Why not the O.C. Angels? The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Are you kidding me? This is possibly the worst sports name since Oriole Park at Camden Yards or Toronto Rock. One, it is too long. Two, it is two cities. How can a team be in two cities? The team did it because it wanted to reach out to the greater Los Angeles area and increase its marketing: after all, where is Anaheim? But then again, where is Green Bay? Simply said, this is quite possibly the worst "compromise" the Angels could have reached.



It certainly has not made the city of Anaheim happy. The city will challenge the name change in court, saying that it violates the team's lease agreement with the city for Anaheim Stadium. It certainly violates common sense, but does it really violate the lease agreement?



Section 11(f) of the Stadium Lease Agreement between the Angels and the City states, "Tenant will change the name of the Team to include the name ‘Anaheim’ therein, such change to be effective no later than the commencement of the 1997 season." The new name may be confusing and it may be unwieldly, but it does contain Anaheim. Thus, it does not appear to violate the letter of the agreement.



But it certainly seems to violate the spirit of the agreement. The city obviously included the clause because it wanted the team to be known as the Anaheim Angels -- which would bring attention to the city that has given so much to the team. Scoreboards and announcers say "Anaheim." The MLB website links to "Anaheim." Under the new regime, these most likely will be changed to "Los Angeles (A)."



The city is making just this argument, stating that "the redundant and confusing 'Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim' which the Angels have proposed using also would violate the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing which the law attaches to every contract in the State of California." Depending on which judge they get, they may actually be able to win. After all, a team is traditionally referred to by the city before the nickname (though, arguably, this is the first time a team name has featured a city before and after the nickname). But, the city will make a convincing argument that Anaheim will be dropped, leaving only Los Angeles and a breached agreement.



Adopting "Los Angeles" will not save the Angels -- a savvy marketing strategy will. The team should keep the name of the city that has provided it with support and funding over the years and drop the ridiculous double name.

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