Kew Forest Plumbing #52

After 41 seasons the Angels found themselves 41 games out of first place. Their 42nd season brought them within four games of first place, yet the Angels franchise managed to capture their first World Championship. No expansion team had waited longer to claim their first Series triumph. The title run was the team's fourth trip to the playoffs, where they were ousted in the ALCS in 1979, 1982, & 1986. After beginning play as the Los Angeles Angels in 1961, the team moved to Anaheim and became known as the California Angels in 1966. The Angels christened Anaheim Stadium on April 9, 1966 with an exhibition game against the San Francisco Giants and Willie Mays hit the ballpark's first home run. Fast forward to 2002 and the franchise had changed ownership (from Gene Autry to Disney), stadium name and capacity (renamed Edison Field in 1998 with 64,593 seats downsized to 45,050), and came to be known as the Anaheim Angles. After rebounding from a franchise-worst 6-14 start, the Angels became only the fourth team ever, and first since 1912, to win the World Series without any players on their roster with World Series experience. And just as they had in the past, San Francisco become the footnote to another milestone in Angels franchise history. After all, it was just two years earlier that the "Rally Monkey" had been born during a summer interleague meeting between the two teams. Now the monkey rests solely on the back of the Texas Rangers, who entered the American League 42 years ago with the Angels and have yet to win a championship. The Rangers franchise actually began as the second incarceration of the Washington Senators (1961-71) before baseball left our nation's capital for good. The home of baseball's longest 0-for-franchise drought now resides exclusively in Arlington, Texas.