Hey, Anaheim councilwoman Kris Murray, we’re not in Kansas anymore.
I never thought of Anaheim as a place where country bumpkins might reside, but apparently voters there like their politicians gullible.
Angels owner Arte Moreno huffs and puffs about wanting a new stadium lease, and tells the Register he’s frustrated.
Join the Mike Trout party is what I would have told Moreno, which might explain why Arte and I don’t spend a lot of time together.
But when Murray heard Moreno was frustrated, she had a cow.
That’s how they talk in Kansas.
As soon as Moreno let it be known he was frustrated with lease negotiations, an Angels spokesperson said, the team will “explore all our options to ensure that we have certainty for our fans and the future of the team,’’ and is gobbly goop one word or two?
I take for granted the Angels have explored the option of making the playoffs the past four years, and how has that gone?
I appreciate the Angels wanting to provide “certainty for our fans,’’ but I think everyone is already certain they are dealing with a bully when it comes to Moreno’s Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.
But Murray interpreted the spokesperson’s spin differently.
“The critics said that there was no way the team would leave,’’ Murray is quoted as saying in the Register, and I thank her for reading Page 2. “But this shows that our fears were justified.”
I called a PR rep for Anaheim, who called Murray’s aide, who called Murray and was told she had family commitments and would not be able to talk, although she had just done so to her aide.
But “fears” as Murray suggested, is a very good word, and describes what Moreno is counting on in getting his way.
I’ve always thought the better word was “extortion,” having dealt with the NFL and the L.A. market: Give us what we want or we’ll blow up this place and go elsewhere.
Smelling salts, please, for our Chicken Little Councilwoman because L.A. stood firm and they did go elsewhere, but the Angels aren’t going anywhere before 2019.
Thank heavens Moreno and Murray weren’t together, because knowing Arte he might’ve yelled, “boo,’’ and there is no telling how high Murray might have jumped.
I’m not even sure 2019 matters to our Councilwoman as much as November 2014. Four of the five Anaheim Council members are up for election, including the Mayor, and I fear they will be working harder to please Angels fans than Josh Hamilton.
The Angels are also in a hurry to secure a new deal, team president John Carpino calling to tell Anaheim he’s frustrated with the slow progress in negotiations.
You can usually count on however Moreno feels, Carpino feels the same way.
And you can understand why the Angels are frustrated. Angel Stadium needs repairs and under the present lease the Angels are obligated to spend as much as $150 million on stadium maintenance.
I’m frustrated every time I get a homeowners association bill to help pay for paving the area’s streets.
The Angels would like a new lease in an effort to dodge such an expense, and now have the clout to apply pressure with elections coming soon.
“The city doesn’t have the money to make those repairs,” Lucille Kring told the Register, and why should that matter if the Angels are contractually on the hook to pay for them?
Kring said the city has “found a funding source through private development to pay for it,” which is very nice, but why is the city trying to find someone to pay Moreno’s bill?
“Let’s get it done,” concludes Kring, “Because no one wants to see the Angels leave.”
You are going to hear that a lot because Kring is running for mayor to take Tom Tait’s job, and I wouldn’t be surprised if everyone on the Council joins her in a “We Are the World’’ little ditty with everyone singing, “Lets get it done because no one wants to see the Angels leave.”
But let’s see them try to sell it for $1 for the next 66 years with all the money going to the Angels.
“I think it’s imperative that the entire City Council work in good faith so we can keep the Angels in Anaheim for generations to come,” Murray told the Register.
I would think the Register reporters who wrote this story used a tape recorder when talking to Murray because I would have been laughing too hard to write down what she had to say.
Murray thinks it’s imperative to work in good faith. Yeah, I think everyone should absolutely love their mother. Why state the obvious?
Or, is she saying something else, which smacks of bad faith when trying to sound so politically correct?
It’s well known in Anaheim the Mayor and Council members are often at odds, and how do you like their collective chances now in dealing with Moreno?
As for Moreno, he’s always frustrated. You’ve seen his team play, so you can understand why.
But frustration also comes with the job as owner and negotiating with agents when trying to sign players. And Arte always seems frustrated with agents.
Frustration often turns to anger for Arte, but he’s still a businessman who values making money and he’s not going to move his team and pay for a new stadium when he already knows Anaheim will capitulate.
He beat Anaheim on the name change, and so badly the city is now offering to have “Anaheim” taken completely off the stadium. You know, because of their fears.
But until a deal can be worked out, like Trout, the Angels have no choice but to wait and abide by their present lease even though they think they deserve better.
How does it feel, Arte?
Contact the writer: tjsimers@ocregister.com
