Many of you have already written about the California Angels' (baseball team) new full official name. (See Dwight's comment for example, and James Dinan.)
Three things you may not realize:
1. For branding reasons, the new Angels' ownership desperately wants everyone to start calling the team "Los Angeles Angels." Just that. Los Angeles. Did I mention desperately?
2. The terms of the 30-year stadium lease the team signed with the City of Anaheim require the team to be officially called "Anaheim." This deal was signed when Disney owned the team, though of course the contractual obligation stayed with the team when it was sold. As hard as the team tried, city officials categorially rejected setting the deal aside. (I don't know whether either party pursued a buyout, which would probably have been better for the city than what's about to transpire.)
3. Although the long-term contract requires the team to be called "Anaheim," it does not require the specific phrase "Anaheim Angels." (An artifact from when Disney wanted greater flexibility, according to this subscriber-only article.)
So FOR PUBLIC CONSUMPTION (i.e. "please don't sue us"), the team has acted as though it has a loophole in the "Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim" monstrosity. Meanwhile, behind the scenes, they lobby Associated Press to get Los Angeles as city name and they lobby out-of-town scoreboard operators to use "LA" or "LAA" as their abbreviation.
Just another reason to despise owners of major sports teams, especially when they deal with governments (and less directly with taxpayers). Especially sad in that Arte Moreno looked at first like he could turn into one of the few good ones.
(I wonder how mad lefties get when they see what they think is Evil Bush complacently mistaken for Stupid Bush. I bet this incenses them, just as I'm mildly piqued that the "this is retarded" reaction will trump the more appreciate "this is repugnant" reaction in the team name feedback. Keep right on saying "this is retarded;" given the alternative, that's what the Angels WANT you to say.)
Posted by Matt Bruce at January 5, 2005 03:47 PMIt's not quite retarded or repugnant...just kind of LAAAme. (Put that on the scoreboards.)
Posted by: maribeth at January 5, 2005 10:13 PMHere in Arizona we have this road, Table Mesa Road.
Somewhere in Wales or some such they have this hill....
And over in Southern California they have this baseball team....
The article I read said that the Angels had the third highest-ticket sales last year (behind the Yankees and the Dodgers)... and he's trying to jump a spot like this?
(Also, I really cannot follow your parenthetical comments. I'm guessing that you're referring to something unrelated that I missed.)
Posted by: John at January 5, 2005 11:16 PM(I wonder how mad lefties get...
Anytime someone I read starts speculating about lefties' weird, frustrating thoughts, I feel I have to go back to past comment threads to see what kind of smart-ass comment I made to trigger that reaction.
Posted by: M.S. at January 6, 2005 09:52 AMAll points well made, since there does seem to be some confusion in this.
That said, THEY'RE NOT IN L.A. They're not even CLOSE to being in L.A. And if Arte Moreno really thinks changing the affiliation city from Anaheim to L.A. matters, he is a JACKASS.
Not that, you know, I'm taking this seriously or anything.
Posted by: Cooch at January 6, 2005 11:58 PM