It ain't over until it's over--but the angel war is over.

Word from inside the Los Angeles Angels front office is that Los Angeleno Arte Moreno of Anaheim has all but wrapped up his high-stakes name game.

The Orange County city went to court claiming millions of dollars in damages and Wing to reverse Moreno's decision to change the team name from Anaheim Angels to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

"Moreno has the big boys," said a source in the team's front office.

In a de facto sense, the fight's been over for some time. Since the change was announced last year, the Associated Press, newspapers and radio and TV stations, including locally based Fox Sports West, have referred to them as the Los Angeles Angels.

On the legal front, the win in Orange County Superior Court will go to Todd Theodora, a former captain of the surfing team at Cal State Long Beach, who represents the club. He hails from the Los Angeles law firm Stephan, Oringher, Richman, Theodore & Miller. The loss goes to the city's Andrew Guilford, of Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton.

Theodora pitched the right tone in opening arguments when he noted that executives of the team's former owners, the Walt Disney Co., had turned down a request from the city to put the words "Anaheim Angels," into any contract. At that moment, you could practically see Superior Court Judge Paul Polos toss the case to mediation.

The Los Angeles Angels owe thanks to the wily execs at Disney, not to mention the Anaheim officials who signed off on the lease deal.

Ball fans guessed that Moreno was a savvy marketing man when one of his first acts upon buying the team in 2003 was lowering the price of beer at the stadium.

Staff reporter Kate Berry can be reached at [phone], ext. 228, or at [e-mail].