LA Angels Top Ten: Vladi, Carew and Pujols
By Tab Bamford
An American League expansion team in 1961 as the Los Angeles Angels, the team was a perpetual also ran making three playoff appearances until they reached baseball’s pinnacle in 2002 when it finally claimed a World Series title. Coming off their lone World Series title, Arte Moreno’s 2003 purchase of the Angels made the franchise the first to ever have a Latino as a majority owner. Moreno sought to build on that success. Part of his strategy involved the recruitment of Latino free agents to the Angels, highlighted by the signings of Vladimir Guerrero (2004) and Albert Pujols (2012).
The influx of Latino free agents met mixed results. The Angels have made the playoffs six times under Moreno’s ownership, but have yet to repeat the ultimate success of 2002. While Guerrero and Pujols would bring their big bats out west, the ability to develop home-grown Latino talent proved elusive. Ervin Santana and Erick Aybar remain the lone Angels player produced out of the organization’s farm system to be selected to participate in an All-Star, in 2008 and 2014 respectively.
So which Latinos have had the biggest impact on the Angels franchise? To figure that out we kept it simple by using WAR (as calculated by Baseball-Reference.com) as our metric of choice in composing the franchise Latino Top 10 ranking. And while this is one measure of the impact of these players, you might have your own opinion as to who deserves to higher (or lower) on that team’s Top Ten.
Let us know of what you think of these rankings. Surprised some are higher or lower than expected? Is there someone whose halo shined brighter that is missing?
Angels Top Ten
1. Erick Aybar
10 years with the Angels, 23.8 WAR, one All-Star Game, one Gold Glove Award
Dominican Republic
On a list with two Hall of Famers and Albert Pujols, it’s impressive that the highest WAR produced by a Latino player in the history of the Angels came from Aybar. He made his debut in 2006 and over the next decade Aybar stole 141 bases and scored 572 runs in 1,220 games.
2. Vladimir Guerrero
Six years with the Angels, 22.8 WAR, four-time All-Star, 2004 AL MVP, four Silver Sluggers
Dominican Republic
Vladi was at the top of last week’s list for the Expos/Nationals, and this week he enters the Hall of Fame wearing an Angels’ cap. He joined the Angels before the 2004 season and won the MVP in his first year in Anaheim, hitting 39 home runs, driving in 126 and scoring a league-leading 124 times. Guerrero slashed .319/.381/.546 in 846 games with the Angels with 616 RBI and 544 runs scored. Incredibly, 37 percent of Vladi’s hits with the Angels went for extra bases.
3. Rod Carew
Seven years with the Angels, 17.4 WAR, six-time All-Star
Panama
Carew was at the top of the Twins’ list earlier this month and checks in third for the Angels. Carew’s “worst” season in Anaheim came in 1985, when he hit .280 with a .371 on-base percentage as a 39-year-old. Over 834 games with the Angels, Carew collected 968 hits including 140 doubles and 22 triples. He scored 474 times and slashed .314/.393/.392 and made the All-Star team in six of his seven seasons.
4. Francisco Rodríguez
Seven years with the Angels, 16.0 WAR, three-time All-Star, 2002 World Series champion
Venezuela
“K-Rod” showed up at the end of the 2002 season barely 20-years-old and threw 5.2 innings in the majors before the playoffs began. He then threw 18.2 innings and won five games as one of the all-time X Factors in postseason history, helping the Angels to the 2002 World Series title. K-Rod is one of two pitchers to save more than 200 games for the Halos, including a career-high and league-leading 62 saves in 2008, his final season with the club.
5. Andrelton Simmons
Three years with the Angels, 15.3 WAR, one Gold Glove Award
Curaçao
Simmons has been arguably the best defensive shortstop of this generation. Now in his seventh season in the big leagues and barely 28-years-old, Simmons was acquired from Atlanta in a trade that sent the number one player on this list, Erick Aybar, to the Braves. His batting average has been 30 points better for the Angles than it was in his first four seasons in Atlanta. Simmons drove in a career-high 69 runs in 2017.
6. Kelvim Escobar
Five years with the Angels, 14.2 WAR
Venezuela
Escobar initially signed as a free agent with the Angels in November 2003. The right hander settled into a starting pitcher role, winning 11 games in 2004 but season was short-circuited by injury in 2005. He enjoyed his best season with the Angels in 2007, going 18-7 with a 3.40 ERA. However, a right-shoulder injury ended his season in 2008. He finished 43-36 as an Angel.
7. Albert Pujols
Seven years with the Angels, 12.8 WAR, one All-Star Game
Dominican Republic
Pujols’ production in Anaheim hasn’t matched his 11 years in St. Louis, but few careers in the history of the game hold up to that standard. In his first six seasons with the Angels, Pujols has driven in at least 95 runs five times and hit at least 28 home runs in four campaigns. When the history books remember Pujols, his most significant career achievements – his 500th and 600th home runs and 3,000th hit – have come wearing Anaheim red.
8. Ervin Santana
Eight years with the Angels, 12.7 WAR, one All-Star Game
Dominican Republic
Santana, like Carew, has appeared in an All-Star Game (and on our top ten list) for both the Angels and Twins. His 96 wins rank seventh in team history, including three seasons with at least 16 wins. Perhaps his best season came in 2008, when he appeared in his first All-Star Game. Santana posted a 16-7 record with a 3.49 ERA and a career-high 214 strikeouts in 219 innings pitched.
9. Maicer Izturis
Eight years with the Angels, 12.5 WAR
Venezuela
Izturis was traded twice before he played his 33rd game in the big leagues, but once he arrived in Anaheim he found a home. His best season came in 2011 when he appeared in a career-high 122 games with career bests in hits (124) and doubles (35).
10. Sandy Alomar, Sr.
Six years with the Angels, 10.0 WAR, one All-Star Game
Puerto Rico
The patriarch of a Hall of Fame family, the senior Alomar was traded to the Angels by the White Sox during the 1969 season. During the four full seasons that followed, Alomar led the league with 735 and 739 plate appearances in 1970 and 1971, respectively. He appeared in the only All-Star Game of his 15-year career in 1970.
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