Has your love for Angels baseball decreased over the years? What would it take to bring it back?

[Taylor]

I've seen a common feeling expressed by many posters here: that their level of excitement for Angels baseball has decreased from wherever it was 2/3/5/10 years ago. I relate to this feeling. Part of it has to do with getting older and having more and more things that take priority over watching sports. But I also think the team missing the playoffs for so many seasons in a row has contributed to the apathy. Then, there are the multiple controversies and scandals the team has been linked to in the last several years, as well as societal/cultural issues and the recent nonsense with the CBA (elements that aren't necessarily directly connected to the Angels organization).

If you're like me and your love for the Angels has waned, what would it take to bring it back? An obvious answer is the team becoming a perennial contender again. But what are some of the less obvious solutions? Arte selling the team? A slew of exciting new prospects coming up through the organization? A lineup where all the key players are healthy at the same time, for an entire season? The right manager or GM?

[fan_since79]

It's more frustration than any loss of love for the team. I'm sick of chasing the second wild card and falling out of it at the beginning of September. Also sick of dropping into fourth place and staying there for months on end.

What would it take for me to be excited about this team again? Better starting pitching, a strong bullpen, a healthy Trout for a full season, a different owner, and possibly a new manager. And no more epidemics of season-ending injuries. 

[Angels 1961]

Free tickets, free parking, dollar hot dogs. 

[angelsnationtalk]

Yes it has. 
Reasons:
Covid, Lockout, Arte Moreno, Tyler Skaggs drama, lack of winning product. 

How to fix it?
F-ing win. 

[Hubs]

It's been 20 years since the 2002 WS Championship. That was such a ride, but it also looked as if they'd be competing for years, as they were probably a year or two early from being the team we knew they could be. Then they signed Vladdy and Colon for 2004 and everything was banging.

Then losing the 2004 ALDS and the 2005 ALCS which wasn't all because of AJ Fucking Pierzynski and Doug Fucking Eddings, but Going home up 2-0, versus splitting and losing a game like that...probably would've faced the Astros in that WS. And likely won, that was a lopsided matchup between the White Sox and the Astros.

Then 07-08-09 all great seasons... then drafting Trout and 2012 bringing in Wilson and Pujols. They were a legit contending franchise!

Then nothing for 10 years besides a blink and you might miss it playoff loss to the upstart flash in a pan Royals.

We won an average of 91 games from 2002-2011 (and 93 from 2002-2009). But from 2012-2021, average of 80 wins. The worst year was 2020 which was abbreviated, but would've been 70-92, if they'd played 162. A 72 and a 76 win year also, and only one season over 90.

They just need to win again.

The 2000's were a special decade for the Angels and their long suffering fans, who'd only had three playoff years in the 1979, 1982, and 1986 seasons to show for their 41 years...

I think with Ohtani, Rendon and of Course Mike Trout, plus solid contributors like Walsh, and Stassi...they've got a really good offensive team. Fletcher needs to get back to form, and one of the kids needs to break out in the OF...then they'll have a very good year in 2022, and hopefully start a new decade run of excellence.

And everyone will be excited again.

 

[Hubs]

50 minutes ago, Angels 1961 said:

Free tickets, free parking, dollar hot dogs. 

What decade do you think that you live in? Dollar hot dogs? Seriously?

[Tank]

i think my age (>60) plus a steady diet of losing and injuries has tempered my enthusiasm. i can still get excited about winning, and i hope i get that chance at least one more time with this team. but i think the age thing probably more than anything else keeps my intensity in rooting for them a lot lower than it used to be.

[BTH]

A bit. What would it take to bring it back? A new owner who is better than Arte.

[mmc]

Yes, winning

[Dtwncbad]

My decreased interest is probably more tied to baseball overall and not specifically the Angels.

Winning is the answer.  If the team is losing, I have little interest in spending too much time on it.  I end up keeping an eye on it rather than actively engaged game to game.

Winning.  That is the singular way to get me engaged again game to game.

[fan_since79]

1 hour ago, Hubs said:

What decade do you think that you live in? Dollar hot dogs? Seriously?

I recall the "Turn Back the Clock" night at the Big A in 1995, when hot dogs were a dollar, sodas 25 cents, the team wore throwback uniforms, and everyone got a 1961-style cap.

63,000 fans there. This was before the stadium was renovated for baseball.

The Angels lost the game, and this was during their epic collapse to the Mariners.

 

[Don]

It has decreased somewhat over the last several years. I'd love to blame that on getting older and having more things to do in general, but realistically I usually have the time to watch games or at least have them on while I'm taking care of other things. So while I have less free time than I did say 15 years ago, it's not like a lack of available time is the primary factor behind my declining interest. Plus, I manage to get plenty excited about the NFL and the Chiefs, mainly because the Chiefs manage to put a competitive team on the field very consistently and there is a strong bond (in both directions) between the community here and the team.

In the case of the Angels, I really think it is the team itself and the sport in general to an extent that has diminished my overall interest. One, it sucks to root for a team that consistently puts a mediocre product on the field despite having so many great pieces already in place. And the plan never changes. Every year we try various versions of a pretty similar overall plan, and every year the organization sells it to the fans as something that really might work this time. It just sucks trying to get excited for a strategy with a low-percentage chance of success over and over again. And my viewing habits are kinda in line with this. I tend to watch a lot more games in the first half of the season (when I can talk myself into there being a chance of contending) than in the second half of the season.

Second, the game itself has gotten a bit stale really. Luckily some of the new young guys have some personality they're not afraid to show, and that helps... But overall, baseball probably has the least entertainment value appeal out of the NBA, NFL, and MLB. Add that to the rise of the three true outcomes style of play, and well the games get kinda boring. Frankly, we need a lot more Rickey Hendersons and a lot less Adam Dunns. 

[Angel Dog and Beer]

2 hours ago, Hubs said:

What decade do you think that you live in? Dollar hot dogs? Seriously?

Lil Smokies. No bun. Hold the ketchup. 

[Taylor]

1 hour ago, mmc said:

Yes, winning

[bruin5]

I wouldn’t say my excitement has waned but rather my hope that we will contend has caused me to be less optimistic year after year.  Probably two main reasons. 

First, not addressing our biggest need which have been and continue to be solid to good pitching.  We haven’t addressed it in the trade or free agent market and..

Second, a good to excellent farm system is what gives me hope.  Truthfully, our farm has been pretty bad the past few years We MAY have a couple of scores with Adell and Marsh, but we haven’t drafted effectively overall and have no real organizational depth.  Since we won’t trade Adell, Marsh, Dietmers, or Bachman, we really don’t have much in the way of trade value and that is supposed to be one thing a good farm system is supposed to help with. 

However, I do like Minasian’s last draft since he directly addressed our biggest issue and, it seems at least from early reports, there is some real promise in last year’s draftees…

[Erstad Grit]

2 hours ago, Hubs said:

It's been 20 years since the 2002 WS Championship. That was such a ride, but it also looked as if they'd be competing for years, as they were probably a year or two early from being the team we knew they could be. Then they signed Vladdy and Colon for 2004 and everything was banging.

Then losing the 2004 ALDS and the 2005 ALCS which wasn't all because of AJ Fucking Pierzynski and Doug Fucking Eddings, but Going home up 2-0, versus splitting and losing a game like that...probably would've faced the Astros in that WS. And likely won, that was a lopsided matchup between the White Sox and the Astros.

Then 07-08-09 all great seasons... then drafting Trout and 2012 bringing in Wilson and Pujols. They were a legit contending franchise!

Then nothing for 10 years besides a blink and you might miss it playoff loss to the upstart flash in a pan Royals.

We won an average of 91 games from 2002-2011 (and 93 from 2002-2009). But from 2012-2021, average of 80 wins. The worst year was 2020 which was abbreviated, but would've been 70-92, if they'd played 162. A 72 and a 76 win year also, and only one season over 90.

They just need to win again.

The 2000's were a special decade for the Angels and their long suffering fans, who'd only had three playoff years in the 1979, 1982, and 1986 seasons to show for their 41 years...

I think with Ohtani, Rendon and of Course Mike Trout, plus solid contributors like Walsh, and Stassi...they've got a really good offensive team. Fletcher needs to get back to form, and one of the kids needs to break out in the OF...then they'll have a very good year in 2022, and hopefully start a new decade run of excellence.

And everyone will be excited again.

 

This compiled with the Dodgers having a lot of success, at least during the regular season,  have made it less exciting to be an Angels fan. 

[T.G.]

 

[Justin]

My love for Angels baseball has not diminished but I don't take it nearly as seriously as I did even 10 years ago. Part of that is getting older and being able to put things in perspective, and part of that is the team's inability to acquire quality pitching. It was fun to watch Ohtani's starts last season, but before that, when was the last time you actually looked forward to watching an Angels starter? (For me, it was Richards in 2014.) 

Until the Angels have a rotation that makes me say "These guys could legitimately win an ALDS in October," it's hard for me to get excited about the team. 

[Catwhoshatinthehat]

I'm in the same boat as Don.  I was going to say real life is the biggest reason my interest has decreased over the years but I still make time for the NFL even when my team isn't competitive.  2002-2009 as an Angels fan we were definitely spoiled while they've made the playoffs once since 2010.  Following a team that has more or less been out of the playoff hunt when the last month or so of the regular season rolls around has made me less interested over the years.  It's been like Groundhog Day where the Angels miss out on SP in the off season, some fans say wait until the trade deadline then when the Angels miss out there they say the cost was too high wait until FA or the off season for trades, rinse and repeat.  More power to you for being optimistic but ownership/management doing the same thing repeatedly after trying to say the right things doesn't give me much faith.  Add to that a 162 game regular season that lasts half a year, a sport that to me is boring on TV and the current lock out and I'm closer and closer to MLB being like the NBA for me which I have no interest in for other reasons.  Hopefully that changes but if not I'm not gonna lose any sleep over it.

[Angels 1961]

4 hours ago, Hubs said:

What decade do you think that you live in? Dollar hot dogs? Seriously?

The question was what would bring you back. $ hot dogs was just part of my answer. I also would like half price tickets for all vets all the time. Gas coupons would be nice. Free peanuts or pretzels with each beer purchase. That would be a win for Arte as pretzels make people thirsty so more beer will be sold. Kids under 12 get in free with each paying adult on all afternoon games. Ladies night on Wednesday, women get in free. No more kids run the bases on Sunday. 

[Angels 1961]

Grich hitting ignore button on me really hurt. My spirits did go up when Taylor informed me I was a top 10 poster. The love I receive from Lou and others on AW keeps me going.

[Docwaukee]

I'm just really disappointed with how the org is run right now.  But my passion for the team will never change.  

[Angels 1961]

9 hours ago, Hubs said:

What decade do you think that you live in? Dollar hot dogs? Seriously?

Well it's not in this century

[Erstad Grit]

5 hours ago, Angels 1961 said:

The question was what would bring you back. $ hot dogs was just part of my answer. I also would like half price tickets for all vets all the time. Gas coupons would be nice. Free peanuts or pretzels with each beer purchase. That would be a win for Arte as pretzels make people thirsty so more beer will be sold. Kids under 12 get in free with each paying adult on all afternoon games. Ladies night on Wednesday, women get in free. No more kids run the bases on Sunday. 

These pretzels are making me thirsty 

[PattyD22]

5 hours ago, Angels 1961 said:

The question was what would bring you back. $ hot dogs was just part of my answer. I also would like half price tickets for all vets all the time. Gas coupons would be nice. Free peanuts or pretzels with each beer purchase. That would be a win for Arte as pretzels make people thirsty so more beer will be sold. Kids under 12 get in free with each paying adult on all afternoon games. Ladies night on Wednesday, women get in free. No more kids run the bases on Sunday. 

Fantasyland is that way brother..  Right down Katella  Ave.  Gas coupons?  Free peanuts?  Pretzels aren’t even served at Angel Stadium, at least in not my Section brother.

I could get on board with the 1/2 price tix for vets though, like Petco does.  You’re not completely batshit nuts.