Los Angeles Dodgers: The 2010s were a decade filled with almosts

2000s Los Angeles Angels

Wait one minute—the Angels won a title in the 2000s? Yes, they did, but this is about what happened after their breakthrough. The Angels won the 2002 World Series, which was their first title in the team’s 41-year existence.

In fact, they won their first playoff series that year after heartbreaking losses in previous years. They did it as a “Cinderella” team, becoming the first wild card team to win the World Series since the 1997 Florida Marlins.

After a year off the Angels took off as a team and were the best team in Southern California for the rest of the decade. Starting in 2004, until the end of the decade, the Angels won 567 games, second only to the New York Yankees. They won five division titles in six years, making the playoffs more times in this period than in the previous 45 years combined.

Unfortunately, that 2002 title would be their lone title, during their run the Angels were eliminated three times in the ALDS by the Boston Red Sox and the two times the Angels moved past the ALDS they lost in their bid to return to the World Series once to the White Sox in 2005 and then to the Yankees in 2009.

After their historical run, the next decade did not come close to reaching the same levels. In the last 10 seasons, the Angels have only made one playoff season and finished below .500 five times.