Top 5 Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
For most of the team's existence since joining the American League in 1961 as the expansion Los Angeles Angels, the organization has been more significant for who owned the team than who played for it. The team was originally owned by Gene Autry, the singing cowboy, for whom the club retired the number 26 (I guess he was symbolically considered to be the 26th man). The team got its name from a PCL club of the same name that used to be in Los Angeles before the Dodgers moved out west, playing its first season in Wrigley Field (not the one in Chicago). It then played out of Dodgers stadium, but chose to refer to it as Chavez Ravine instead (which is the area Dodgers Stadium is in). Tired of paying high rent and fees to Dodger owner Walter O'Malley, and tired of being considered L.A.'s second-tier club, the Angels looked to move, first looking at Long Beach before settling on Anaheim. They changed their name to the California Angels in anticipation of their move in 1965, then moved to Anaheim in 1966, where they led the league in attendance. Although California already had two other major league teams at that point, the Angels were the state's only American League representative, so the name wasn't that silly. The Disney corporation had minority interest in the club since the move to Anaheim, but didn't become majority owners until in 1996, when they decided to change the name of the club from the California Angels to the Anaheim Angels in the hopes of expanding the appeal of the city that they pretty much control. Disney would eventually learn that sports don't cross-brand with cartoons and theme parks as much as they'd hoped, and wanted to get out of the sports biz, even after the team won its only World Championship in 2002, so they sold the club in 2003 to a group led by Arturo Moreno, the first Hispanic with controlling interest in a professional sports franchise in North America. Moreno has since decided that Anaheim is too small-time a city, and he wants to horn in on the Dodgers hold of Los Angeles, so in 2005 he decided to change the name back to the Los Angeles Angels, a move currently in dispute with Anaheim city officials, thus the really stupid and overly-long name they currently have, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.
5. Jim Fregosi- The first big star for the club, Fregosi joined the team in their first season, manning shortstop until he was traded to the New York Mets in 1972. While with the club, Fregosi was a six time all-star, won a Gold Glove in 1967, a year where he finished 7th in MVP voting. However, his biggest contribution to the club is probably the fact that the Angels were able to trade him to the Mets for Nolan Ryan. He currently ranks fourth on the club's all-time list for Games Played (1429), At Bats (5244), and Walks (558), fifth in Runs Scored (691), Hits (1408), Doubles (219), and Total Bases (2112), and is the Angels all-time leader in Triples (70). His number 11 is retired by the club.
4. Tim Salmon- Apparently, Tim Salmon is still on the Angels roster. I thought he retired, but I guess he was just injured for the entire season. I bet he retires now. In any case, he's played his entire 13 year career with the Angels, which puts him on those lists where they show you active athletes who have played for the same club the longest, which is how I found out he was still an Angel. Salmon started with the club in 1993, winning the AL Rookie of the Year Award. Since then, he's won a Silver Slugger in 1995, finished 7th in MVP voting in 1995 and 1997, had four 30+ Home Run seasons, and helped lead the club to their 2002 World Championship. He ranks third on the Angels all-time list for Games Played (1596), and At Bats (5723), second in Hits (1618), Doubles (331), Total Bases (2863), On Base Percentage (.386), and Runs Batted In (989), and is the club's all-time leader in Runs Scored (956), Walks (941), Slugging Percentage (.500), and Home Runs (290).
3. Garret Anderson- Jim Fregosi, Tim Salmon, and Garret Anderson... you know, some lists are just better than others. When I'm mentioning how many 7th place finishes players have in MVP voting, then you know it isn't a very accomplished franchise. Well Garret has them beat, as he finished FOURTH in MVP voting in 2002. How do you like them apples? He also won the 2003 All-Star MVP, thank you very much. The three time all-star and two time Silver Slugger Award winner is well on his way of owning all of the Angels offensive records, ranking second in Batting Average (.298), Games Played (1619), and Home Runs (224), third in Runs Scored (828), and is their all-time leader in At Bats (6472), Hits (1929), Doubles (403), Runs Batted In (1043), and Total Bases (3062).
2. Chuck Finley- The face of the organization throughout the late 80's and 90's, Finley pitched for the Halos for 14 seasons, from 1986 to 1999. A four-time all-star with the club, Finley finished 7th in the Cy Young Award voting in 1990 (I bet you thought I was going to say MVP voting there). Unbelievably, Chuck Finley is the only man in the history of baseball to strike four men out in an inning more than once. He did it three times! Did his catcher just not wear a glove? How the hell does that happen to the same guy three times? Anyway, he ranks second on the club's all-time Strikeout list (2416), Games Pitched (436), and is their all-time leader in Games Started (379), Innings Pitched (2675.0), and Wins (165). But, I'll always remember him as the guy who got beat up by the chick from the Whitesnake video. Harsh.
1. Nolan Ryan- Nolan Freaking Ryan. The Ryan Express was traded to the Halos in 1972, where he pitched until moving on to the Houston Astros as a free agent for the 1980 season, in one of the worst personnel decisions in club history. In his 8 seasons in Anaheim, Ryan was a five time all-star, finishing 8th in Cy Young voting in 1972, second in 1973, and third in 1974 and 1977, led the league in Strikeouts 7 times, won 20+ games in 1973-74, and threw 4 of his 7 career no-hitters. He ranks second on the club's all-time list for Wins (138), Games Started (288), Innings Pitched (2181.1), and leads the club all-time in Complete Games (156), Shutouts (40), and Strikeouts (2416). His number 30 is retired by the club, and he was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1999 with 98.79% of the vote. Oh, and this won't be the last list he appears on.
Honourable Mentions: Brian Downing, Rod Carew, Troy Percival, Darin Erstad, Don Baylor, Tony Danza