Los Angeles Angels are a professional baseball team that plays in the American League West division of Major League Baseball (MLB). The Angels play at Angel Stadium in Anaheim, California.
The Angels entered the American League as an expansion team in 1961. The original owner was former cowboy movie star Gene Autry. The team was originally called the Los Angeles Angels and played at Wrigley Field in Los Angeles. From 1962 through 1965, the Angels shared Dodger Stadium with the National League‘s Los Angeles Dodgers. The team became the California Angels in 1965, and moved to Anaheim in 1966. The Walt Disney Company purchased the team in 1996 and renamed it the Anaheim Angels. In 2003, Disney sold the team to Arturo Moreno, a Hispanic American businessman. Moreno became the first member of a United States minority group to own a controlling interest in an MLB team. The team name changed to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in 2005. In 2016, the team changed its name back to its original name, the Los Angeles Angels.
The Angels made the playoffs in 1979, 1982, and 1986. The team finally reached the World Series in 2002, when the Angels defeated the San Francisco Giants in seven games. The Angels have since made the playoffs several times, but have not returned to the World Series.
Stars of the Angels have included pitchers Chuck Finley, Nolan Ryan, and Troy Percival; infielders Rod Carew, Wally Joyner, Jim Fregosi, and Troy Glaus; and outfielders Vladimir Guerrero, Reggie Jackson, and Tim Salmon. Recent stars have included Shohei Ohtani, Albert Pujols, and Mike Trout.
