1986 California Angels Media Guide

The 1985 California Angels finished 2nd in the American League West and dammit, they are exc!ted.

There is so much wrong with this 1986 Media Guide cover, I'm not even sure where to begin.

1. The slogan We're So Exc!ted doesn't mean anything. Its an expression of a current mood. It doesn't really brand the '86 squad and instead, suggests that the 12 people in the marketing department decision-making group couldn't agree on a proper slogan so they settled on the 14th suggestion on their list, just below "Can't wait for Donnie Moore to screw up the '86 ALCS".

2. The exclamation point in the middle of the word Exc!ted. In my mind, the enunciation of the word is exCIted with an assumed period at the end. Besides being grammatically incorrect (wandering exclamation points are frowned upon), the slogan would have been more powerful had the ! been at the end of the slogan. We're so Excited! Yeahhhhhh.

3. The botched high-five. Brian Downing is lunging under the outstretched arm of Doug DeCinces. Decinces isn't even in a good high-five receiving position, his fingers pointed out as if completing a heil-Hitler salute. Besides that, Downing is turned counter-clockwise about 6 degrees too far. Its a putrid display of athleticism. Oh, I get it, Downing was yelling "We're so Exc!ted" as he kicked his heels into the air.

4. Why is Dick Schofield dancing like he's at his Aunt Betty and Uncle Ronald's 50th wedding anniversary. His tilted head and pretty smile suggest he's more impressed than he should be with the lousy celebration.

5. The hand on Doug Decinces' buttocks suggests a teammate (perhaps Bobby Grich??) was taking advantage of the chaos to cop a much-coveted feel of those soft DeCinces man-cheeks. Its definitely a righty and a white guy which rules out Carew, Pettis and Jackson. Could be Wilfong though. You just never know with Wilfong.

The fact that they are celebrating on the 3rd base line before home plate shows some chutzpah but that's neither here nor there. Another random observation is that Decinces can jump a lot higher than Downing.

Using TBC Research, I was able to ascertain [guess] that the photo taken was from this game, where Brian Downing hit a 2-run homer in the bottom of the 9th off Toronto's Gary Lavelle to push the Angels 17 games over .500.