1961 Los Angeles Angels season

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1961 Los Angeles Angels
Major league affiliations
American League (Since 1961)
Location
Wrigley Field (Since 1961) Los Angeles, California (Since 1961)
1961 Information
Owner(s)	Gene Autry
Manager(s)	Bill Rigney
Local television	KHJ
Local radio	KMPC (Bob Kelley, Don Wells,Steve Bailey)

The Los Angeles Angels 1961 season ended with the Angels finishing 8th in the American League with a record of 70-91. It was the Angels' first season in franchise history. Gene Autry, whom the Angels' 2002 World Series championship was dedicated to, owned the franchise, which was created as a rival to the Los Angeles Dodgers, who played in nearby Dodger Stadium.

Contents 1 Offseason 1.1 Expansion Draft 2 Regular Season 2.1 Season Standings 2.2 Transactions 3 Offense 4 Pitching 5 Player stats 6 References

[edit] Offseason

[edit] Expansion Draft

• December 14, 1960: Jim Fregosi was drafted by the Los Angeles Angels from the Boston Red Sox in the 1960 expansion draft.

[edit] Regular Season

[edit] Season Standings

American League	W	L	Pct.	GB
New York Yankees	109	53	.673	--
Detroit Tigers	101	61	.623	8
Baltimore Orioles	95	67	.623	14
Chicago White Sox	86	76	.531	23
Cleveland Indians	78	83	.484	30.5
Boston Red Sox	76	86	.469	33
Minnesota Twins	70	90	.438	38
Los Angeles Angels	70	91	.435	38.5
Kansas City Athletics	61	100	.379	47.5
Washington Senators	61	100	.379	47.5

[edit] Transactions

• September 8, 1961: Chuck Tanner was sold by Cleveland Indians to Los Angeles Angels.^[1].

[edit] Offense

The Angels were no stranger to offense in their first season, with five players hitting 20+ home runs, a mark which at the time was considered a remarkable feat. Leon Wagner, who led the team with 28 home runs, was one of the team's best offensive threats, also leading the team slugging .517. The other players who hit 20 home runs were Ken Hunt (25), Lee Thomas (24), Earl Averill, Jr. (21), and Steve Bilko. Albie Pearson, who led the team in batting, had an on-base percentage of .420, also a mark that was considered more valuable than the current game. Pearson led the team in several other offensive categories, leading the team in stolen bases (11), runs (92), and walks (96). Lee Thomas, who ended the season second on the team by batting .284, led the team in hits, with 128, edging out Wagner by 1 hit.

[edit] Pitching

The Angels had a solid starting rotation in their first season. Ken McBride, who led the team with 12 wins, also led the team with 12 losses. Eli Grba had a 11-13 record, good enough for second in both wins and losses amongst the team's pitchers. Ted Bowsfield was the Angels' only starter with a winning record, going 11-8. McBride threw a dominating 180 strikeouts, 75 more than Grba, who was second on the team with 105. As a team, the Angels led the American League, throwing more strikeouts than any of the other 9 teams. Art Fowler and Tom Morgan were the Angels' top-two save winners, who as a team ranked 2nd in the American League, with 11 and 10, respectively.

[edit] Player stats

Hitting				Pitching
Stat	Player	Total		Stat	Player	Total
Avg.	Albie Pearson Lee Thomas Leon Wagner	.288 .284 .280		W	Ken McBride Eli Grba Ted Bowsfield	12 11 11
HR	Leon Wagner Ken Hunt Lee Thomas	28 25 24		L	Ken McBride Eli Grba Ryne Duren	15 13 12
RBI	Ken Hunt Leon Wagner Lee Thomas	84 79 70		ERA	Ken McBride Eli Grba	3.65 4.25
R	Albie Pearson Lee Thomas Leon Wagner	92 77 74		SO	Ken McBride Ryne Duren Eli Grba	180 108 105
H	Lee Thomas Leon Wagner Albie Pearson	128 127 123		SV	Art Fowler Tom Morgan 2 players tied	11 10 02
SB	Albie Pearson Ken Hunt Leon Wagner	11 08 05		IP	Ken McBride Eli Grba Ted Bowsfield	241⅔ 211⅔ 15700

[edit] References

• 1961 Los Angeles Angels team page at Baseball Reference
• 1961 Los Angeles Angels team page at www.baseball-almanac.com

v • d • e 1961 MLB season by team American League Baltimore • Boston • Chicago • Cleveland • Detroit • Kansas City • Los Angeles • Minnesota • New York • Washington National League Chicago • Cincinnati • Los Angeles • Milwaukee • Philadelphia • Pittsburgh • San Francisco • St. Louis 1961 All-Star Game • 1961 World Series

v • d • e Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim Formerly the Los Angeles Angels, the California Angels, and the Anaheim Angels • Based in Anaheim, California (Greater Los Angeles) The Franchise History • Records • Awards & League Leaders • Players • Managers • Broadcasters • City of Anaheim v. Angels Baseball LP Ballparks Wrigley Field • Chávez Ravine (Dodger Stadium) • Angel Stadium of Anaheim Culture Rally Monkey • Thundersticks • Angels in the Outfield • Los Angels en Accion Rivalries Freeway Series Important Figures Gene Autry • Jim Fregosi • Nolan Ryan • Rod Carew • Mark Langston • Brian Downing • Chuck Finley • Bob Grich • Tim Salmon • Garret Anderson • Troy Percival • Mike Scioscia • Bill Stoneman • Arte Moreno • Francisco Rodriguez • Jim Edmonds • Reggie Jackson • Troy Glaus • Gene Mauch • Donnie Moore • Wally Joyner • Bob Boone • Don Sutton • Fred Lynn • Dick Enberg • Vladimir Guerrero • Torii Hunter Retired Numbers 11 • 26 • 29 • 30 • 42 • 50 Minors AAA: Salt Lake Bees • AA: Arkansas Travelers • A: Rancho Cucamonga Quakes • Cedar Rapids Kernels • Rookie: Orem Owlz • AZL Angels • Dominican League Key Personnel Owner: Arte Moreno • General Manager: Tony Reagins • Manager: Mike Scioscia World Series Championships (1) 2002 American League Pennants (1) 2002 Division Titles Western: 1979 • 1982 • 1986 • 2004 • 2005 • 2007 • Wild Card: 2002   Seasons (48) 1960s 1960 • 1961 • 1962 • 1963 • 1964 • 1965 • 1966 • 1967 • 1968 • 1969 1970s 1970 • 1971 • 1972 • 1973 • 1974 • 1975 • 1976 • 1977 • 1978 • 1979 1980s 1980 • 1981 • 1982 • 1983 • 1984 • 1985 • 1986 • 1987 • 1988 • 1989 1990s 1990 • 1991 • 1992 • 1993 • 1994 • 1995 • 1996 • 1997 • 1998 • 1999 2000s 2000 • 2001 • 2002 • 2003 • 2004 • 2005 • 2006 • 2007 • 2008