Yes, we know that this is taking a while!

As many of you know, we here at Notinhalloffame.com are slowly generating the 50 of each major North American sports team.  That being said, we have existing Top 50 lists out and we always consistently look to update them when we can and based on necessity.  As such, we are very happy to present our post 2022/23 revision of our top 50 Los Angeles Angels.

As for all of our top 50 players in baseball we look at the following:

1.  Advanced Statistics.

2.  Traditional statistics and how they finished in Major League Baseball.

3.  Playoff accomplishments.

4.  Their overall impact on the team and other intangibles not reflected in a stat sheet.

Last year, the Angels went all in and imploded with another failure to make the playoffs.  We only saw one change, and no new entries.

As always, we present our top five, which saw one major change.

1. Mike Trout

2. Nolan Ryan

3. Chuck Finley

4. Shohei Ohtani

5. Frank Tanana

You can find the entire list here.

Notably, Trout was already at the top of the list, and with Shohei Ohtani departing the club, his status at #1 is cemented for decades. 

Ohtani made it to #4 from #12.  As mentioned, he left the struggling Angels for a shot at the World Series with the Dodgers.

As always, we thank you for your support, and look for more revisions in the future. 

Yes, we know that this is taking a while!

As many of you know, we here at Notinhalloffame.com are slowly generating the 50 of each major North American sports team.  That being said, we have existing Top 50 lists out and we always consistently look to update them when we can and based on necessity.  As such, we are very happy to present our post 2022 revision of our top 50 Los Angeles Angels.

As for all of our top 50 players in baseball we look at the following:

1.  Advanced Statistics.

2.  Traditional statistics and how they finished in the American League.

3.  Playoff accomplishments.

4.  Their overall impact on the team and other intangibles not reflected in a stat sheet.

Last year, Los Angeles again failed to make the playoffs, despite having the two best players of this generation, one who is ranked number one on this list, and another who jumped 20 spots.

As always, we present our top five, which was not affected by the last season:

1. Mike Trout

2. Nolan Ryan

3. Chuck Finley

4. Frank Tanana

5. Jered Weaver

You can find the entire list here.

2021 MVP and dual-threat superstar, Shohei Ohtani, rocketed from #31 to #12.

We welcome your input and comments and as always, we thank you for your support.

Frank Tanana arrived in Anaheim as a left-handed lightning bolt, a pitcher whose early velocity was so pure it rivaled the thunder of his teammate, Nolan Ryan. While history often places him in the shadow of the "Express," Tanana was a statistical giant in his own right, providing a specialized brand of southpaw dominance that the American League had rarely seen.

Tanana’s rise in California began with a 1973 debut, but he reached a career-defining breakout in 1975. That season, the 21-year-old left-hander led the American League with 269 strikeouts and a league-best strikeout-to-walk ratio, signaling his transition from a young prospect to an elite rotation force. He possessed a focused intensity on the mound, pairing a blistering fastball with a devastating curve that made him a nightmare for hitters across the junior circuit. He provided high-frequency power, recording over 240 strikeouts in three consecutive seasons while keeping his ERA well under the 3.00 mark.

In 1977, Tanana reached a career peak, leading the American League in ERA (2.54) and pitching bWAR (8.3). Despite these massive numbers, the traditional voting of the era overlooked his dominance, placing him ninth in the Cy Young race while favoring relievers and high-win starters. He showed the organization that a pitcher could lead the league in efficiency and workload simultaneously, as he also led the AL in shutouts (7) that year. He demonstrated craftsmanship, proving that his left-handed delivery was every bit as lethal as the right-handed heat coming from the other side of the Angels' rotation.

Everything culminated in 1979, when Tanana provided the veteran-like poise that helped California reach its first-ever postseason. However, the heavy workload of his early twenties began to take a physical toll; a bout of tendinitis forced a tactical shift, as he moved away from his power-pitching roots and began to navigate a different plateau as a finesse artist. He was eventually dealt to the Red Sox before the 1981 season, leaving Anaheim with 102 wins and 1,233 strikeouts.

Frank Tanana won 240 career games, yet never seemed to be on the tip of the tongue when you think of all-time great pitchers, or even really good ones. Yet, a closer look at the Michigan native shows a Pitcher whose career was a lot better than you may initially think.

Tanana began his career as a flame-throwing pitcher who, in the mid to late 70’s, had been a Cy Young threat and led the AL in Strikeouts in 1975. His control was solid, too, as his WHIP and ERA were among the top ten during that time frame. Like many pitchers, Frank Tanana’s arm gave out, and at the age of 25, he had to reinvent himself as a junkball pitcher. It wasn’t the quickest transformation, but he would emerge as a dependable starter for Texas and later his hometown Detroit Tigers.

The man who “threw in the 90’s in the 70’s, and threw in the 70’s in the 90’s” may not be a Hall of Fame Pitcher, but he deserved to have gotten a better total than the zero he received in his lone year of eligibility. 240 wins have never seemed so undervalued.