Unless you live in Anaheim or happen to have tickets to either Ducks-Predators or the Angels-Red Sox games in Anaheim tonight, you might want to avoid the city like the plague. In anticipation of major traffic snarls around both Anaheim Stadium and Honda Center, the Anaheim Police issued a media advisory yesterday predicting a human zoo tonight, and not just in the parking lot outside the Angels game.
The reason for the special police bulletin? Both games start at almost the exact same time. The Los Angeles Angels go to bat against the favored Red Sox at 7 pm. Just five minutes later, the Ducks face off against the Nashville Predators, a team they're expected to beat, in which case the Ducks will take a 3-2 lead in the series.
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Anyone not attending the sporting events tonight are strongly advised to keep clear. And for those lucky enough to have tickets to either of the games, the cops urge early departures and plenty of patience. “Please allow yourselves ample time to arrive at your destination, understanding that many others will be traveling to the area at the same time,” the advisory states. “We encourage people to carpool to reduce the number of vehicles attempting to locate parking. Alternate off-site parking is available surrounding Angel Stadium and Honda Center.”
The police strongly suggest that game goers “follow the directions of traffic control personnel, who wish to get you to the closest parking locations in a timely manner.” What about tailgate parties? Not happening. “The possession and/or consumption of alcoholic beverages on the Angel Stadium of Anaheim and Honda Center parking lot is prohibited,” the cops warn.
All of these polite suggestions seem to boil down to an unspoken warning: with all the extra cops on hand to deal with tonght's two-fer, anyone dumb enough to drive drunk or otherwise act like an asshole in Anaheim tonight may wish they'd just stayed at home or taken a taxi to their nearest neighborhood sports bar.
Award-winning investigative journalist Nick Schou is Editor of OC Weekly. He is the author of Kill the Messenger: How the CIA’s Crack Cocaine Controversy Destroyed Journalist Gary Webb (Nation Books 2006), which provided the basis for the 2014 Focus Features release starring Jeremy Renner and the L.A. Times-bestseller Orange Sunshine: The Brotherhood of Eternal Love’s Quest to bring Peace, Love and Acid to the World, (Thomas Dunne 2009). He is also the author of The Weed Runners (2013) and Spooked: How the CIA Manipulates the Media and Hoodwinks Hollywood (2016).