There’s Money to Be Made Off Silly Name

The jury had just begun deliberations Thursday morning in the five-week case over what the Angels could call themselves, Arte Moreno never missing a day, and now he was walking the halls of an Orange County courthouse, a little anxious, a little tense at what might happen, which come to think of it, is really no different than watching Francisco Rodriguez pitch.

He stopped to chat, a uniformed sheriff putting a man against the wall nearby, bringing the man’s hands behind his back and slapping a pair of handcuffs on him.

“That gives me the shivers,” Moreno said, and I suppose I could’ve told him if the jury ruled against him, the same thing wasn’t going to happen to him, but then why not let him sweat a little?

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MORENO TOLD the jury from the witness stand between wisecracks his philosophy is to “always try to do business outside the box,” proving that point from day one in lowering beer prices, then some people wondering if he was the one buying the beer when he changed the team’s name.

The change invited ridicule, baseball caps produced by the Boston Parking Lot Attendant reading “Los Angeles Dodgers of Los Angeles,” and I have no idea who lent him the money for that, as well as a lawsuit from politicians, who might have a problem now getting reelected.

The court case was all about Moreno’s right to change the team’s name, but it’s never really been explained what’s the benefit from having such a silly name.

“Sometimes people think I’m stupid with some of the things that I do,” Moreno said, and I nodded, knowing we’d talk later about failing to get a power hitter.

“I’m convinced,” Moreno said, “and have the economic evidence to prove the name change has already allowed us to increase revenues and put a winning team on the field.

“Disney lost between $84 and $86 million, put another $100 million in redoing the stadium, plus the money it spent to buy the team. And here I was getting ready to buy a team [projected] to lose $20 million coming off a World Series year.

“The question I was facing -- if Disney, this great big, successful corporation, couldn’t balance the budget, how was I going to do it?”

To complicate matters, the Angels were out of the playoffs midway through the summer of Moreno’s first year on the job, so it was time to jump outside that box with both feet.

The Angels traditionally averaged between 1.8 million and 2 million fans, drawing 2.2 million when the Angels won the World Series, Moreno said, while selling out only 12 games. Last season, the billboard whiz, operating under the philosophy the Angels have more appeal beyond Anaheim, attracted 3.7 million.

This year the Angels have cut off season-ticket sales, capping them at 30,000. Moreno said the team did not receive a single cancellation for the Diamond Club.

“We’ve made it a regional attraction, inviting everybody, not just Anaheim,” Moreno said. “When I talk about Los Angeles, I’m talking about a region of 18 million people.

“We had something around $15.5 million in revenue for TV and local radio when I bought the team, and last year we did $23.5 million. We’ve tripled the revenue in inside stadium ads. Disney was doing $100 million in revenue; we’re at $200 million. What can we do with that? How does $200 million in revenue compare with the top 10 teams in baseball? Does that give us a chance to compete with them? You bet it does.

“We took on the Yankees in the playoffs, East Coast versus West Coast, two huge regions going against each other, and it wasn’t a lucky thing that we beat them. We beat them because we had the money to put together a good team.”

So you’re getting rich too, I suggested, and I got that look that the Anaheim politicians must have gotten in court.

“In straight cash, I’ve lost $45 million,” he said, the timing perfect, a fan interrupting us to urge him to sign Jeff Weaver, just another $8-million check.

Moreno said he spent $6 million to $7 million in legal fees to prove he was abiding by the team’s lease, which wiped out last year’s profit. The name, which he admitted does sound silly, will not only allow the Angels to turn a profit soon, but gives him the business edge to sign better players.

“I think the baseball experience for a fan begins with the fan walking into the stadium knowing his team has an opportunity to win,” Moreno said, and so obviously there’s still a difference between Los Angeles baseball fans -- the ones who support the Angels, and ones who suffer with that other team.

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AS FOR reports Moreno might move the Angels, he still might, “but I’m not leaving this market. Where am I going to go?

“I’m in the No. 2 media market; I’m not going to No. 50,” he said, but the No. 2 media market means the entire L. A. region is in play. “I’ve got to make that call in 2015 if we’re going to move after 2016, and I have to keep all options open with the next out not coming until 2029 and then we’re in a 50-year-old stadium.

“In 2015, we’ll be in an aging stadium, and while it’s been redone, problems are mounting. My No. 1 responsibility is to take care of our fans, and I’ve got to have the economics to make that happen, and part of it comes from the facility we play in.”

The politicians in Anaheim, of course, have experience in dealing with the owner of a sports franchise who has the option of moving. As I recall, that went about as well as the lawsuit against the Angels.