-time Gold Glove Award winner with tremendous range. He
compiled a .286 batting average in his career but .339 in the
postseason and was a vital reason for the Angels winning 2002
World Series.
Versatility also earns Hendrick a spot on this team. While he was
primarily a second baseman, he also played first base and left field.
Kendrick’s lone All Star season came in 2011 as an Angel.
DeCinces came in a trade from the Baltimore Orioles in 1982 and
helped the Angels win two division championships, 1982 and 1986.
He was a Silver Slugger Award winner in 1982 and an All-Star in
1983. Guerrero spent six of his 16 seasons of his Hall of Fame
career with the Angels and was an All-Star in four of those seasons
and was the American League MVP in his season debut in 2004.
Manager
Mike Scioscia
The Angels have had 21 managers in their franchise history but
after Scioscia the race is for second. Scioscia was a part of two
World Series championship teams as a player for the Los Angeles
Dodgers and immediately turned what had been a floundering
Angels franchise into a consistent contender. The Angels won the
World Series in 2002, Scioscia’s third season. Though the Angels
had plenty of postseason disappointments in the years thereafter,
they were consistently viable. Scioscia became the 56th manager
to win 1,000 or more games and the 23rd to have all 1,000 be with
one single team. Scioscia managed the Angels for 18 years and
only NBA Coach Gregg Popovich had a longer tenure with one
team than Scioscia among the North American Sports major
franchises.
Team
2002
Anaheim is the place for Disneyland but the 2002 Angels
embodied a Cinderella like story. The Angels have had seasons
with more regular season wins but it’s hard to go against the only
team in franchise history to win the World Series. The Angels
started the season 6-14 dirt rally for a 99 win season. Though
they fell four games behind the Oakland A's for the division title in
the American League West, the Angels first stormed their way to
the World Series by defeating the New York Yankees in four games
in the ALDS and the Minnesota Twins and five games in the ALCS
before defeating the San Francisco Giants in seven games in the
World Series. In Game 6, the Angels were behind 5-0 with seven
outs away from defeat but rallied for a 7-5 win and subsequently
won Game 7 4-1. Anderson was the offense’s centerpiece in
tallying 123 RBIs. Jarrod Washburn went 18-6 with a 3.15 ERA,
anchoring a pitching staff that allowed the fewest runs in the
Major League.
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