Fansided

Josh Hamilton: Angels wouldn’t let me talk to Arte Moreno

By Mike Dyce

Apr 28, 2015; Surprise, AZ, USA; Josh Hamilton hits off a tee during workouts at Surprise Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rick Scuteri-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 28, 2015; Surprise, AZ, USA; Josh Hamilton hits off a tee during workouts at Surprise Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rick Scuteri-USA TODAY Sports /
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Josh Hamilton says the Los Angeles Angels front office prevented him from talking to owner Arte Moreno about his status.

The Los Angeles Angels had enough of slugger Josh Hamilton and managed to unload him by trading him to the Texas Rangers. Hamilton left the Rangers to sign with the Angels in free agency for a large contract and never quite lived up to expectations.

While talking to media on Saturday, Hamilton discussed the subject of his departure and relationship with the Angels’ ownership. He said he repeatedly tried to talk to Angels owner Arte Moreno, but front office officials would never let him reach out, creating a divide between Hamilton and his employer.

“Even when I was there in 2013 and wasn’t being the guy I was supposed to be – 2014 the same thing – I tried to reach out to the owner, Arte, and talk to him and tell him ‘you know what, I’m working my butt off and I want to be the guy that played against you for all these years,'” Hamilton said.

“I was always turned down by the general manager and the team president, they said they would let him know. Same thing happened after this incident, after surgery. Talked to Jerry Dipoto and said ‘you know what Jerry, I’d love to talk to Arte, talk to him and reassure him things are okay.’ Turned me down again.

“To answer your question, I did what I needed to do to be a responsible man and employee and reach out to him and was always denied that opportunity. So my hands are clean.”

Why they’d prevent Hamilton from talking to Moreno seems absurd. There are two sides to every story, so you can give them some benefit of the doubt but Hamilton seems to be talking very matter of fact in this interview and not really intending to slam the Angels.

You’d think if you invested that kind of money in a player you’d want to talk to him about his struggles and status instead of ducking him when he wants to talk about it, so who knows what really happened between Hamilton and the Angels.

One thing is for sure, Hamilton doesn’t appear to be holding on to a whole lot of guilt when it comes to the split.

Watch below:

H/T Jean Jacques Taylor

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