ANAHEIM, Calif. \u2014 The sea change coming for the Angels franchise felt due, illustrated each night at Angel Stadium by the waves of shirtless fans in the upper decks imploring Arte Moreno to sell the team. The festering frustrations over Moreno\u2019s meddling and middling tenure as owner were on full display throughout what is now the team\u2019s 11th consecutive losing season.<\/p>\n
Now, the fans\u2019 wish has been granted. Moreno announced Tuesday afternoon that he had sold the club to Stan Kroenke at what The Athletic reported was a $4 billion valuation<\/a> that also includes the team\u2019s television network and radio station. For the fans who occupy the nightly \u201cTarps Off\u201d section, it was vindication.<\/p>\n \u201cJust hoping for change,\u201d said Connor Gale of Claremont, one of hundreds of fans who have participated in the impromptu chants this summer. \u201cWe were told (by Moreno) winning isn\u2019t our top-5 priority<\/a>. For a lot of fans, it is.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt was like, \u2018finally,\u2019\u201d said Anaheim native Joseph Gandara.<\/p>\n \u201cWe were just kind of waiting for it,\u201d longtime Angels fan Mark Pargo said.<\/p>\n For Mike Trout, still the franchise\u2019s most recognizable star, it is a \u201cfresh start.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou kinda felt that it was needed,\u201d Trout said. \u201cIt\u2019s obviously been frustrating the last, I don\u2019t know how many years it\u2019s been. But just to hear the news like this, I\u2019m super excited to have this change.\u201d<\/p>\n The sale, which won\u2019t be finalized until the first quarter of 2027, is the richest transaction in Major League Baseball history. Overhauling a franchise that hasn\u2019t made the postseason since 2014, and whose processes have largely been seen as an outlier, will be a massive undertaking. Change will not come overnight, even with Kroenke assuming the title of baseball\u2019s richest owner.<\/p>\n That did little to quell optimism.<\/p>\n \u201cI think seeing the reaction from the fans and some of the guys and the whole vibe, I think it was needed for a fresh start,\u201d Trout said. \u201cThe biggest thing is getting that feeling of getting that winning culture back and having that vibe in the clubhouse.\u201d<\/p>\n Losing has bred frustration and, with it, the soundtrack of the Angels\u2019 summer consists of frustrated jeers and urges for Moreno to be out.<\/p>\n \u201cTheir voices are heard,\u201d shortstop Zach Neto said. \u201cWe hear them. And it motivates us.\u201d<\/p>\n “Goodbye Arte,” is live and well! Tarps off crew started with the round the diamond player naming until they got their player acknowledgment! #Angels<\/a> #RepTheHalo<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/EtqPHfCvfQ<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Eric Arnel (@EricsellsSocal) September 2, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n Fan sentiment has been difficult to ignore, even as Moreno has been less visible at Angel Stadium this spring and summer. Moreno had previously put the club up for sale in August 2022 before pulling the team off the market five months later. Moreno, who in 2003 became baseball\u2019s first Latino owner, was still contemplating a potential exit strategy, according to new club president Molly Jolly. Moreno is expected to stay on as a minority owner, albeit at a much smaller stake.<\/p>\n Chants on Tuesday night included:<\/p>\n Thank you, Stan The chants did not represent a breaking point. But they weren\u2019t ignored, either.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s aware of the chants; he knows about them,\u201d Jolly said. \u201cAt the end of the day, this is about having the right next owner more than it is anything else.\u201d<\/p>\n A new owner materialized in recent months. Kroenke\u2019s sports portfolio includes the Los Angeles Rams, Denver Nuggets, Colorado Avalanche and Premier League\u2019s Arsenal, among others. Conversations began months ago, after Jolly took over as the Angels\u2019 president and replaced longtime executive and ally John Carpino in April. Unlike Moreno\u2019s first attempt to sell the team in 2022, these negotiations did not play out publicly.<\/p>\n \u201cTo be able to sit down with another gentleman and have a conversation and talk about baseball and the franchise, that resonates with how he thinks and looks at things rather than it being a complex conversation,\u201d Jolly said. \u201cI think that\u2019s what was \u2018why now,\u2019 (it\u2019s) the right person and having the right conversation with them.\u201d<\/p>\n As Kroenke and Moreno negotiated a sale, change was already underway. Jolly fired general manager Perry Minasian in June and replaced him with interim general manager and longtime St. Louis Cardinals executive John Mozeliak. Mozeliak\u2019s contract expires at the end of the calendar year. First-year manager Kurt Suzuki is operating on a one-year deal. The changes continued into this week. Last month, Mozeliak fired the big-league team\u2019s pitching coaches<\/a>. Just Monday, Mozeliak announced a front-office realignment, beefing up the group\u2019s assistant general manager total to four while firing several scouts and crosscheckers.<\/p>\n A day later, Jolly slapped a folder filled with papers on Mozeliak\u2019s desk and said, \u201cYour day\u2019s about to change.\u201d Then the two began the process of meeting with players, staffers and coaches to let them know the news and that nothing is expected to change in the club\u2019s day-to-day.<\/p>\n Why Angels fans should be rejoicing after the team is sold<\/p>\n Andy McCullough<\/p>\n The timing of the sale was a shock to much of the organization, though the decision to move on was less surprising. The sentiment has been universal: it\u2019s time for something new.<\/p>\n \u201cChange is what I came in to try to start doing,\u201d Mozeliak said. \u201cI wasn\u2019t thinking it would be at the very top, but we\u2019ve certainly been working our way through the organization.\u201d<\/p>\n Moreno\u2019s involvement in certain details about the franchise ranged from increasingly involving himself in baseball operations to the way his employees dressed. Each and every day at Angel Stadium, they wear the same red tops that match much of the ballpark\u2019s hallways and the Angels\u2019 clubhouse.<\/p>\n Moreno\u2019s involvement and willingness to listen to particularly star-level players had its benefits. Moreno, for example, helped broker Trout\u2019s massive contract extension in 2019 with an in-person meeting in spring training and oversaw several big names joining the franchise, from Trout and Albert Pujols and Shohei Ohtani to the disastrous addition of Anthony Rendon.<\/p>\n \u201cWhatever the outside noise was of him \u2014 I\u2019ve seen a lot of hate, a lot of love, but a lot more hate,\u201d Neto said. \u201cBut as a player who has played under him, it was a lot of love.\u201d<\/p>\n Still, his unwillingness to spend on the margins \u2014 in player development, infrastructure, or even to have his radio team travel with the club \u2014 left cracks that have only grown bigger over time as the Angels\u2019 playoff drought has gotten longer. Mozeliak, who spent three decades in the Cardinals\u2019 front office and won two World Series titles, called his experience working with the Angels \u201cvery normal,\u201d but acknowledged the clear holes the organization must fill to catch up to the rest of the sport.<\/p>\n \u201cClearly, they are where they are,\u201d Mozeliak said. \u201cTo not acknowledge that change needed to happen or things needed to be done differently, that wouldn\u2019t be fair either. That\u2019s how I\u2019ve approached it. But I really haven\u2019t spent a ton of energy trying to look backwards. It\u2019s really been trying to focus on what\u2019s ahead of us.\u201d<\/p>\n Time will tell how immediate Kroenke\u2019s impact will be, though the Angels are eager to find out. Trout and Neto reached out to an unnamed Rams player on Tuesday to gather intel on their new owner, who has a sterling reputation amongst his NFL peers.<\/p>\n \u201cHe had some really good things to say,\u201d Trout said.<\/p>\n Kroenke has a history of winning \u2014 the Rams have already won a Super Bowl during his tenure and are among the favorites again in 2026, the Nuggets won an NBA title in 2023, the Avalanche won the Stanley Cup in 2001 and 2022 and Arsenal snapped a 22-year title drought in May.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat a track record,\u201d Trout said. \u201cWherever he buys, he wins.\u201d<\/p>\n The organization must decide who will run its baseball operations department after this season, though Jolly said Mozeliak is still expected to be involved in that process. Then, perhaps, a new manager if it is not Suzuki.<\/p>\n
K-S-E
Stan Kroenke
Goodbye Arte
Sold the team
An-a-heim<\/p>\n