The ball is back in the Angels’ court.
Tuesday, the state appeals court ordered the Major League Baseball team to show why it shouldn’t side with the city of Anaheim and bar the use of “Los Angeles” in the franchise’s name until the city’s lawsuit is heard in the fall.
The California Court of Appeal set a March 28 hearing for Angels Baseball LP and Anaheim. That’s a few days before the baseball season gets under way.
Earlier this year, Orange County Superior Court ruled twice against Anaheim’s requests to bar Angels owner Arte Moreno’s controversial name change.
If the appeals court rules in favor of the Angels, then the team will continue to be known by the Los Angeles moniker until a separate trial finishes. Anaheim has filed suit against the Angels, claiming the team violated its lease when it changed its name to Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. That case is set to begin Nov. 7.
Anaheim attorney Andrew Guilford said he asked the court to start the trial in August.
“We were disappointed that the court would set the date in November,” he said. “We wanted a decision before the World Series. People may wince when they first read ‘Los Angeles Angels,’ but when they hear it a thousand times or more in a baseball season they stop wincing.”
