Dodgers, angels face marketing challenges: fans' loyalty is tested by region's ball clubs.

Which ball club is more unpopular these days--the Dodgers or Angels?

It's a close contest, with Dodgers General Manager Paul DePodesta dismantling last year's division-winning team, and Angels owner Arte Moreno incurring the wrath of Orange County fans by changing the Anaheim team's name to L.A. Angels of Anaheim.

It hasn't helped that both Frank McCourt, who bought the Dodgers before last season, and Moreno, who purchased the Angels two seasons ago, are new to their respective cities and have yet to build up much in the way of fan goodwill.

"Neither one has sufficiently established themselves in the communities," said Andrew Zimbalist, an economics professor at Smith College and author of "Baseball Billions." "But if the teams win, they will be able to recover some of their lost popularity."

Later this month, the Dodgers will roll out a marketing blitz to introduce the new team, which includes J.D. Drew, Jeff Kent, Jose Valentin and Derek Lowe. Although team officials would not divulge the theme of the campaign, they said the marketing budget is considerably higher than last year.

"We've acquired some really popular players and we're going to make sure the public knows who our new players are," said Lon Rosen, the Dodgers' executive vice president and chief marketing officer. "It's a good way to deliver the message. People are always excited to meet the players."

Under DePodesta, the Dodgers have let go players including Adrian Beltre, Shawn Green, Steve Finley and Jose Lima, who were both popular and successful. DePodesta is trying to build a younger team that can remain competitive longer.

Still, David Carter, principal of Redondo Beach-based consulting firm Sports Business Group, said "they are going to have to win early and often. If you're the owner of a franchise, that's a pretty tough spot to be in--to have to rely primarily on on-field performance."

(Carter, a consultant to the city of Anaheim in its efforts to lure a National Football League team, declined to comment on the Angels situation. The city of Anaheim has filed suit to block the name change.)

Angel woes

On-field performance may not go as far for the Angels, where the shakeup had nothing to do with personnel and everything to do with marketing.

"Ultimately, they are biting the bullet in the short term in hopes that the moves they are making will strengthen them for the long term," said David Miller, president of Integrated Sports Marketing Inc. in San Diego. "But it has touched a nerve with a percentage of the fans. Both teams have good followings with solid traditions and they are probably counting on that to get them through the short term."

The marketing plan Moreno rolled out to accompany the name change included blanketing L.A., Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties with nearly 500 billboards, using the team's "A" logo and referring to its market as the "City of Angels." One such billboard hovers high above Sunset Boulevard, just west of the entrance to Dodger Stadium.

Angels officials said they made the move in an effort to increase television, radio and possibly ticket revenues by drawing from what they believe is an untapped market of Southern California residents who aren't Dodger fans--or those who might support both teams.

"One of the best things they could do is demonstrate a commitment to the fans of Orange County--a lot of community outreach from the team," said Russel Wohlwerth, a principal at SelectResources International Ltd., a Santa Monica management consulting firm. "You need to reach back into the community and let them know you still love them."

Robert Alvarado, the Angels' director of marketing and promotions, agreed.

"We need to educate our customers as to what's going on here," he said. "We're doing this to displace the (financial) burden of putting a competitive team on field from the fan."

The Angels, who won the World Series in 2002, bad a reported $115.6 million payroll in 2004, third-highest in the major leagues. At the same time the team's average 2004 ticket price of $16.60 was seventh lowest among 30 teams, which averaged $19.82. The nearly 3.4 million fans the team drew last year are 250,000 below the 45,000-seat stadium's season capacity.