Angels optimism flickers as a Super Bowl matchup revives old memories

The Seattle Seahawks will be playing the New England Patriots in a rematch of the 2015 Super Bowl, and for Los Angeles Angels fans, a painful reminder of how painful the past decade has been. The 2015 season was the last time that the Angels had a winning record, finishing the year with a record of 85-77.

It was a season when injuries were not the topic of conversation surrounding Mike Trout, who simply was the best player in the game at that time. Trout nearly won the American League MVP in 2015, hitting 41 home runs while posting a 176 OPS+.

2015 also marked the last time in his career that Albert Pujols had a 40-home-run season. Kole Calhoun in right field was the other support for Trout and Pujols that season, hitting 26 home runs with an OPS+ of 104.

The pitching staff was led by Héctor Santiago, who was selected to the American League All-Star team while posting an ERA of 3.65 in 33 outings with 162 strikeouts.

Super Bowl LX rematch is a reminder of the last time the Angels were relevant

Of course, the arrival and departure of Shohei Ohtani have highlighted the Angels' misery in the years since 2015. Misery that has been accentuated by the failed signing of Anthony Rendon to a seven-year contract worth $245 million.

As the Patriots and Seahawks renew their Super Bowl rivalry, it's hard to generate much excitement over what Los Angeles has done this winter. Trading for starting pitcher Grayson Rodriguez and outfielder Josh Lowe were nice gambles, but it's been an offseason defined by penny pinching. They finally found their exit strategy with Rendon, restructuring his contract, but they don't appear to be in a rush to put the saved money to use.

In other words, yes, that is why we are depending on sports voodoo as one of the few reasons to be excited about the Angels' baseball in 2026

Perhaps the Angels will one day have a comeback story like the Patriots did this past NFL season. They've been one of the worst teams in football since Tom Brady's departure, and their rise back to the top of the NFL was one of the most surprising storylines of the season. One can only hope such a turnaround will eventually happen in Los Angeles.