Arte Moreno was the first man of Mexican heritage to purchase a United States sports team, he purchased the Anaheim Angels from the Walt Disney Company in 2003.
Many felt this was an exciting time for Angels baseball, as they had just won the World Series in 2002. Moreno’s tenure as the Angels owner will be unforgettable but for all the wrong reasons.
Many argue Moreno doesn’t spend enough money for the franchise to compete but the club is often top 10 in player payroll which makes fans feel like the money is being spent in the wrong places.
The Angels are the team known for a handful of bad contracts, most recently, the signing of third baseman Anthony Rendon.
Rendon was one of the most coveted free agents on the market in 2019 after winning a ring with the Washington Nationals.
The Angels signed Rendon to a seven-year, $245 million contract to be their star third baseman to pair with superstars Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani.
One could argue it was an excellent signing at the time, but the Angels’ main needs were on the pitching side.
Since the signing of Rendon, he’s only appeared in 200 games in his first four seasons.
When Rendon does play, he’s not the superstar the Angels hoped they had signed. He’s nowhere near as good as he was during his time with the Nationals.
Anthony Rendon will go down as the worst free agent signing in MLB history.
Another terrible contract the Angels have had during Moreno’s tenure was the Josh Hamilton contract, a five-year, $125 million contract. His time with the Angels will be mostly known for his drug abuse and poor performance.
The Albert Pujols signing, a 10-year, $240 million contract will also go down as one of the worst in history, although not as much as Rendon’s and Hamilton’s contracts. This is all happening on Moreno’s watch.
The Angels have only made the postseason once since 2014. Throughout these nine years, superstar and generational talent Mike Trout has remained on the team.
Two-way superstar, Shohei Ohtani, was the most sought-after free agent in 2018. He surprisingly signed with the Angels despite the team not having success since 2014.
The Angels had two of the best players in baseball history play together since 2018, with zero postseason appearances to show for it. Moreno did nothing to build a winning team around Trout and Ohtani.
With the team’s lack of success, Ohtani left the Angels as a free agent in Dec. 2023, joining the team’s rival, the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Moreno is responsible for the biggest failure of a franchise in MLB history. Trout deserves to be on a winning team. His loyalty to the franchise is probably the only reason he’s still a part of the Angels organization.
For the franchise to regain its success, it needs a fresh start, a new ownership. Moreno must do the right thing, and sell the franchise.
Until then, the Los Angeles Angels are looked upon as the laughingstock of baseball, wasting the primes of baseball’s two biggest superstars.
