Are the Los Angeles Angels on their way out of Anaheim?

The Los Angeles Angels have already decided to go with a new manager for 2019, but without a stadium in place for next season will be they also be moving on from their home city?

On Tuesday, the Los Angeles Angels announced that they have opted out of their current stadium lease with Angel Stadium in Anaheim, California as reported by Bill Shaikin of Los Angeles Times.

The Angels’ decision to exercise their opt-out clause with Angel Stadium comes at a crucial time; if the team chose to bypass their opportunity to opt-out on Tuesday, they would have had to wait until 2028 to get another chance to do so. Owner Arte Moreno didn’t want to wait that long before settling into a new venue, and it seems as if the Halos have played their last game in the only ballpark they’ve ever known.

This might surprise you, but Angel Stadium opened in 1966 and is the fourth-oldest MLB stadium still in use, behind Fenway Park, Wrigley Field, and Dodger Stadium. The ballpark seats 45,050, and is —or dare I say was — the 11th-largest venue in the Majors in terms of capacity.

Angel Stadium is considered one of baseball’s most pitcher-friendly stadiums, as it’s 18-foot wall in right and right-center field makes it especially tough on left-handed hitters. Shohei Ohtani didn’t seem to have any problems with the high fences in right field — the sweet-swingin’ lefty mashed 15 of his 23 homers at Angel Stadium in his rookie season.

Although the Angels have decided to move on from Angel Stadium, the team has yet to find a venue to supplant their old one. This means the Halos must frantically search for a new stadium in time for next season, and ballparks typically take longer to build than six months, which is how long the Angels have until Opening Day 2019.

With the Angels’ future stadium plans up in the air, it leaves fans questioning whether the team will move on from their home city, or even the state of Los Angeles altogether. Angels spokeswoman Marie Garvey was noncommittal on whether the Halos would prioritize a return to Anaheim, and said the franchise knows it won’t be easy to find a Southern Californian city willing to fork up money for a new park.

Does this mean the Angels are on the verge of being relocated? Possibly, but nothing is set in stone yet.

In November, the city of Anaheim will choose a new mayor and council members, and the Angels’ management plans to discuss this matter with the new elected officials and explore all of their options before looking elsewhere. The team was unable to land a renovation for the stadium under the tenure of Anaheim’s last mayor, Tom Tait, due to the city’s unwillingness to finance the project with taxpayer money, but at this point local Angels fans must decide which side to align with as a decision looms on the fate of their beloved franchise.

If the Los Angeles Angels and the city of Anaheim can’t reach an agreement on a new stadium situation, the team has a lot of changes ahead of them. First, they decided to part ways with manager Mike Scioscia, whose been at the helm for 19 years, and now the Halos are in the hunt for a new ballpark as well. Angels fans can only hope the team stays close to its roots, but there is a very reasonable notion that Los Angeles’ second-biggest baseball market could be on the move.