Los Angeles Angels owner Arte Moreno announced in August of 2022 that he was beginning exploratory conversations to sell the franchise after 20 years of ownership. It felt that a deal was inevitable until, less than a year later, Moreno pulled the team off the market and continued his tenure as owner, much to the disappointment of the baseball community at large.
But much has changed within the Angels organization since then. Shohei Ohtani left the franchise to join the L.A. Dodgers on a contract that the Angels would not match. And although the Angels have had opportunities to land big-name free agents, they’ve instead chosen a more frugal approach that improves the team on the margins.
Sources are saying that the reason for the less extravagant offseason is because Moreno is reportedly close to selling the team and that Mark Cuban of the Dallas Mavericks is one of the names to watch as a buyer, via Beyond the Halo:
MLB Network Radio host Jim Memolo said today that somebody who has worked in MLB told him “the #Angels are about to sell.”
“Arte Moreno’s about to sell, according to this person.”
The same person also speculated Mark Cuban as a potential buyer. pic.twitter.com/BGz5oKRXqn
— BTH (#SellTheTeamArte) (@BeyondTheHalo) February 4, 2024
The source states that the Angels likely would have made an offer to free agent starting pitcher Blake Snell by now, but the reason they are avoiding that is because Moreno is preparing to sell the team. It’s certainly a lofty rumor, as Moreno showed an unwillingness to sell even when he was publicly doing so.
It’s also difficult to imagine the Angels being worth more in the months after Ohtani walked out the door to join the Dodgers. But perhaps, for Moreno, selling was not about fetching the absolute highest price, but getting out when he felt he was no longer doing the best for the team.
Moreno has routinely been among the top spending owners when it comes to player payroll, so it has never been necessarily about the money first and foremost. While many moves were misguided over the years, it was what Moreno legitimately felt was best for the franchise at the time.
The next few months have some added intrigue with these rumors, and it will be closely followed by all of the Angels faithful.
Logan O’Hoppe ready for Angels 2024 season
With an offseason of work under his belt and pitchers and catchers preparing to report within the next two weeks, Logan O’Hoppe is feeling confident in where he’s at, more than he’s ever been entering a season, via the Angels Recap Podcast with Trent Rush:
“I feel really good. I wasn’t happy with how it went last year, especially at the end when I came back. So I’ve worked on that, and I’ve worked on it every day and I feel like I’m in a good place now. For the most part, it’s just timing and understanding how my body is moving and getting in good positions where I can feel like I can be successful. I never feel like I’m at the end of the road, and I don’t think I’ll ever feel that way in my career, but I’m in a really good spot right now. I feel confident in what I’m doing. I’m really excited to keep going forward, and I’ve never felt more prepared or ready for a year than this one.”