Just Call the Angels Winners, Fans Say

The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim debuted Tuesday night in front of a sellout crowd at their home field, defeating the Texas Rangers, and the fans said they didn’t care what their team was called as long as it kept winning.

“I never cared about the name at all,” said Doris Powers of Orange. “They’re still the Angels. As long as they don’t move away, who cares what their full name is?”

Apparently not the people who count the most for team owner Arte Moreno -- season ticket holders. As of this week, the Angels had set a team record for season ticket sales with more than 27,000.

And whether the team hails from Los Angeles or Anaheim or both, baseball experts are picking the Angels to win their division. Still, some can’t help poking fun at the name. One baseball writer picked the Los Angeles/Superior Court Angels to rule the American League West this season.

Joey Martinez of Anaheim said he doesn’t mind his team being the butt of jokes over its name.

“I’ve been with this team when they were bottom of the barrel in the 1970s and parts of the 1980s, so I’ve been called a lot worse things in the stands than the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim,” Martinez said. “As long as it says ‘Angels’ across the jersey, I’m good with it.”

But some fans weren’t quite ready to leave the name controversy behind. They wore red T-shirts that said, “We’re not in LA” and others proudly displayed the team’s old gray road jerseys that have Anaheim emblazoned in the front.

“Anaheim gave us in Orange County an opportunity to have our own identity, separate from Los Angeles,” said Steve Ciminella of Tustin. “I think ownership simply found a tricky way of getting around their agreement with the city of Anaheim. It’s disappointing.”

The state 4th District Court of Appeal is reviewing the city’s lawsuit against the team and Moreno over the name change announced in January. A ruling is not expected until at least this summer.

Last week, attorneys for the Angels and the city met to discuss terms of a possible settlement, but both sides indicated no deal was imminent.

At the Angel Stadium’s upper deck, 15-year-old Hannah Dinneny of Lakewood took more issue with the team letting shortstop David Eckstein, a free agent, slip away and sign with the St. Louis Cardinals. Dinneny wore Eckstein’s No. 22 jersey as a tribute to her favorite player.

“December 21st, that was the worst day of my life when I woke up and saw they let him go,” she said. “Everything else compared to that is secondary. I do think the Angels’ full name is a little goofy, but they’re still the Angels.”

Dinneny said she spends a lot of time on the message boards at the Angels’ website and she said there is very little mention of the name change anymore.

“When somebody tries to start talking about it, people will say, ‘That’s old news; enough already,’ ” Dinneny said.

Moreno declined a Times interview request in the Angels’ clubhouse, but hours before the game, he spent some time signing autographs and mingling with fans as they waited for the gates to open.

“The guy’s a natural,” said Tim Conradi, an Angels’ fan who lives in Phoenix. “Do you think you’d ever see Dodger owner Frank McCourt out here before the game?”