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3 most legendary LA Angels Left Fielders of all-time

By Craig Tyson Adams |
Aug 15, 2021; Anaheim, California, USA; Los Angeles Angels left fielder Justin Upton (10) takes
Aug 15, 2021; Anaheim, California, USA; Los Angeles Angels left fielder Justin Upton (10) takes / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
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Los Angeles Angels v Arizona Diamondbacks
Los Angeles Angels v Arizona Diamondbacks / Christian Petersen/GettyImages

It’s been a long time since LA Angels fans have had a consistently good left fielder to feel good about. 

The number 7 position has been a place where overpriced free agents and young projects have gone to be forgotten. 

Despite the fact that left field is a power hitting position, in LA Angels history they have never really had a major power hitter to satisfactorily fill the role. There has been some consistent offensive players, but no legitimate bombers. 

Despite all the driftwood in left, the LA Angels have been successful a lot of the time. 

The current occupant, Justin Upton, is in a walk year. Usually players in that situation excel to get a large payday in free agency. LA Angels legendary Mike Trout and all-world sensation Shohei Ohtani hope Upton can surpass the low expectations that fans have about him. 

That being said, let’s jump in the old wayback machine and revisit the left field of LA Angels yore. 

The No. 3 most legendary LA Angels left fielder of all-time: Leon Wagner

The fact that we have to go back to the 1960’s to find one of the top three tells you all you need to know about the dearth of talent the LA Angels fans have had to suffer. 

Leon ‘Daddy Wags’ Wagner was a three-time American League All-Star and the MVP of the All-Star Game in 1962. 

His best season was that 1962 campaign, when he hit .268/.326/.500 with 37 homers and 107 RBIs in 160 games, finishing fourth in the balloting for the AL MVP Award. He also batted .291/.352/.456 with 26 homers and 90 RBIs in 149 games in 1963.

He had 451 hits in 442 games as an LA Angel. His 37 homers in the 1962 season was a team record that took 15 years to be tied and 20 seasons until it was surpassed. He scored four runs fewer (243 to 247) than Bobby Knoop in 1,084 fewer Plate Appearances as an LA Angel.

He edges out Rick Reichardt who played six seasons with the club. In 1966, he hit the first home run in Angel Stadium history before batting .288/.367/.480 with 16 homers and 44 RBIs in 89 games that year. He received MVP votes in 1966 and was a regular for the Angels from '67-69.

California Angels
California Angels / Focus On Sport/GettyImages

The No. 2 most legendary LA Angels left fielder of all-time: Brian Downing

Brian Downing played multiple positions with the team. He was a catcher in his first two seasons here, including the best offensive season by an LA Angels catcher in 1979. By 1982 he was a regular in left field. 

In his 13 seasons with the Angels, Downing batted .271/.372/.441 with 222 homers, 282 doubles and 846 RBIs. He hit 106 homers as a left fielder, which is the second-most in franchise history.

The kid from La Mirada with wire rimmed glasses was a core offensive contributor to three Western Division titles for the Angels, but he hit just .197 with one homer and eight RBIs in 16 postseason games. 

When he left the club after the 1990 season, he held the franchise record for just about every offensive category. His 38 bWAR is fourth-highest in club history among position players. He was inducted into the club Hall of Fame in 2009.

Sports Contributor Archive 2019
Sports Contributor Archive 2019 / Ron Vesely/GettyImages

The No. 1 most legendary LA Angels left fielder of all-time: Garrett Anderson

Garrett Anderson's smooth left-handed swing resulted in the only LA Angels player with 2,000 hits with the club. 

Anderson possesses numerous club records, including the most hits (2,368), total bases (3,743), doubles (489), RBIs (1,292) and runs scored (1,024). 

His eight grand slams are also the most in franchise history, as are his 10 RBIs in a single game against the Yankees on Aug. 21, 2007. He also set a club record by recording an RBI in 12 straight games in 2007.

Hall of Famer Derek Jeter was the one player in all of Major League Baseball to have more hits than Garrett Anderson in the ten year period from 1995 - 2005 with 1,936 hits. Over that same period Garret had 1,924 hits (only 12 fewer) and his power numbers are much more impressive.

He received MVP votes in 2001, 2002 and 2003, including a fourth-place finish in 2002. He was an All-Star in 2002, 2003 and 2005 and won Silver Slugger Awards in 2002 and 2003, when he led the American League in doubles for two consecutive years. In 2003, he won both the Home Run Derby and was the MVP of the All-Star Game.

Anderson played a key role in leading the Angels to their World Series title in 2002, hitting a combined .300 with two homers, four doubles and 13 RBIs in 16 postseason games that year.

He played in eight postseason series with the Angels, batting .245 with five homers and 22 RBIs in 36 games.

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He was inducted into the Angels Hall of Fame in 2016. The Angels hope that Jo Adell will become the left fielder of the future, and be inducted into the Angels Hall of Fame himself. He certainly has the tools to be added to this list one day.

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