Angels

1961

The LA Angels finished the 1961 season with a 70-91 record. The club's .435 winning percentage still stands as the best of any expansion team in major league history. The Angels played at Wrigley Field in Los Angeles in 1961.

1962

The Angels moved to Dodger Stadium and remained there through the 1965 season. In the same year, a 25-year-old rookie vowed to set the American League on its ear, and he did just that against the Baltimore Orioles on May 5. For 8 2/3 innings, Robert "Bo" Belinsky shut down the Orioles without a hit.

1964

With a 20-9 record and a 1.65 ERA, 23-year-old Dean Chance was named the Cy Young Award winner. He received 17 of the possible 20 first-place votes and became the youngest player ever to receive baseball's most coveted honor for a pitcher.

1966

After spending a year at Wrigley Field, and four seasons as tenants of Dodger Stadium, the Angels debuted at Anaheim Stadium on April 9, 1966, with an exhibition game against the San Francisco Giants.

1970

Alex Johnson became the first and only Angel ever to win a batting title when he beat Boston's Carl Yastrzemski for the title on the last day of the season. The date was Oct. 1, 1970. The place, Anaheim Stadium. The opponent, the Chicago White Sox.

1973

May 15: Nolan Ryan became the first right-hander in the club's history to throw a no-hitter when the Angels defeated the Royals in Kansas City, 3-0, before a crowd of 12,205.

July 15: Ryan became the fifth pitcher in Major League history to record two no-hitters in a single season when he pitched the Angels to a 6-0 win against the Detroit Tigers on July 15 with 41,411 in attendance.

1974

Making his 41st and final start of the year, Nolan Ryan tossed the third no-hitter of his career by defeating the Minnesota Twins, 4-0, before a sparse turnout of 10,872 at Anaheim Stadium.

1975

Nolan Ryan tied a Major League record by pitching his fourth career no-hitter as the Angels beat the Baltimore Orioles, 1-0 before a crowd of 18,492 at Anaheim Stadium.

1979

Angels 1st Division Title: After 18 years of existence, Gene Autry's team had finally made it to the postseason. League MVP Don Baylor led an explosive offense which complemented a pitching staff led by 16 game winners Nolan Ryan and Dave Frost. The Halos would lose to the Baltimore Orioles in four games in the ALCS.

1982

The Angels won the 1982 Western Division Championship, it was accomplished by a team "made up of veterans with sore muscles, with tired arms, with drained emotions. This team, more than any other I've played on, had to push itself to grind out wins," - Angels second baseman Bobby Grich.

1984

Reggie Jackson's 500th Home Run: On September 17, Angel star Reggie Jackson became the 13th player to reach the coveted and exclusive milestone of hitting 500 career home runs.

Mike Witt's Perfect Game: On September 30 in Arlington, Mike Witt became the 13th pitcher in Major League history to pitch a perfect game. At age 24, he was the fourth youngest ever to do so.

1986

Angels win American League West: Bittersweet would be the best way to describe the Angels' 1986 season, one of the best in franchise history, but so close to the ultimate goal of a World Series appearance.

Don Sutton's 300th Victory: On June 18, 1986, 41-year-old Don Sutton defeated the Texas Rangers for his 300th career victory which assured him a one-way ticket to The Hall of Fame in Cooperstown.

1992

The Angels retire Nolan Ryan's number 30 on June 16 at Anaheim Stadium. Ryan posted a 138-121 record and a 3.06 ERA in 291 games with the Angels.

1995

Garret Anderson wins the Player of the Month Award for July after hitting .410 with 22 runs scored, eight doubles, seven homers and 35 RBI in 25 games. He was the first rookie to be honored with the award since its inception.

1998

Angels open brand-new Edison International Field in front of 43,311 fans. The Angels beat the Yankees, 4-1. Dave Hollins recorded the first hit in the first inning.

2000

Mike Scioscia took over the managerial reins and led the club to an 82-80 record, a 12-game improvement over last season's record. Darin Erstad won a Gold Glove in the outfield and enjoyed recorded a dominant offensive season, leading the AL in hits (240) while scoring 121 runs and driving in 100, hitting 25 homers. Troy Glaus also erupted with an AL-high 47 homers and 102 RBIs, and Mo Vaughn (36), Garret Anderson (35) and Tim Salmon (34) joined the home-run party. Vaughn and Anderson tied for the club lead with 117 RBIs. But the Angels' offensive eruption wasn't supported by quality pitching. The pitching staff's ERA was 5.00, with no pitcher collecting more than 10 wins.

2001

Troy Glaus (41 homers, 108 RBIs) and Garret Anderson (28 homers, 123 RBIs) continued to produce big numbers offensively, but the Angels fell below .500, to 75-87. Ramon Ortiz was the staff leader with 13 wins, while Troy Percival registered 39 saves.

2002

After a sluggish start, the Angels turned on the jets, showcasing a bold new running game, and qualified for the AL Wild Card with a 99-63 record.

After knocking out the Yankees in the ALDS in four games, the Angels continued their hot hitting while trouncing the Twins in five games in the ALCS, highlighted by Adam Kennedy's three-homer outburst in Game 5 at Angel Stadium. The Angels were on the verge of losing the World Series to the San Francisco Giants when they rallied from a 5-0 deficit to win Game 6 with three runs in the seventh inning and three more in the eighth. Behind the performance of rookie John Lackey, the Angels won Game 7 at home, 4-1, winning the first championship in franchise history.

2003

The Angels crash-landed, finished eight games below .500. Garret Anderson tried to carry the offense, batting .315 with 29 homers, 116 RBIs and a league-high 49 doubles, but injuries whittled away the lineup with only Adam Kennedy, Tim Salmon, Scott Spiezio and Bengie Molina managing to stay healthy along with Anderson. Ramon Ortiz led the pitching staff with a 16-13 record, while Francisco Rodriguez (8-3, 3.03 ERA) and Troy Percival (33 saves) led the bullpen.

2004

With the offseason acquisitions of outfielders Vladimir Guerrero and Jose Guillen and pitchers Bartolo Colon and Kelvim Escobar, the Angels had high hopes for a turnaround season under new owner Arte Moreno.

Injuries to key players Troy Glaus, Darin Erstad, Troy Percival, Garret Anderson and others along with Colon's subpar start, which slowed that plan. But Guerrero hammered opposition pitchers all season long, Chone Figgins became an indispensable player at multiple positions and Francisco Rodriguez stepped into Percival's closer's role, allowing the Angels to stay afloat.

The Angels lost in the ALDS to the eventual World Series champion Boston Red Sox, but that couldn't mask a terrific regular season. They had 45 comeback wins in their 92-70 record, playing before a franchise record 3,375,677 fans at Angel Stadium. Colon had a sterling 18-12 record, becoming the ace the Angels thought he'd be. Erstad won a Gold Glove at first base to become the first player in Major League history to win one as an infielder and outfielder.

2005

Behind Bartolo Colon's Cy Young season and Vladimir Guerrero's bat, the Angels won the American League West for the second straight year, a club first. After defeating the New York Yankees in five games in the ALDS, the Halos were stopped by the eventual World Series Champion Chicago White Sox, losing in five games in the ALCS.

2006

The 2006 Angels stumbled out of the gate, unhinged by sloppy defense, but stormed back to pressure Oakland in the AL West before falling four games short of the A's. From July 1 to the end of the season, the Angels had the best record in baseball: 53-29. Vladimir Guerrero made his third consecutive All-Star start as an Angel, homering against Brad Penny.

2007

With a 94-68 record, the Angels captured the AL West title, clinching on Sept. 23 with a 7-4 win against Seattle. It was their third division crown in four years and their sixth in club history. In the ALDS, the Red Sox completed a three-game sweep of the Angels at Angel Stadium after taking the first two games at Fenway Park.

2008

Setting a club record with 100 wins, the Angels finished 21 games ahead of second-place Texas in the AL West. It was the first time in franchise history they had the best record in the Majors (100-62), their wins evenly divided between home and the road.

Yet the season ended again in frustration at the hands of the Red Sox, who prevailed again in four games in the ALDS. The lone Angels win came in Game 3 in 12 innings at Fenway Park when Mike Napoli homered twice, singled and scored the winning run in a 5-4 game.

2009

After beloved club executive Preston Gomez passed away in January, the season began with heartbreak when rookie pitcher Nick Adenhart was killed along with two companions (with one survivor) in a car crash hours after pitching six scoreless innings on April 8 against the A's at Angel Stadium. It left the team in emotional despair, and it wasn't until mid-June, when the club was 29-29, that it put together an offensive surge that carried the Angels to the top of the AL West.

With a strong finish, they won the division by 10 games, going 97-65. They carried the momentum into the postseason and finally derailed Boston in the American League Division Series. After winning the first two games at home behind John Lackey and Jered Weaver, the Angels rallied with four ninth-inning runs, all with two out, to stun the Red Sox at Fenway Park and complete the sweep in Game 3. But the magic ran out in the Bronx in the AL Championship Series, where the Yankees won all three games at Yankee Stadium, including the finale in Game 6. The Angels took two of three at home in the series, highlighted by a dramatic Game 3 triumph in 11 innings on Jeff Mathis' walk-off double.

2010

After being Champions of the American League West for three consecutive seasons and five of the past six, the Angels fell on hard times, finishing 80-82 and in third place. It was the club's worst record since 2003. Almost everything that could go wrong did go wrong. There were injuries to key personnel throughout the season, but none rivaled the impact of Kendry Morales' loss on May 29 in arguably the freakiest injury in franchise history.

2011

It was a season of resilience, resourcefulness and, at the end, disappointment. After rallying late in the summer following a walk-off home run by rookie Mark Trumbo to beat the Rangers at Angel Stadium, the Angels fell short to beat Texas, which claimed the American League West title for the second year in a row. The Angels, losing their final three-game series to the Rangers, finished 10 games off the pace with 86 wins.

2012

Mike Trout emerged as one of the best players in baseball, Jered Weaver notched yet another Cy Young-caliber season and several other members of a deep and talented Angels team posted solid individual seasons.

But ultimately, the club fell short of the lofty expectations they carried in. `

The Angels, under a new front office spearheaded by rookie general manager Jerry Dipoto, signed Albert Pujols and C.J. Wilson over the offseason, then acquired Zack Greinke in July. Still, they missed the playoffs for a third straight year, finishing 89-73 and getting mathematically eliminated on the third-to-last day of the regular season.

2013

The Angels missed the playoffs despite a second straight big-splash offseason. In December, they signed Josh Hamilton to a five-year contract - almost exactly one year after adding Albert Pujols and C.J. Wilson in one fell swoop - but they didn't reach .500 after the second game of the ensuing year.

The Angels played well down the stretch, winning 22 of their last 35 games, but they were essentially out of the playoff mix for the last two months. Their final record of 78-84 was their worst since 2003 and put them 18 games back of the first-place A's in the American League West.

2014

The Angels made it back to the Postseason on the strength of a Major League-leading 98 wins, third-most in franchise history. Garrett Richards emerged as an ace in his first full season in the rotation, and when the 26-year-old right-hander suffered a season-ending knee injury on Aug. 20, the Angels nonetheless rallied, winning 19 of their next 25 to gain nine games on the A's in the American League West.

Their October run was short, however. The eventual AL-champion Royals swept the Angels in the Division Series, squeaking out a couple of extra-inning games at Angel Stadium and then eliminating them at Kauffman Stadium.

2015

The Angels fought hard to keep their postseason hopes alive until the final day, but they came up just short, finishing the season 85-77 and missing the playoffs for the fifth time in six years.

The Angels sported a .500 record 17 times through the first three months, then took off almost immediately after general manager Jerry Dipoto resigned on July 1, winning 13 out of 15 games to vault back into first place. But they lost 19 times in August, fell out of the race and ultimately ran out of time.

2016

The 2016 Angels broke Spring Training camp with high hopes, but almost immediately they were beset by injuries to their pitching staff that would basically put an end to their postseason hopes before they even got into any kind of groove. Expected ace Garrett Richards tore his ulnar collateral ligament a month into the season and didn't pitch again, opting for stem cell treatment instead of Tommy John surgery. Touted left-hander Andrew Heaney also blew out his elbow and decided on season-ending Tommy John. And that was only the beginning. C.J. Wilson never pitched because of shoulder woes. Nick Tropeano needed Tommy John surgery. Tyler Skaggs missed the first half of the season as he recovered from his own Tommy John. And in late September, Matt Shoemaker suffered a skull fracture when hit by a line drive. By the end of a trying, banged-up year, the Angels fouThe Angels went 80-82 and fell just short of the second American League Wild Card spot in Mike Scioscia's 18th season as manager. Though injuries reduced the club's starting rotation, the Angels stayed in contention until the final week of the regular season behind the strength of their defense and bullpen.nd themselves with a 74-88 record that put them in fourth place in the American League West.

2017

The Angels went 80-82 and fell just short of the second American League Wild Card spot in Mike Scioscia's 18th season as manager. Though injuries reduced the club's starting rotation , the Angels stayed in contention until the final week of the regular season behind the strength of their defense and bullpen.

2018

The 2018 season marked the end of an era for the Angels, as it was the final year with Mike Scioscia as manager after a 19-year run. The club went 80-82, posting the same win total as the year before while missing the postseason for the fourth straight year.

2019

The Angels began the 2019 season with a new manager for the first time since 2000, as Brad Ausmus took over for longtime manager Mike Scioscia. Mike Trout was selected to his eighth All-Star Game, clubbed a career-high 45 home runs and earned his third AL MVP Award. But it was ultimately a year of heartbreak for the Angels, who dealt with the sudden death of left-hander Tyler Skaggs on July 1. The Angels, though, paid tribute to Skaggs with one of the most memorable games in franchise history, as Taylor Cole and Felix Pena combined to throw a no-hitter against the Mariners in the club's first home game after Skaggs' death. Skaggs, who wore number 45 with the team, was a close friend of Trout, who hit a 454-foot homer in that game. The Angels, however, lost 90 games for the first time since 1999 and Ausmus was ultimately dismissed after one year at the helm. Joe Maddon was brought back to the organization as manager, as he got his start in coaching and scouting with the Angels in the late 1970s and was the bench coach for the 2002 World Series champion Angels.

2020

After spending the first 30 seasons of his professional baseball career as a member of the Angels organization, Joe Maddon returned as the new Angels manager for the shortened 2020 season. Superstars Mike Trout and Anthony Rendon both had strong seasons as well as right-hander Dylan Bundy and infielder David Fletcher. Trout finished fifth in the balloting for AL MVP, while Rendon finished 10th. Albert Pujols reached several milestones during the season, including passing Hall of Famer Willie Mays in career homers, ranking him fifth all-time. Justin Upton and Trout also reached 300 career homers during the season, with Trout passing Tim Salmon for No. 1 on the Angels' all-time home run list.

2021

The 2021 season for the Angels was all about two-way star Shohei Ohtani, who had one of the more incredible seasons in baseball history and won the American League MVP Award. Ohtani had a historic season, batting .257/.372/.592 with 46 homers, 26 doubles, eight triples, 100 RBIs, 103 runs and 26 stolen bases in 155 games and going 9-2 with a 3.18 ERA and 156 strikeouts in 130 1/3 innings on the mound. He notably was elected to the All-Star game as both a starting pitcher and designated hitter, starting the game on the mound and at leadoff hitter.

But injuries derailed the season for the Angels, as fellow stars Mike Trout and Anthony Rendon were out most of the year. Trout suffered a season-ending right calf strain on May 17, while Rendon was limited to 58 games because of a hip injury that required surgery. The Angels finished with a losing record for the sixth straight season as a result.

2022

The 2022 season saw incredible performances from two-way sensation Shohei Ohtani and fellow superstar Mike Trout. Ohtani finished the year as the runner-up for the American League MVP while Trout reached 40 home runs despite being out over a month due to back injury. Standout performances from Taylor Ward and Luis Rengifo were also a bright spot while the Angels’ rotation was a strong suit, as young lefties Patrick Sandoval, Reid Detmers, and José Suarez all stepped up. Notable feats from the 2022 season included a cycle by Jared Walsh (6/11 vs the New York Mets) and a no-hitter by Detmers against the Tampa Bay Rays (5/10).

Unfortunately for the Halos, injuries to key players such as Anthony Rendon, David Fletcher, Walsh, and Trout plagued the team as they finished third in the A.L. West with a 73-89 record. Adding depth was the main offseason goal for General Manager Perry Minasian as he added veterans to the roster such as lefty Tyler Anderson, reliever Carlos Estévez, infielder Gio Urshela, and outfielders Hunter Renfroe and Brett Phillips. Interim Manager Phil Nevin, who assumed Manager duties in early June 2022, was given a one-year contract to return in 2023.

2023

The Angels opened 2023 strong out of the gate and remained in contention through the first half, led by All-Star performances from Shohei Ohtani and Carlos Estévez, as well as breakout seasons from players such as Mickey Moniak. At the Trade Deadline, the Halos bolstered their roster with veteran acquisitions like C.J. Cron, Randal Grichuk, Lucas Giolito, Reynaldo López, Mike Moustakas, Eduardo Escobar, and Dominic Leone. But as injuries to key players mounted, the Angels suffered through a seven-game losing streak to begin August and fell out of the playoff hunt.

Shohei Ohtani continued his MVP campaign in the second half as the Angels tried to claw their way back in the Wild Card race, but the two-way star saw his historic year derailed with injuries to his right elbow and oblique which sidelined him for the last month of the season. With veteran stars Mike Trout and Anthony Rendon also injured, the Angels turned to an exciting group of young rookies for reinforcements, including top prospects Logan O’Hoppe, Nolan Schanuel, and Zach Neto.

The Angels finished 73-89, matching their record from 2022, and missed the postseason for the ninth straight year.

Timeline 1961-2023

1961-1970