Despite having one of the best seasons of his great career last year, the Angels decided they were no longer willing to commit big money to the 37 year-old outfielder. They plan to go with a younger outfield of Mike Trout, 21, Mark Trumbo, 26, and Peter Bourjos, 25. Vernon Wells, and his albatross of a contract is set to be the fourth outfielder.
This moves make sense as outfield is a very demanding position and none of this trio even makes a tenth of what Torii Hunter did last season. Also, these players are still young and developing so the Angels believe they will not lose much production by getting rid of Hunter to give Trumbo and Bourjos more playing time.
However, as any fan knows, when a player leaves the team loses much more than his production. Torii Hunter was not your average player, for several years he was the face of the Angels team and easily their most marketable player.
Fans loved Torii from the moment the team signed him. He brought a different dynamic to the Angels. He was not just a star player, he was full of charisma and humor. He was the rare star with a personality the fans loved as well as a blue-collar approach to the game.
Another thing fans loved about him was he was willing to do anything for the team. He made spectacular catches sacrificing his body seem like routine plays. He also recruited upcoming free agents to come to the Angels. Furthermore, rookie phenom Mike Trout publicly stated how Hunter has been a great mentor for them. On top of all this, he even said he would take a pay cut to stay with the club he has done so much for.
Unfortunately, when it came down to the decision the team decided that they no longer wanted the man who, for five years, gave everything he had to them. That is what upsets me most about this move and I know it upsets fans. That is why I will also root for Torii next year, even though he will be wearing a different jersey, because underneath that jersey, is the same man every Angels fan loved for the last five years.
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