The Los Angeles Angels officially joined an unwanted club Sunday when they lost 7-3 to the Seattle Mariners, becoming the last franchise in Major League Baseball to record a 100-loss season in a single year. The milestone, reached in the Angels' 162nd game, ends a 65-year streak.
The 62-100 record represents the worst season in franchise history, surpassing the 63-99 mark set by Ron Washington's 2024 squad one year prior. The collapse stems from a chain of organizational decisions, executive turmoil and a dramatic midseason purge.
In late June, the Angels terminated general manager Perry Minasian. Interim GM John Mozeliak then orchestrated a roster dismantling that sent core pieces Taylor Ward, Jo Adell, Logan O'Hoppe and Chase Silseth elsewhere. The moves left first-year manager Kurt Suzuki working with a skeletal lineup down the stretch.
Franchise centerpiece Mike Trout sat on a scheduled day off for Sunday's finale, watching from the dugout as his depleted team was unable to prevent history.
Seattle methodically expanded its lead Sunday. Yusei Kikuchi surrendered three runs over five innings. Randy Arozarena delivered a two-run double, and Jose Siri added a solo home run. Christian Moore struck the final out, a fly ball caught by Dominic Canzone.
Controlling owner Arte Moreno has agreed to sell the franchise to Stan Kroenke's group for $4 billion, a record price for an MLB franchise. The transition marks the end of Moreno's ownership era, which began in 2003.
Kroenke's Kroenke Sports and Entertainment umbrella includes the Denver Broncos, Los Angeles Rams, Colorado Avalanche and Arsenal FC of the English Premier League.
Before this season, the Angels had managed to avoid triple-digit losses for 65 years. That streak's end coincides with the firing of a GM mid-season, rapid turnover in executive leadership and significant trades that fundamentally altered the team's composition.
What remains to be seen is whether Kroenke's ownership group will provide greater clarity and accountability going forward. The 100-loss season serves as a stark marker of organizational dysfunction. The next ownership must address not merely the roster's composition, but also the structural and governance issues that allowed the team to deteriorate this severely.
