It's the end of an era for the Los Angeles Angels, and one that fans of the franchise may be happy about: Arte Moreno has sold the teamto Los Angeles Rams (and lots of other franchises) owner Stan Kroenke.
Moreno has been criticized plenty after he bought the Angels in 2003, just after the franchise won its first and only World Series in 2002. And there's good reason for that given how the team has performed while he was at the helm.
So as we get ready to say goodbye to the Moreno era and hello to Kroenke's reign, let's go over the worst parts of Moreno's ownership.
1. The lack of playoff appearances since 2014
This is fairly simple. The franchise has been above .500 just once since that ALDS sweep in 2014. Horrible.
2. Wasting Mike Trout
We are talking about a first-ballot, no-doubt, unanimous selection Hall of
Famer here. Trout has stayed with the team that drafted him in the first round in 2009 and has won three MVPs, appeared on 12 All-Star squads, and generally became the best player in the game in his prime.
3. Losing Shohei Ohtani
See above. How could Moreno's Angels let a talent like Ohtani walk? It goes beyond the massive contract the Dodgers gave him -- maybe if the Angels would contend, it would have helped convince Ohtani stay for less.
4. Paying or trading for aging players who struggled
Albert Pujols. Anthony Rendon. Vernon Wells. Gary Matthews Jr. Josh Hamilton. Really, really, REALLY bad stuff.
5. Letting Angel Stadium fall apart
From our stadium rankings earlier this year:
The stadium’s issues certainly are still around. Angel Stadium remains an outdated facility with no clear plans for improvement. That all falls on owner Arte Moreno who just extended the lease through 2032 (with renewals potentially as late as 2038).
This article originally appeared on For The Win: The 5 worst Arte Moreno blunders from his Angels ownership
