WHY I REALLY DON'T LIKE THE RALLY MONKEY

I am haunted by visions of the 90’s. Every time we play the Angels I swear that I will never be able to watch “Ace Ventura: Pet Detective” ever again. But now, instead of seeing a cute little monkey jumping on the screen I hear Angels fans cheering, and a ridiculous looking monkey jumping around like a Mexican jumping bean with the words “RALLY MONKEY” on it. What is this?! This is not cute or funny. My favorite Jim Carrey movie as a child will never be the same for me again, thanks a lot Anaheim!

Honestly, I really want to know why do teams insist on incorporating mascots into this game? I don’t get it! What does a crazy looking creature have to do with pitching, fielding, and hitting? The Yankees and the Dodgers have the best philosophy here: keep it simple, leave them in the toy chest. Ok, so maybe that isn’t their philosophy per say, but at least we don’t see these teams parading them around on the field or waving them on sticks up in the stands!

Ok, so you insist on having a mascot….fine. Why a Monkey? I am trying to put “two and two” together here but it doesn’t add up! The team sports a halo in their branding, and a halo suggests purity or innocence. So, is the Rally Monkey supposed to be the hero instead of the players?

Then we have another factor to consider, the Disney Company who helped rebuild the franchise starting in 1996, so if the Angels had to have a mascot, why not make the connection to Disney somehow? I’m so confused! The Angels have halos but they have a mischievous monkey jumping up and down to the House of Pain’s song “Jump Around?” I just don’t understand this, Disney came before the Monkey!

And if that isn’t confusing enough for you, Kenny Singleton himself adds to the insanity. On Monday night he called The Rally Monkey “very entertaining.” Really, Kenny? If I can see the monkey that means we have a close game and the Angels are threatening to take the lead. Call me crazy, but I don’t find watching my team struggle “entertaining.” Would I call it frustrating? Yes. He is either easily amused or he ate a bad banana because there is no way that cracked out monkey can be amusing during a pivotal point in the game.

Kenny, if you want some entertainment and you like cute little furry animals I have one picture that Yankee fans will be more agreeable to (see picture attached). Now see, isn’t this better?

--Jeana Bellezza --BYB Writer and Editor

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