The Los Angeles Angels’ new era has already drawn a clear first test for Stan Kroenke.
After Kroenke Sports & Entertainment bought the franchise from Arte Moreno for $4 billion earlier this year, the club is now looking ahead after Moreno’s 23-year run ended with plenty of disappointment. And for MLB insider Ken Rosenthal, the first move should be aimed straight at the top of another organization’s baseball operation.
“If I’m Stan Kroenke, my first calls after I am approved as owner of the Los Angeles Angels would be to the Milwaukee Brewers and Tampa Bay Rays. The Brewers, to ask permission to interview Matt Arnold. The Rays, to request the same with Erik Neander,” Rosenthal wrote on his latest column for The Athletic.
Rosenthal added, “Neither president of baseball operations would necessarily be interested. Both are under contract, so their respective teams might not even allow them to depart.
So? The best way for the Angels to send a warning shot to the industry - one even more meaningful than signing free-agent left-hander Tarik Skubal - would be to lure away the architect of one of the World Series participants.
Or at the very least, try.”
The logic is simple: if the Angels want to build something real, they need the right people steering the ship. Rosenthal’s idea is ambitious, especially with the Brewers and Rays having spent years proving how hard it is to pry away the minds behind their success.
Still, that kind of bold swing would send a message that the Angels intend to act like one of Kroenke’s winning franchises. KSE’s track record includes championships for the Denver Nuggets in 2023, the Los Angeles Rams in 2022, the Colorado Avalanche in 2022, and Arsenal in 2026. The Angels have a long climb ahead, but the rebuild has to start somewhere.
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