A season worth forgetting in Anaheim ended with a mark that will linger in baseball history forever.
With a 7-3 loss to the Seattle Mariners at T-Mobile Park on Sunday, the Los Angeles Angels (62-100) officially crossed a threshold they had evaded for 65 years: their first 100-loss season.
The defeat stripped the Halos of their standing as the last MLB franchise to avoid triple-digit losses, putting all 30 clubs on the century-mark ledger.
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For first-year manager Kurt Suzuki, Game 162 was the grim culmination of a grueling campaign, one that ultimately eclipsed the 63-99 mark set by Ron Washington’s 2024 squad.
The finale carried an unmistakable layer of drama. Franchise star Mike Trout watched from the dugout on a scheduled day off as his young teammates fought to avert history.
Shortstop Zach Neto had insisted earlier in the week that organizational pride would propel them past the brink, and a 5-4 stretch in their final nine games gave Anaheim a flicker of hope. But Sunday proved unforgiving.
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Former Mariner Yusei Kikuchi (1-7) was tagged early by his old club, surrendering three runs over five innings. After Angels’ Bryce Teodosio trimmed the deficit to 3-1 with a sixth-inning sacrifice fly, Seattle quickly slammed the door. A costly throwing error and a two-run double by Randy Arozarena pushed the margin out of reach. A late solo shot by Jose Siri provided a brief spark, but the season expired when Dominic Canzone squeezed a fly ball off the bat of Christian Moore for the final out.
Following the June 26 firing of GM Perry Minasian, interim GM John Mozeliak tore down the roster, shipping out fan favorites Taylor Ward, Jo Adell, Logan O’Hoppe and Chase Silseth (and more) for prospects and leaving Suzuki with a stripped-down, youthful core down the stretch.
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Yet, hitting rock bottom arrives with a sudden shift in momentum.
The end of Arte Moreno’s era is officially underway following an agreement to sell the controlling interest of the franchise to Stan Kroenke’s group for a record $4 billion.
For a fanbase enduring its lowest historical point, Kroenke’s proven track record of constructing championship rosters across professional sports offers what Anaheim has lacked for decades: a real vision forward.
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