Today the the Times goes in-depth on something I mentioned in passing a couple weeks ago: the Angels are still having trouble finding a new home on broadcast television. KCAL, the major independent station in Southern California and the Angels' current partner, has agreed to broadcast Dodger games for the next eight years, leaving the team out in the cold.

That would leave open precious few options - most likely KTLA 5 (the local WB affiliate) or KCOP 13 (UPN), both of which have played host to Dodger games over the past decade (KCOP does so currently). However, both of the fledgling national networks are pushing their affiliates to devote weeknights to the networks' primetime lineups, meaning more Veronica Mars and Gilmore Girls and fewer local sports.

The Angels' fallbacks aren't pretty either. The only remaining options would be KDOC (an Irvine-based independent station, specializing in Matlock re-runs) and KPXN (affiliate of the i Network, formerly known as PAX) - neither of which are considered to be major media outlets, and couldn't offer the Angels more than a pittance for the rights. Incidentally, KDOC has broadcast a few Angel games over the past couple of seasons (deals struck at the eleventh hour to maximize the club's exposure), though the broadcasts were plagued by technical difficulties.

So what it comes down to is Angel fans are faced with the very real possibility of no broadcast coverage of the team's games (it's unlikely scenario however, as the team would probably suck it up and move to KDOC in the short-term if push came to shove). That's 50 games that wouldn't find their way to the people. And that's 50 games worth of revenue that won't find it's way into the club's coffers.

Oh, but it's not just 50 games.

You see, the Angels' cable partner, FSN West, will broadcast 100 games this season. That's actually above and beyond the contract they signed with Disney in 1998, which calls for the cable network to broadcast only 50 games a year. Over the past several seasons FSN has agreed to pick-up extra games at the last minute. But now they're refusing to pick up those extra games in future seasons, having been understandably spooked by Arte Moreno's talk of a competing cable network.

The problem here is that, unlike in broadcast markets, there is no competition in local cable sports networks. If FSN doesn't take them, nobody does.

A perfect storm: 100 games lost in a major media market. That's no way to "build a brand."

This is all very unlikely, as I'm almost certain Arte Moreno will blink on the cable network. Frankly, the timing is all wrong, making it a nearly impossible road to tread. Moreno knows this, though the threat could very well be the leverage he requires to squeeze an improved long-term deal out of FSN.

Still, the possibility that the Angels' television schedule will feature large gaps of fifty or even a hundred games is something fans should brace themselves for in the coming seasons.

JOSH: I think this and the name change show what Arte thinks his team deserves (higher revenues as a large market team), but he has to realize he won't always get it. His argument with the name change was that more people would identify with the team, more ads would be sold for more money during games, and the team would pick up more revenue from having more fans and better TV contracts. However, the Angels have been the second class team in the LA area since they were founded and despite the World Series win, they remain there. The Mets and White Sox are always going to remain as second class teams in their respective cites, too, it is just a fact. Over a long period of time, the Angels will be able to move up the ladder closer to have a fan base (and media perception) closer to that of the Dodgers. Arte complained that the Dodgers get 2-3 times as much in TV revenue than the Angels and why shouldn't the Angels? Their performance has been just as good or better lately, but people care as much about the histories. People have brand loyalty (I drink Pepsi, I play Nintendo, I wear Levi's).

So, Arte flaunted his current fan base by changing the name (re-branding it, as it were) and they did not complain much, because he at least made an argument that it will make the team better by increasing revenues. But the simple act of placing Los Angeles in the team name has not caused fans to come to more games (attendance has increased slightly, largely due to the continued success of the team) and it has not caused TV stations to offer them a contract comparable to what the Dodgers get. They will not get such a contract any time soon. And then, when he doesn't get his way, he starts making threats. First, he did it with Anaheim by saying he may look into moving the team when he has an option to leave the lease. Then, he did it with the TV stations he has a contract with by saying he might look into starting up his own cable station (which would, in fact, directly compete with Fox Sports West and Fox Sports West 2). Well, Anaheim may not have the power to stop Arte from moving, but the TV contract is one in which Fox holds the power (largely because the Angels have become this successful and increased payroll accordingly only after the contract began). I think Arte needs to learn to bite his tongue before he says things that will piss off other groups he has contracts with.