~STORY OF THE WEEK~

ANGELS CHAMPIONS OF THE WEST

A season that began with some of the darkest days in franchise history reached familiar territory Monday night as the Angels clinched their fifth division title in the past six seasons with an 11-0 victory over the Texas Rangers. Rocked by the tragic death of Nick Adenhart and battered by a steady stream of injuries, the Angels were a losing team in April (the only losing month in the past 20 for the team) and tethered to .500 as late as June 11. But they went 63-35 after that to reach the 90-victory plateau for the seventh time in the past nine seasons and qualify for the post-season for the sixth time in the past eight. The Angels are the first team to win the A.L. West title in three consecutive seasons since the Oakland A’s in 1988-90.