This holiday season, I have to give thanks for what’s happened to me these past few months. To move from a go-nowhere, do-nothing, lose-everything franchise like the Toronto Blue Jays to be back near my home, like I was with the Diamondbacks back in 2003, would be enough. But to actually now be part of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in 2007 is the best way to ring in the New Year that I could think of.

I’m a competitor. I like to compete, and I like to win. This is why things didn’t work out for me in Toronto. Maybe it’s a cultural difference, I don’t know, but Canadians don’t seem to like winning as much as Americans do. Even in hockey, a sport invented in Canada, they seem to lose to US teams more often than not. America has a lot of spirit – we showed England that spirit in 1776, and we continue to show it today. What does Canada have, besides snow and beer and an inferiority complex from sharing land space with the greatest nation in the world? It’s no wonder no one even knows who Canada’s president is.

Americans had to fight to be where they are today, and I’m no different. Folks didn’t give me much of a chance when I was in the Red Sox organization. If it wasn’t for Grady Little (the best manager I’ve played for so far), I’d be selling Amway products door-to-door in Mesa. But I saw my opportunity, and exploited it to the fullest. That’s why I’m still in the majors, despite folks continuing to doubt me. Theo Epstein didn’t like what I brought to the table, so he shipped me off for some Made In Korea junk. Arizona thought I was done, so they shipped me off to Siberia. And Toronto – honestly, I didn’t know what they were doing when I was there, and I don’t know what they’re doing now, but they can happily do it without me.

But that’s the thing – a player like me needs to play every day, to show the fans and the world what I can do. I couldn’t do that up north, bouncing around between first base, third base, and the DH spot. Maybe when I was younger, I could do that, but not anymore. I’ve got a family, and an adopted child, to worry about. I need consistency in my professional life, too. I need to know where I’m going to be playing, and what I’m going to be doing, and I need it to be the same. And I need to play for a team that appreciates what I can do.

I look at the Angels, and I see a great in-game tactical leader like Mike Scoscia. I see guys like Darin Erstad and Garrett Anderson and David Eckstein, guys like me. We might not have the best numbers in the game, and we might not do things that statheads want ballplayers to do, and we might not be all that bright, but we play the game the way it’s supposed to be played. We have heart and soul and, most importantly, guts. 99 times out of 100, those guts will win you games that your brain will lose. The Angels recognize those sorts of things, which is why guys like Erstad & Anderson hung around for so long. They’re a loyal organization – loyal to their players, to their fans, and to their home. That’s why I’m happy to call Los Angeles my home, and the Angels my team. Full steam ahead, sir.

Shea Hillenbrand’s 21 combined walks in 2006 would have been the 10th most on last year’s Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim team, just behind the oft-injured Tim Salmon.